The Future of Food
Encyclopedia
The Future of Food is a 2004 American documentary film
which makes an in-depth investigation into unlabelled, patented, genetically engineered
foods that have made their way onto grocery stores in the United States
for the past decade. In addition to the US there is a focus on Canada and Mexico.
It voices the opinions of farmers in disagreement with the food industry and details the impacts on their lives and livelihoods from this new technology, and shines a light on the market and political forces that are changing what people eat. The farmers are outraged that they are held legally responsible for their crops being invaded by "company-owned" genes. The film generally opposes any patenting of life, and particularly the destruction of traditional cultural practices.
The film decries the cost of a globalised food industry on human lives around the world, and highlights how international companies are gradually driving farmers off the land and into poverty and famine in many countries. Potential global dependence of the human race on a limited number of global food corporations is discussed, as is the increased risk of ecological disasters
— such as the Irish potato famine (1845–1849) — resulting from the reduction of biological diversity
due to the promotion of corporate-sponsored monoculture
farming.
There are thousands of special local landrace varieties of corn growing in Mexico. These precious reservoirs, a library of thousands of years of human agriculture, are now being polluted by the invasion of subsidized US corn. There is a fear of major losses to local food systems -- and also that these gene banks will no longer be available to save global industrial agriculture when a new pest arises.
The issue of incorporating a terminator gene
into plant seeds is questioned, with concern being expressed about the potential for a widespread catastrophe affecting the food supply, should such a gene contaminate other plants in the wild. Legal stories reported by the film related how a number of farmers in North America have been sued by the Monsanto Company
; and the defendant of the Monsanto Canada Inc. v. Schmeiser
case is interviewed.
The film was written and directed by Deborah Koons Garcia, produced by Catherine Butler and Koons Garcia, and premiered on September 14, 2005 at Film Forum
in New York City
to a full house. It has since been released on DVD in both NTSC
and PAL
formats. The film is currently available for viewing at Hulu.com where viewers can watch the film for free with a few advertisements placed throughout the film.
The main DVD contains two extra interview features, and there is a second DVD with a number of extras. The main feature can be viewed online for free at the official website, which also sells many versions of the DVD, for the US and International markets, for home viewing, public viewing, and educational use packaged with a college-level curriculum.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
which makes an in-depth investigation into unlabelled, patented, genetically engineered
Genetic engineering
Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification, is the direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA technology. It involves the introduction of foreign DNA or synthetic genes into the organism of interest...
foods that have made their way onto grocery stores in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for the past decade. In addition to the US there is a focus on Canada and Mexico.
It voices the opinions of farmers in disagreement with the food industry and details the impacts on their lives and livelihoods from this new technology, and shines a light on the market and political forces that are changing what people eat. The farmers are outraged that they are held legally responsible for their crops being invaded by "company-owned" genes. The film generally opposes any patenting of life, and particularly the destruction of traditional cultural practices.
The film decries the cost of a globalised food industry on human lives around the world, and highlights how international companies are gradually driving farmers off the land and into poverty and famine in many countries. Potential global dependence of the human race on a limited number of global food corporations is discussed, as is the increased risk of ecological disasters
Ecological crisis
An ecological crisis occurs when the environment of a species or a population changes in a way that destabilizes its continued survival. There are many possible causes of such crises:...
— such as the Irish potato famine (1845–1849) — resulting from the reduction of biological diversity
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...
due to the promotion of corporate-sponsored monoculture
Monoculture
Monoculture is the agricultural practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide area. It is also known as a way of farming practice of growing large stands of a single species. It is widely used in modern industrial agriculture and its implementation has allowed for large harvests from...
farming.
There are thousands of special local landrace varieties of corn growing in Mexico. These precious reservoirs, a library of thousands of years of human agriculture, are now being polluted by the invasion of subsidized US corn. There is a fear of major losses to local food systems -- and also that these gene banks will no longer be available to save global industrial agriculture when a new pest arises.
The issue of incorporating a terminator gene
Terminator Gene
Terminator Gene is the second book in Ian Irvine's Eco-thriller titles. Set after The Last Albatross, this is the story of Jemma Hardey's daughter. This book is due to be re-released as a revised edition in September 2009.-Plot:...
into plant seeds is questioned, with concern being expressed about the potential for a widespread catastrophe affecting the food supply, should such a gene contaminate other plants in the wild. Legal stories reported by the film related how a number of farmers in North America have been sued by the Monsanto Company
Monsanto
The Monsanto Company is a US-based multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation. It is the world's leading producer of the herbicide glyphosate, marketed in the "Roundup" brand of herbicides, and in other brands...
; and the defendant of the Monsanto Canada Inc. v. Schmeiser
Monsanto Canada Inc. v. Schmeiser
Monsanto Canada Inc. v. Schmeiser [2004] 1 S.C.R. 902, 2004 SCC 34 is a leading Supreme Court of Canada case on patent rights for biotechnology. The court heard the question of whether growing genetically modified plants constitutes "use" of the patented invention of genetically modified plant...
case is interviewed.
The film was written and directed by Deborah Koons Garcia, produced by Catherine Butler and Koons Garcia, and premiered on September 14, 2005 at Film Forum
Film Forum
Film Forum is a nonprofit movie theater located at 209 West Houston Street in New York City. It began in 1970 as an alternative screening space for independent films, with 50 folding chairs, one projector and a US$19,000 annual budget. Karen Cooper became director in 1972 and under her leadership,...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to a full house. It has since been released on DVD in both NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
and PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
formats. The film is currently available for viewing at Hulu.com where viewers can watch the film for free with a few advertisements placed throughout the film.
The main DVD contains two extra interview features, and there is a second DVD with a number of extras. The main feature can be viewed online for free at the official website, which also sells many versions of the DVD, for the US and International markets, for home viewing, public viewing, and educational use packaged with a college-level curriculum.