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Jolof Rice-  A family  staple  food  that  serves  every ocassion

Sun  24/08/2025  12.35p.m

Food  Production and how the  farmers influence the  choices  we make about what  we eat  daily

by Chinyere Nwakanma

Mon 11/08/2025  11:39 a.m

Courtesy  Graceful  magazine

 Food is  vital  to human existence  and the  measure  of  a  successful  government  is  its ability to make sure that  the  basic  needs  for  food,housing ,water, medication,education for its people  are met.The  farmers  determine  what we eat  and   how we  eat  them, with   food production going on in their  factories and farms  around the country.Some of the farmers   have farms that  produce work from  fields to production  factories  meaning  that they plant  the  strawberries  ,harvest  them  and  put them in preservative jars  to last for   longer times in the  refrigerators. Some of them supply  the  strawberries  used in larger  factories  to  make the jams  on our  breakfast tables .They are the  big players in the  food  manufacturing markets  around the world,  as without the farmers there will  be no yoghurt  and milk  for everyone,no rice,beans,strawberries and even  the pancakes  that we eat  before going to work.United  kingdom  supermarkets do  not  lack in food items ,  because of the  standards set for   farmers  by the  government to making sure  that there  are no cases  of  food  poisoning and  diseases  being  spread by  food  bugs.The  work the farmers  are doing in making  sure that  meats  from livestock are  made  available to  everyone is much.The farmers produce different crops like wheat, barley, and vegetables, and they raise animals for meat, milk, and eggs. The UK is largely self-sufficient in grain production and also produces a significant amount of meat, milk, and eggs.Groceries  are significantly  accessible  and planning  a days meal  is not  so  much  of  a burden, because the  shops  have food for those who have made the lifestyle  choices of  living on the basic.I like the  rural  settings ,especially   the  areas  where  farmers  are producing food  for  everyone.Travelling to places like Cumbria from London , gives you a glimpse of the countrysides,the farms and the live stocks grazing on the hills,  which are amazing sights to see.These  sights  are all about food  and making food  cheap  for  everyone,  which is  an amazing job that the farmers  are doing.

In the United kingdom farming  includes these

  • the growing and harvesting of crops.

  • the rearing of livestock like hens,pigs,cows, sheep,  or turkeys.

  • The UK works  at making its own food items  and relies on imports, especially for fruits, vegetables, and some specialized or seasonal foods  from the  European  countries. It is very easy to  just  work into  ASDA to pick up Spinach , but one  needs to  work in the  food  farms  and factories to  see the much  work  that are   done ,to  keep  us  feeding well  by the farmers
  • Climate change and the  weather  do  affect crop yields  success  in a farming  season.  Food supply  chains are  affected  when  the  farms do  not produce  quality foods  as  many  raw  foods  are  thrown away  and used as food  for live stocks . This  are the reasons  why the climate change activists  are  worried, that  climate change  means  that there will  be  no food in the future for everyone.We depend  on providence to give us food to  eat  with the help of the  hardworking farmers.
    The UK is  focused on sustainable farming practices and reduction of the carbon footprints .The  United  Kingdom have its  farming regions  in Fermanagh  dairy farms,Central Wales  sheep farms, Northumberland sheep farms,The  Yorkshire  Dales dairy and hills  farming,Lincoln  wheat, cabbages  and lavender, Kent fruits  and Yorkshire dairy farms.These are where  most of the farmers  are located  and these  areas  host the  beautiful scenes  that  make  the  country a piece  of art  and movie.For poetry  lovers , travelling to  these countrysides do  give them  some inspiration to  produce   good   pieces of artworks,  as these  country  places , do remind people about old  Britain,without the modernity  that  changes history  and the way  we are living. The  farmers are  people  who  make sure that  the  foods do not disappear  from the food shelves  in  Tesco, Asda, Morrison, Lidl, Aldi  and all  the  local  farm-shops , but  they are mostly the ignored  quiet  people going about , who are  doing much  for  everyone  without fanfares ,greetings  or  so  much  recognitions. I  was in the shop yesterday , to look for  a  food item  and I  worked  around  without getting anything.I  realised that without  the farms,  our  lives  will be  very  expensive  and we may struggle to  cope  with  rises  in food prices.This is something the  different governments do for everyone,making sure that  food is  affordable , but many people  seem not to realise that so much  hard work is done to  make sure that  everyone is  well  fed.When we are used to  getting  food  as usual on our food shelves , it becomes hard to  appreciate  those that make this happen for  us  especially  the farmers.Many times we tend to  think  about the millions the farmers  are making  selling food to us,but  we will go hungry  without them.People  in food  production, know  how  difficult an industry it is, because of the standards and there  are  always  so much  wastes  because the farmers  are not allowed  to supply substandard    livestock  and food products.The  food  standard  agencies  work  with  perfection,  because   previous  outbreaks  of   Salmonella  have  taught everyone to be very careful.This makes the industry  an arduous  business to be in.The  United  Kingdom practices  food  farming  and aquaculture making  livestocks, farm foods, groceries  and  seafoods  easily available  for the populace.

Writing  about fish farming which is  done in fresh,brackish  and sea water,it is  an essential  aspect  of  United  Kingdom's  food  production.The fish farmers  grow  crabs,mussels  and fishes  such as trout and salmon.And  we must not forget that  some of  these  fishes  are used  in water tanks to  beautify our homes  for those  who  love  seeing  fishes  in tanks  at home.Supplying  farm products is  good  and big business  as people  cannot leave without food.Enhancing the way we present  our food on food  shelves  makes  farm product  selling fast  and profitable.If food products are not well  presented  people  will  not go to the  shops to  buy  that is the  reason why  many people  prefer  shopping  from the  big supermarkets  because of the way food is  presented  always  in  a  clean  beautiful way.Product display  is  something that  is essential  to  grocery sellers.Being  a farmer and opening  a  distribution depot or  shops  to sell ones business  is good  business.Having a farm involves  the  acquisition of land  ,grain and seeds which  does not cost so much.The  input  might be rigorous but the  farmers  are feeding the nation and of  course the  world  as  all the tinned  and bottled  foods  all  originate  from one  source-the farm.According to  records, UK currently produces about 54% of its domestic food consumption. Agricultural activity occurs in most rural counties. Farming is mostly  done  in the drier east (for crops) an the  rainy west (for livestock). The country  has   191,000 farm holdings, which vary widely in size,some are  big scale  farmers  and others  are  small  businesses but they all have one thing in  common,they are the ones  providing food  for  everyone that is  why the  supermarkets are never empty.The farmers  are  concentrated  in areas  where there are enough  water  for  the  lands  and the livestock , which  makes  the returns  for  the farmers  good.The  biggest farmers in the U.K have   net worth ranging from I million pounds  to  15.2billion pounds .People  make lots of  wealth  by taking up farming  as their business. Successful farm investors  in the United  Kingdom grow crops like strawberries (including out-of-season production in their high-tech greenhouses), maize, wheat, sugar beet, peas, cabbages, and potatoes. Some of the potatoes we   eat daily  come from their farms  and  wholesale   shops.

Courtesy  Graceful  magazine  U.K Strawberries   

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Ultra Processed Foods

What are scientists saying about them today?

 

Life have changed in recent years from the way we travel, communicate and even feed ourselves. According to a new scientific report Ultra  processed  foods have  been the  source  of early deaths in recent years. The report  says  that  18,000  people  die  a year  due to the after effects of ultra-processed food on their health. This is  a  worrying report  because  most of the  food that  tastes  so good  and   the ones we love to eat   are  ultra  processed foods.Which  way  do  we go with this  recent reports,  since we love  our ultra processed  foods?.People who  are addicted to the  staple  processed  bread as the  family  best  breakfast option  might find this  a really bad  news, but I doubt if  anyone  will  drop  the  bread  for  the news.But  the reports  suggest that Ultra  processed  food  maybe a  bystander in U.K early deaths.Studies  have shown that  countries  like  Colombia  with 4percent intake  of  Ultra-processed food  has only  4percent reported  deaths  caused by them according to the  American journal of preventative deaths. People in the U.S.A  seem  to consume more of the Ultra  processed foods,  than people in the United Kingdom. But some experts  still insist that it is not clear  if the Ultra  processed  foods  or if  the fatty  foods  are to be blamed  for  the  diseases  causing these  deaths. The scientists are working hard to find out more about the impact of industrial processed foods on health. But come what may, the findings may not  affect  the  way people   are eating.  

They are antidotes to hunger that is caused by   hectic lifestyles of work and constant movements.

Waking up early to rush   down to work means   that people wake up in the morning and pack the ultra-processed food for lunch and leave for work, because there is no time to cook fresh meal or even shop all the time for fresh natural foods. But more  researches  are being done to  find  out more  about  this .People  are  being asked  to  eat  more  fresh foods  and vegetables  which  scientists  believe are the best options  for good  health.

Examples of Ultra Processed Foods

  • Highly processed snacks:

Chips, cookies, and other heavily processed snacks contain many added ingredients. 

  • Sweetened drinks:

Soft drinks, fruit juices with added sugar, and other sweetened beverages are often ultra-processed. 

  • Processed meat:

Lunch meats and other prepared meats are often high in sodium and may contain added preservatives. 

  • Dessert foods:

Cookies, cakes, and other processed desserts often contain added sugars and unhealthy fats. 

  • Ready meals:

Many frozen or pre-packaged meals are ultra-processed containing multiple ingredients and preservatives

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