On the Human Right to Healthy Food
The Origins of Modern Food Technology
The overreaching aims of the modern food industry can be generalized as extending the shelf-life of foods using preservation techniques, enhancing the palatability of foods, providing adequate nutrients, and generating profits for both the company and shareholders. In order to reach these aims and evolve over time, much of the technology used by the food industry today was derived from innovative processes at the time. The food industry incorporated these into their own manufacturing processes in response to challenges that arose through the expansion of the modernized food industry throughout the 20th century. These challenges included reducing the presence of pathogens for safety, extending food stability for transportation, and enhancing the flavors and textures of foods for consumer enjoyment.
When food-borne pathogens were discovered to be the cause of life-threatening illnesses, driven by massive outbreaks in the early 1900s, food safety regulations were put into place by the USDA and FDA to ensure the food consumed by the public was deemed safe to eat. These widespread outbreaks included those of 1911 and 1922 caused by Streptococcus in raw milk…
