Schlosser, Eric. "Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation: Why the Fries Taste Good (Excerpt)." PBS. 26 Mar. 2010. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <www.pbs.org/pov/foodinc/fastfoodnation_01.php>.

       In Eric Scholsser's Fast Food Nation: Why the Fries Taste Good excerpt, we initially visit J.R. Simplot at his potato plant in Aberdeen, Idaho. And although the plant is square and unassuming, the inside activity, and J.R. himself, are not. A million pounds of potatoes are processed here daily. They are washed, sorted, peeled, sliced, blanched, blow dried, fried, and flash frozen. At sixteen, J.R. Simplot took the initial steps to becoming one of the richest men in the United States. He became a potato farmer after quitting school at fifteen, leaving home, where he became a potato sorter for a while. After winning a flip of the coin argument with his landlord over an electric potato sorter they shared, his business took off. Eventually, J.R. Simplot "invested heavily in frozen food technology", and wanted to think of a frozen food that would be appealing and profitable to homemakers...enter the frozen fry. With his chemists, Simplot  "wanted to create an inexpensive frozen fry that tasted just as good as a fresh one." He did, and what came next was extremely profitable. With the shake of their hands, Ray Kroc of McDonald's and J.R. Simplot made a deal to produce the best tasting frozen fries in the fast food business.  By using frozen as opposed to fresh, Kroc was able to "ensure uniformity and maintain the quality/consistency of the fries."  Today, Simplot is still the sole producer of McDonald's french fries.

      Simplot was not just successful in the potato business. He is also one of the nation's largest landowners. His company has acquired over 85,000 of irrigated farmland, and he personally owns more than twice that amount of ranchland. Between the acreage and other land holdings, Simplot controls land that's bigger than the state of Delaware. That's a lot of land indeed!!

This excerpt is in contrast to Steven Schneider's Good, Clean, Fair: The Rhetoric of Slow Food Movement article. Schneider tries to keep  the food relationship intertwined within the land's geography, helping us return to a slow paced way of life, savoring life and food itself. Simplot and his food processing businesses on the other hand, contributes and promotes to mass food production, the fast paced life, and the fast food nation as a whole. What irony.

Kenner, R. (Producer, Director) and Scholsser, E. (Producer). (2008). Food, Inc. [DVD]. Magnolia Home Entertainment.

Food Inc. is a Robert Kenner film in documentary style.  The film was made to lift the veil of secrecy and open America's eyes so we can have a better understanding about where our food comes from. Gone are the days of traditional farming, where animals are free to graze on grass and rest in comfortable surroundings.  Big government and major food companies now control the food industry. They control everything, the farmers, how the product is grown, how it's prepared, sold, and even how readily available it will be to the consumer. In fact, there are only a handful of companies to choose from. One might think they have many different companies to choose from, but in actuality, the big companies have bought up the little companies but leave their names on products so you think you have choices. Regarding the meat industry, big companies such as Tyson (the biggest chicken supplier) and Smithfield (the biggest pork) have altered forever the way meat is produced. The conditions the animals live in are deplorable and the way employees are treated tugs at one's heart.Tyson chicken farmers say, "We produce food, not chickens," and Smithfield is a company where the employees get treated like the animals themselves. Regarding the beef industry, grass fed cows are taught to eat corn because it helps them grow faster. Also, meat fillers are being doused with ammonia to kill bacteria, but e coli still prevails. The Organic industry isn't left alone either. Many of these new wave farmers get in bed with the enemy. The question is, are they helping the world trying to help it go "organic," or are they throwing their morals to the wayside by getting in bed with Wal Mart and other big food chains to make a profit? In the long run, it's our responsibility to take back control of our food.  Bus is it too late? Have we made too many deals with the devil? It remains to be seen?