Many people don’t consider the companies supplying their food in grocery stores. In fact, the process of growing, harvesting and commercializing foodstuff isn’t something most people think about when standing in the grocery store checkout line.

Collectively Conscious (CC) recently published a food for thought article on the small number of large corporations that control America’s food supply – “just a few dozen monolithic companies”(1).

CC quickly points out that these “mammoth corporations are not in business to look out for the best interests of the American people. Rather, the purpose of these corporations is to maximize wealth for their shareholders.”

If the health of consumers isn’t the number one priority, then it’s not surprising that the food the average American purchases at the local grocery store might not be the healthiest food to eat. Shelf-life is a determining factor for what additives and chemicals are included in each type of food (2).

A prolonged shelf-life also takes into account from the time the food is produced, packaged and transported then placed on the shelves. Preservatives are a must for this type of mass food production, especially when it’s not going to just local grocery stores, but is shipped across the country (3).

These additives and preservatives aren’t healthy and according to CC, “…we just keep getting sicker and sicker as a society. But these big corporations are raking in big profits, so they don’t really care.”









Why American Food Companies Get Away Using Preservatives and Chemicals

What exactly happened that allows these corporations to get away with such unhealthy foods? CC explains that it’s due to a lack of competition. This is logical. If you live in a very small town where the plumber or the electrician has no competition, chances are, you’re stuck with the skill level of that trade’s craftsman.

This falls into the field of controlling a market. Just like the small time plumber who doesn’t have to step up his game or even change his game and knows customers will just have to be satisfied with whatever he does, so do the food companies.

That’s because they have such a monopoly over the food industry. In fact, CC states that marketing experts consider the concentration ratio of economic sectors that are 40% and higher an indication that 40%+ have an unfair control of the market.

Those companies holding the 40% place present a threat to competition and “market abuses are more likely to occur: the higher the number, the bigger the threat.”

Organic solutions according to CC aren’t necessary going to save you from this kind of exploitation since many of the companies producing and selling organics have grown into conglomerates and many have been gobbled up by non-organic food corporations. This still creates a monopoly even though it may be healthy food.

And, that is truly the point. Any time the control over a commodity has only a handful of suppliers, there is that risk. A risk that you are at the mercy of the supplier.