In recent years, a new trend of shopping for food and consumerism has emerged. It involves consumers purchasing all or some of their food products, most popularly produce and naturally grown foods, from local merchants and farmers, with the intent of re-ensuring themselves that they are supporting the local economy, sticking it to the big corporate giants, and protecting the livelihood of the "little guy ". Some tend to believe differently. This practice of local consuming, in very broad theory seems reasonable and well-intentioned, but in reality is not accomplishing what "locavores " (nickname dubbed for consumers who only purchase locally produced food products) set out to seemingly achieve (Cite Pelletier). On the other hand, what has gotten a lot of scrutiny lately, is consuming foods produced on a global level by larger companies and corporate giants. These companies produce consumables in massive quantities and transport their products worldwide. Globalization of the modern food market is what's provided products to consumers around the world, and is what shoppers tend to forget about when choosing to buy locally. Many don't realize that they might not have the products they want or need without this global food foundation. While there has been a trend toward purchasing and eating locally produced food, it is not a realistic or practical approach for the future. Without globalization we are taking steps backwards instead of forward. Globalizing the food industry can cleanly and efficiently allow region-specific foods to be accessed by consumers around the world, while benefitting local and world economies.
Continuing to keep the food market global is key in getting products of sustenance out to all corners of the world and enabling each consumer to purchase the same product whether in New York City or on the horn of Africa. Ghana, for example, where thirty percent of the nation's population lives in poverty (Wollan), is certainly a nation actively engaging the global food supply.
