Anonymous Student
Feb, 4th
ENG 102
Essay 1
Back to Nature
One time my brother and I watched a TV program about farming mechanization, which
concerned automatic farming using modern techniques. It gave an image that people stayed away
from their animals and drank tea. All the machines took care of pigs, chickens, and so on. On the
farm there was lack of contact between people and animals. People treated their animals as meatproducing machines. Is that a right way of farming? Best Food Writing, by Holly Hughes,
discusses this issue with a series of essays. Rowan Jacobsen, John Kessler, Berry Estabrook, and
Dara Moskowitz Gumdahl are the writers of the essays who disagree with industrial farming
mechanization and are concerned with choosing the natural way of farming. John Bunker, the
character in Jacobsen`s essay, chooses to farm apples using the way it used to be. Will Harris III,
the character in Kessler`s essay, thinks that the way his father and his grandfather fed cattle with
chemicals limits the cattle`s growth. Mary Falk, the character in Grumdahl`s essay, thinks that
producing cheese should use existing natural features of bacteria and that diversity is an
important aspect of natural cheese. Jennifer Small, the character of Estabrook`s essay, thinks that
treating pigs without giving them stress makes good profits. In these cases, a natural way of
farming is what modern farmers should really follow, and since modern techniques can be either
beneficial or detrimental, avoiding the disadvantages of modern techniques and choosing natural
ways can make life better.
Jennifer Small and Michael Yezzi, the characters in “Hogonomics,” deem that unstressed
pigs produce better meat. Yezzi and Small think that contact with people is one of the significant
things in the life of pigs. For example, “Yezzi and Small go out of their way to make sure that
their pigs are docile and accustomed to human contact” (Estabrook 146) “because becoming
used to humans reduces stress, and unstressed pigs are easier to handle, grow better, and produce
better meat” (Estabrook 146). Pigs live in a modern world. Learning how to get along with
people releases the stress from a “strangers’ world.” As a result, pigs will feel no stress when
they are killed by people. Then, the quality of the meat will be excellent. Also, Yezzi and Small
treat pigs in their Flying Pigs Farm more like pigs than meat-producing machines. For example,
“in the cold months, they insert wooden platforms inside each hut so the pigs don`t have to lie on
cold, wet ground” (Estabrook 147). By treating pigs in this way, the quality of the meat will be
“rich, porky, and succulent” (Estabrook 142), and pigs will give a big bonus back to Yezzi and
Small. Another aspect Yezzi and Small notice is medication: “The only time a Flying Pig hog
receives medication is when it becomes sick” (Estabrook 147). They do not feed pigs with
antibiotics on a regular basis. As a result, pigs will live better.
Pigs live without stress and are treated more like pigs than meat-producing machines. It is
also true for the cattle in Will Harris III`s farm in the “The Upstart Cattleman”, which suggests
that feeding animals without chemicals and giving cattle an unstressed living environment are
the keys to getting back to nature. In the life of cattle, Harris gives up using estrogen and
antibiotics. He thinks that natural cattle should not eat chemicals because it violates the nature of
cattle. Kessler quotes Harris as saying about instinct: “Not allowing animals to express their
instinctive behavior is working against nature” (qtd. in Kessler 156). No cattle eat estrogen and
antibiotics naturally. Also, Harris emphasizes the true happiness of the cattle and the importance
of treating cattle more like animals. Kessler quotes Harris as saying about their cattle: “they are
given an opportunity to be cattle” (qtd. in Kessler 159). Kessler also quotes Harris as saying if
animal welfare is just only not inflicting suffering, then it is like saying “if you chain your kids to
the TV and feed them a steady diet of potato chips, you`re not hurting them” (qtd. in Kessler
156). We have to give more freedom to animals. From what Harris says, he is not like the people
in his father`s generation and his grandfather`s generation who regard animals as tools to make
money. Harris regards animals more like animals.
While Harris is concerned about a natural way of raising cattle by feeding his cattle
without chemicals, Small and Yezzi are concerned about pigs. They want their pigs to have no
stress. They both treat their animals more like animals than meat-producing machines. Even
though we have modern chemicals that can make animals fatter, Harris avoids using them
because of the disadvantages they promote. Even though we have modern pig farms that can feed
pigs without people intervening, Small and Yezzi still choose to keep contact between animals
and people. Sometimes we can give up some modern techniques and choose a more natural way.
The essay “The Cheese Artist” also suggests keeping the environment natural is a better
way, which holds the idea that keeping organisms` original existing features is a significant key
to making good products. When most people mention “bacteria,” they will think that they are
bad and unhealthy, and they will ignore the natural advantages of bacteria. However, according
to Falk, bacteria are important because they contribute to “the flavor complexities of aged foods
such as prosciutto, salami, wine, and especially cheese” (Grumdahl 124). Without eliminating
bacteria, “microbial complexity correlates to the complexity of the finished product`s taste”
(Grumdahl 124). Then, we will find a variety of tastes in each product. Falk also points out that
another reason that bacteria are important is that they have a very important function in our
bodies and can turn “food into usable nutrients, moisturizing our skin, and defending our lungs
against invaders” (Grumdahl 124) so “without them, we`d be dead” (Grumdahl 124).
Falk emphasizes not only using existing features of organisms but also the diversity of
the whole farm. Kessler quotes Falk as saying: “Between the politicians and the coyotes, I prefer
the coyotes” (qtd. in Gramdahl 128). Falk likes all different kinds of animals in her farm because
“they support the grand balance of nature” (Grumdahl 120). Thus, Falk achieves the goal of
diversity as an aspect of nature.
Also the essay “Forgotten Fruits” emphasizes diversity and reveals that modern industry
limits the natural diversity of apples. Bunker likes “the Great American Agricultural Revolution”
because at that time, apples had different sizes, shapes, and colors. However, “industry
agriculture crushed that world” (Jacobsen 105). Then, some apples were abandoned. Also, some
apples “disappeared after Prohibition” (Jacobsen 107) because people at that time wanted to use
certain apples to make liquor. Then, in order to avoid the behavior, Prohibition appeared. As a
result, apples like “Harrison” were lost at that time. To some extent, modern industry and the
movement fostered by government also limit people`s view of the world and make some things
“commercially extinct” (Jacobsen 105). Then, people lose out on the diversity of things.
Falk and Bunker both realize that diversity is a significant part of nature. Falk thinks that
more kinds of animals on her farm and the use of different bacteria can contribute to different
tastes in her cheeses. Bunker thinks that apples should be diversified. Compared to Harris, Small,
and Yezzi, who give up modern techniques to feed their animals, the similarity of the four is that
knowing the nature of something in the world is very important. We should base on that nature
and choose natural ways to work. We should not let modern industry eliminate something
originally present in nature.
However, some people might say modern industry has its advantages and really helps
people develop scientific techniques and perceive the world. This idea is exactly right. However,
people should not rely on products from modern industry too much. Also, people should realize
that after the modern industry movement, we have lost something important. In order to make
people perceive the world better, we have to develop the beneficial side of the modern industry
and avoid the detrimental side.
Getting back to nature is a good way to avoid the detrimental side of modern industry and
modern techniques. We should not use chemicals to make pigs fat. We should have human
contact with animals. We should realize that we do not have to eliminate all bacteria. We should
not abandon some apples for industrial reasons.
From the characters in the essays, getting back to nature gives life satisfaction so I am
trying to be more natural in my life. Sometimes knowing the nature of things is more important
than using and regarding things as tools. Every time I solve some mathematic problems, I tell
myself that I have to know not only “how to solve the problem” but also “why the problem can
be solved in this way.” For modern industrial techniques, not only farmers, but also everyone
else should realize the advantages and disadvantages of the techniques. Treating animals well is
another way to give our next generation happiness. We will not eat pigs or cattle with chemicals.
Finding the things that got lost in the modern industrial movement can make our life special. I
believe that everyone hopes to see special apples around us.
Work Cited
Hughes, Holly, ed. Best Food Writing 2013. Boston: Da Capo, 2013. Print.
Estabrook, Barry. “Hogonomics.” Hughes 142-149.
Grumdahl, Dara. “The Cheese Artist.” Hughes 119-128.
Jacobsen, Rowan. “Forgotten Fruits.” Hughes 104-111.
Kessler, John. “The Upstart Cattleman.” Hughes 150-159.