TOW Post #11 (Article): The Change of Nutrition

            Over the years, America's industries have all undergone incredible change. From producing organic foods to trying to find the cheapest methods to feed cattle, the American food industry is very different from what is was fifty years ago. This article talks about how those changes are resulting in a worser nutrition and health for the younger generations. With the use of humor and statistics, Jill Ettinger is able to show how much food industries have changed. Throughout the essay, Ettinger uses humor. Starting off with the introduction, Ettinger states how grandparents say that "all they had to eat was a plate full of boiled muttons" (1). While this is proven to be a mere exaggeration, it adds a flare to the overall piece. The audience is able to get a laugh out of just the thought of eating boiled muttons. Humor plays a huge effect to the article as it takes such a serious topic and allows it to be seen as more relaxed while still being something that needs to be discussed. Along with humor, the author uses statistics as another strategy to show the undergoing change in food industries. Throughout the article, Ettinger brings up statistics as a way to back up her claim. She states, "more than 100 billion animals (not including fish) will be eating genetically modified feed before being slaughtered" (3). This fact makes her claim about the change in animal feeding stronger. Ettinger, with the use of statistics, is able to persuade the audience to agree with her stance. Without evidence, nobody would agree with her because there is no proof given. Therefore, I find the overall piece to be effective. The purpose of provoking a change in how food is produced is able to be accomplished with the use of statistics and humor.