studies of food systems

F2021 SOC808 Individual Report (25% of the final grade):

 

Course description: This course is about the studies of food systems. There are five lecture slides provided for you. Have a quick and scan to learn what is covered in the course.

 

Task: Students are required to write a report about one food system issue related to their food item.

 

Task details: Write a 1500-word report that outlines and analyzes the issue below.

 

• My chosen food item is Tea.

 

• The issue: Transportation of tea in Canada. Make this topic specific to Canada, other countries are not considered in the report.

 

The goal is that each of you will be able to contribute to an overall “big picture” on the food system for the food item you are researching. To take this analysis from food chain to food system, identify several ways that the elements from your food chain are interconnected? Where is the power in these relationships? What knowledge(s) are considered most important and valuable?

 

Length:

 

Between 1500~1550 words. This is a strict limit. Double check your word count. This word count does NOT include the title page or bibliography, BUT abstract is counted.

 

Structure:

 

Your essay should have the following components:

Abstract, Introduction, Body Paragraph and Conclusion

 

To be specific, your paper is to be organized as outlined below:

 

• Abstract (2.5 marks): The abstract provides a 150-word synopsis of your paper and has the following elements: • 1–2 sentences on the central issue and context • The majority of the abstract is on the main points of the analysis • 1–2 sentences on key conclusions
• Introduction/ Conclusion (2.5 marks):  The essay introduction provides brief context for your topic. It should include your thesis statement and an overview of the essay’s structure. Your conclusion should clearly link to the opening remarks from your introduction. It should provide a brief summary and highlight significant points from your analysis. It is not a section of the paper to introduce new evidence and analysis.
• Content and Analysis (16 marks): Your analysis and evidence should focus on how or why the issue is important. Please ensure that your analysis incorporates scholarly sociological (and/or food studies) literature. Your writing should clearly incorporate several key themes or concepts from the course in a way that demonstrates a solid understanding. You will be required to think critically and assess how this content reinforced or changed your opinion about the topic as a whole. •
  • Use a critical approach. Critical analysis focuses on the source nature and consequences of power relationships. Critical sociologists who study food raise questions such as how differential access to land, resources, and healthy food affects human health and how the environment is affected. They also emphasize how social institutions and popular beliefs can resist or reinforce the existing distribution of power and of resources. •
  • Both direct quotes and an author’s ideas must be referenced in your paper script using in-text citations (APA style). Do not use more than 10% of the word count as direct quotes.

 

 

 

Sources of Evidence •

 

Follow APA guidelines for citation format (APA 7th edition preferred)

 

In total, a minimum of 5 academic sources are required. The 5 include the following:

 

• At least four sociological sources (peer-reviewed) journals, book chapters or books.

 

• The required textbook (Koc, Sumner, & Winson, 2021). This book is available in this link: https://we.tl/t-jov0hq3fxk

 

 

Additionally:

 

Non-scholarly Sources: In addition to scholarly sources, you may include other relevant sources from media or web sources to highlight current discourse on the topic. Analysis provides context for why these sources are relevant, and how they relate to the research presented. See note below.

 

Note: In addition to sociological sources, you may require other data, such as government data from Statistics Canada, Health Canada, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), or other reputable sources such as Food Secure Canada (FSC) to provide a rationale for your argument. If you are providing any context for your paper from news sources, please note that these are NOT scholarly sources and will NOT count towards your minimum required number of scholarly sources. For example: • Newspaper articles (Toronto Star, The National Post, Huffington Post, etc.) • Magazine articles (Macleans, Newsweek, The Economist) • Encyclopedia reference (including Wikipedia) • Dictionary references • Non-scholarly websites, blogs, etc. The content in the weekly lectures are NOT to be used as a source of reference for your paper. Any issue raised in the lectures must refer to the original scholarly source(s) upon which it was based.

 

 

Content and style requirements: The writing of an assignment from a sociological perspective requires the primary use of scholarly sources, such as scholarly journals, or books. Use Times New Roman, 12-point font size, and double line spacing. You are required to include a full reference list of all materials used in the paper.