Global Market: Where Does Your Meal Originate? Essay

Meal components and where they originated

Breakfast

Normally I take a cup of coffee and toast for breakfast

• The coffee used in the United States is imported from Brazil, Columbia and Saudi Arabia.
• Sugar is added to coffee to make it sweet. The US imports sugar from several countries that include Columbia, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Switzerland, Germany, Iran and India (Samuelson, 2001).
• Toasts are prepared from wheat, eggs, salt and sugar. The origin of sugar has been stated above, other components are produced locally. Wheat is grown in various parts of the country such as California and Minnesota

For dinner I usually have meat, starch, vegetables and desert

• Meat is produced locally
• Most vegetables are grow locally, though some may come from far way states, for instance, lettuce is grown in California. Tomatoes can come from as far as Mexico.
• Wheat is used as a main source of starch and the origin has already been stated
• The components used to prepare desert such as cheese and pumpkin are produced locally.

Where the products are purchased

The food products are usually purchased from leading supermarket chains such as Walmart and Aldies. Other smaller components might be purchased from local grocery stores

The benefits and reasons for a global market

Reasons

• Global markets are facilitated by the demand for goods that are not locally available. Different regions around the globe have varying climates that can support the production of some commodities and not others (Held, 1999). Therefore the need for commodities that cannot be produced locally plays a major role in facilitating global trade. Global trade is not limited to agricultural products only but also applies to other products such as minerals, electronic, among others.
• Global trade is also facilitated by the movement ad migration of people from one region to another. For example, the Chinese who migrated to America have along the years created a demand for native Chinese products in America and therefore facilitated the exportation/ importation of such products (Kloppenburg, Hendrickson, & Stevenson, 1996).
• Global trade is also facilitated by technological advancement. This is specifically in regard to transport and communication. For instance, fresh products grown in countries that are far away can easily be transported by air to other countries where they are in demand. Wireless telephone communication and the internet facilitate fast and efficient global communication (Samuelson, 2001).

Benefits

• Global trade has ensured access to a wider variety of products. People are no longer limited to goods that are produced within their countries. For instance, if one wants the original quality Arabic coffee produced in the slopes of Saudi Arabia, he/she can freely get it from the supermarkets (Kloppenburg, Hendrickson, & Stevenson, 1996). The same goes for other products such as tea, electronic gadgets and automobiles.
• Global trade has fostered international peace through increased global cooperation. Different countries have unique commodities or products that are needed by other countries. Trading between such countries facilitates cooperation on many other fronts. For example the United States ensures that peace and stability prevails in countries that are important trading partners such as Japan and Saudi Arabia (Samuelson, 2001).

Impacts of global market

Global marketing has led to many positive and negative impacts. Some of the positive impacts include growth of the global economy, establishment of global standards of practice and alleviation of poverty.

• The exchange of goods and commodities between different countries has facilitated the development of global economy. This has led to the establishment and growth of multinational companies such as Coca Cola, Total and Shell. These multinationals control the global economy and are even richer than certain countries (Held, 1999).
• Global trade has also ensured the establishment of standards and regulations guiding international trade. For instance, restriction of trade in potentially hazardous materials such as chemicals used to manufacture explosives. Global trade has also ensured the establishment of quality standards for different commodities. For instance, certain countries only admit products that meet a certain quality standard (Samuelson, 2001).
• International trading has also impacted the lives people in different countries. Many nations have managed to improve the living standards of their people by producing commodities for other countries. For example, China provides cheap labor and therefore many multinationals have established manufacturing plants there, and in return the country has secured employment for its vast population.

International trade has also resulted into some negative impacts. Such negative impacts include war, pollution and destruction of habitats, and health effects.

• War is the most devastating effect that has resulted due to international trade. Major countries with different political views have advanced different strategies to secure limited resources. Such strategies have included the interference of internal processes of countries that have strategic resources. This includes the arming of rebel groups in a bid to install friendly governments that can secure their interests. Wars have also been fueled by illegal trade in arms and other dangerous products between different countries (Samuelson, 2001).
• Pollution is also one of the most widely debated effects of international trade. Fuel powered engines are often used in the transportation of goods from one country to another. This happens on such a large scale that it results into the emission huge amounts of carbon dioxide and other compounds into the atmosphere. This emission has in turn resulted into a variety of environmental effects such as global warming, water, air and soil pollution (Held, 1999).
• There are various health effects that have been observed as a result of international trading, particularly in regard to trading in food products. Studies have linked various disease conditions to certain food production and handling methods. For instance, there has been a lot of contention regarding the production and exportation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). There are unfounded claims that GMOs result into various health effects.

The meaning of the phrase Think globally, Act globally

The phrase thinks globally, act globally seeks to align people’s thoughts and actions to a global perspective in the sense that they should take into account of events that are beyond their national borders. The term is relevant due to increased globalization whereby people are no longer bound by the geographical borders.

Whether or not my research on global market has changed the way I will choose goods in the future

The research has indeed influenced the way I will choose goods in the future. This has been informed by the realization that there are many negative effects that can be prevented simply by making more use of local products.

References

Held, D. (1999). Global Transformations. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Kloppenburg, J., Hendrickson, J., & Stevenson, W. (1996). Comming to the foodshed. Agricultural and Human values , 13(3): 33-42.

Samuelson, P. (2001). A Ricardo-Sraffa Paradigm Comparing the Gains from Trade in Inputs and Finished Goods. Journal of Economic Literature , 39 (4): 1204–1214.