Globalization of the food industry allows region-specific foods and other consumables to be accessed by consumers around the world, while providing affordable and quality products. 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. The intent was 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". 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. 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 provided products to consumers around the world. What consumers forget about when choosing to buy locally, is that they might not have all the consumables 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. Continuing to globalize the world's food industry can efficiently allow region-specific foods to still be accessed by consumers around the world while benefitting a number of local and worldly economies. Maybe it's possible for this new trend and the current global market to co-exist, but without globalization we are taking steps backwards instead of forward.
Many parts of the globe, from whole nations to small villages, depend on the globalization of food to function as such.
