¶ … Food Supply Safe and Adequate? The question to be answered in this essay is whether or not America's food supply is adequate and safe. The two issues are related.

One of the reasons America has an ample food supply is because of advances made in the biochemistry of agriculture. This affects food coming from both animals and plants.

New advances in herbicides have helped farmers increase the size of their crops. The newer herbicides are biodegradable and rapidly change from something that poisons some living things to chemicals not known to cause harm to plants or animals. Some people worry any time chemicals are added to the food chain, but farmers will argue that they need to make the most effective use of their efforts and their land.

Similar arguments can be made about fertilizers. Most people know that unless farmland is enriched, eventually it will become so depleted that crops won't grow well. Nevertheless, this process...

They cannot test all food, and they cannot supervise all farms at all times, but they do make efforts to monitor the quality of our food. The media rarely reports cases of contamination, which gives consumers some confidence.
Some have concerns, however, about produce imported from other countries. During the winter a lot of our fruit comes from South American countries such as Chile, and Mexico provides much as well. These countries may not be as rigorous in their inspections, and their rules may not carry as much force. Most people know, however, to wash their fruits and vegetable thoroughly before eating them. It's a sensible and easy precaution.

People have different concerns about meat production. Some find the conditions animals are raised…