Food Labels

Before the advances in technology there was not a whole lot to the ingredients of food. Now, technology has allowed us to create so many different products that multiple ingredients are added to our foods. This has cause a great demand for food labels on all of our products. The consumer has become more interested in what goes into the food that they buy. Not only that but eating healthy has become a big component to the demand for food labels. Consumers want to get healthier food that do not have things like trans fats or are low in calories. Organic has become very popular in the food labeling market. Consumers are now looking for products that state that they are 100% organic or that the are locally grown. All of these different types of labels have played a big role in how the consumer shops for food. Not only that but, it has also changed the way producers market and make their product.
Producers started adding labels because it attracted the consumer to buy their product. Consumers have stated to demand for more food labels which has caused policies to be put into place so that all food products must label what goes into their product. It has also become a new way of marketing their products by advertising how their product is better for you then another product. Not only are producers adding label for the consumers but to also beat out competitors in the market. Every producer now has to label their product but now producers are labeling their product with information that will beat our the competition. Such labels are things like organic, locally grown, zero calories, no carbs, and much more. From this we can see that labeling has changed the way that consumers shop and how producers market and make their product.

Importance of Food Aid

In recent headlines, CARE turns down Federal funding for food aid. CARE is one of the world's biggest charities and has decided that they do not want anymore help from the Federal government. Federal funding for food aid was going to give CARE $45 million dollars which they turned down. Why is CARE turning down free money that can be used to help the needy? CARE believes that Federal government funding is not affective and is only used for political control. I believe that Federal funding for food aid is very important and has helped poor nations greatly. Two example would be the Bush and Carter charity programs that have helped tons of poor people in other nations, such as Africa. These system works for a few reasons. It keeps hard currency in poor countries, help prevent food price increases, does not hurt local farmers of that nation, and also provides money to help pay for the antipoverty programs. Over all, I believe that Federal funding for food aid is very important because wealthier nations need to lead a hand and help those nations that are in need. CARE did a big mistake turning down Federal funding and will probably not have as much money to help the poor as they did before.

Importance of Climent Change

Watching the changes in our climate is very important. As we can see in resent news about the tsunami that hit Japan, weather can be very dangerous. Watching and tracing how the climate changes over the years can help us predict how future weather conditions will affect us. In California watching the climate change is very important. Today, we are running low on our water supply which affect both citizens and farmers. By monitoring the weather we can see if we will have a good snowpack, enough rain fall, and how hot the summer will be. All of this factors are important because we can determine how much water we are able to use and how much we will need to store. Not only do we need to keep track of the weather but we need to watch problems like greenhouse and methyl bromine affects.Both of these affects destroy our earth's atmosphere which not only affects us but, our future generations. These are just a few of the problems that we face when trying to help our environment. Global warming is a major topic when talking about climate change. The affects from global warming are very bad for our world and need to be monitored closely. This is why climate change is a big deal.

Is pollution control and environmental protection effective?

Pollution control and environmental protection programs are great ideas. Both will help improve our world and make it better for future generation. The issue that we are having is that we are trying to solve these problems though market based approaches. The problem with trying to solve these issues this way is that government does not take into affect the problems it causes for firms and society. The main idea of these policies are to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To solve these issues though the market based approach is very costly. No matter if your a big firm or a small firm they both pay the same price. This hurts the smaller firms greatly because they can not afford to make the necessary changes. This hurts society because when firms can not afford to make the changes the have to down size or even close. This will cause many people to lose their jobs and other companies will lose a lot of business. An example of this is how trucking companies need t change the type of motors their trucks have. These changes will help clean the air but it is very costly to do. This change has cause some trucking companies to down size greatly. Three questions that we need to ask with these policies are what is the actual cost, what is the nature of the future policies, and what are the stringency of the policies. If we review these questions first before we put the policies in place it would be able to help firms and society.  Even though we all want cleaner air and a healthy environmental but it shouldn't case people to lose jobs. We can find a solution if we work together and help these companies pay for the changes.

Importance of the Delta

  Many people in the central valley do not understand the importance of the Deltas in California. You always hear in the news about what problems it has caused for the enviorment. Enviormentalist say that it is killing wildlife and is destroying the San Joaquin river. What people need to understand that the delta provides so much to the valley and California. The deltas transports water all over California from Fresno, Kerman, Bakersfield, and L.A. If it was not for the development of these deltas California would be a desert and would not be the leading agricultural place in the world. Not only do the deltas provide water to farmers but also to the citizens as well. With the use of deltas towns that are not close to a natural water source can thrive. Yes, the delta does have a minor affect on the wildlife but it provides such a greater benefit for man kind.
  The idea of doing a peripheral canal would be a good idea. With the peripheral canal it would bring water from the Sacramento River, through the San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta. It would transfer water into the California Aqueduct, North Bay Aqueduct, South Bay Aqueduct, the Jones and Banks pumping stations, and then be pumped to Central and Southern California. This would be a good idea because it would cut back on the uses of the San Joaquin River which has cause the talk for all the enviormental issues. it would be a costly project that would rang from $3 to $17 billion to do but, I think that it would be worth every penny if it allows our farmers and citizens to keep receiving water. 

Public Goods

  There are many public goods that are provided for us citizens that people do not use to there full advantage. My most valuable public good is Yosemite National Park. I have grown up here in Fresno and have enjoyed the many beauties of Yosemite. It is surprising to know that there are many people that live in Fresno who have never been to Yosemite even though it is right in the Central Valley's backyard! This public good is very important because it is not only a place to enjoy and explore but, it is also a piece of our nations history. Some of the many things you can do at Yosemite is fish, hike, bike, and have picnics. It is such a fun and beautiful place that is here for us to enjoy.
  Yosemite is a very important public good and I would do as much as I can to protect it for future generation. It is important for future generations to be able to see the same beauty of Yosemite as we do today. What we can do to protect this park is by volunteer service. I have donated my time to help pick up trash at the park before. By doing this it helps keep the park clean and help save the wildlife that the park provides. Another why that we can protect the park is by donation money to help keep it in shape. Our future generations deserve to be able to see some of the many beauties of our nation.

Is locavorism a good idea?

I believe that "locavorism" is a great idea. "Locavorism" is that concept of local purchasing and local economies. People who follow this idea buy doing things like, buying only locally produced goods and services, are helping their local community greatly. Recently, the "Buy Local" idea has become very big within the Valley. You have started to see people, mainly farmers, marketing their produce as being locally grown. Many people do not realize that many of the produce in the market place are not grown locally but, instead are shipped from other states or countries. Since the concept of buying local has become so big, farmers markets have been popping up all over town. Farmers Markets are a great why to insure you are buying locally and getting the freshest produce. Another benefit to this is that consumers are able to create a relationship with the farmers.
Buying locally produced goods and services is very efficient for that community. It helps small businesses stay in business because consumers are buying their product rather then a product that in made somewhere else. By buying local you also help keep the cash flow within your community. This cause a boost in the economy and helps all the local businesses do well. Local businesses also start buying their materials from local businesses which starts to create a cycle that benefits the community.When consumers start to buy locally they are not only helping their community but also are getting fresher produce. Relationships between the buyer and seller grow which is key to a happy and healthy community. In summary, "locavorism" is a great idea and can help the economy.