The food people eat - Information for Gr 2-3

Think about the food that we eat.  All the food either comes from plants or animals and is eaten fresh or cooked.

We also get processed food - this means something has been done to the food, like it has been smoked or canned or squeezed.

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Most of the ingredients that are used to make something comes from nature and is then turned into different types of food.

Fruits and vegetables grow on plants or are part of a plant.  Look at the picture and identify the different fruit and vegetables you can see.  

                     

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Remember that raw fruits and raw or cooked vegetables are the healthiest to eat.  Processed foods have added additives and sugars and different types of things to keep them fresher for longer and it is not always as healthy as the fresh product, but we sometimes need processed food to keep it from spoiling fast and then have to throw it away, or we do not have time to bottle our own chutneys and jams.

There are different ways in which food can be processed to keep it lasting longer (preserve it)

1. drying - like biltong and fruit
2. salting - they pack meat and fish in salt
3. pickling - onions and fish are pickeled in vinegar
4. canning and bottling - jams and soups and vegetables
5. freezing - nearly all foods can be frozen to last longer

Animal products

Farmers will breed certain animals like sheep and cattle and pigs for their meat.  The meat that comes from a sheep we call mutton, meat from cattle we call beef and meat from pigs are called pork.  Some farmers will also keep chicken or turkeys and ostriches and that is called poultry.

             

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Many people do not eat meat and they prefer to eat only fruits and vegetables.  They are called vegetarians.

Animals can also be kept for more products that just the meat - a chicken can be kept for meat and eggs for instance.

Look at the picture and discuss the different animal products and from what animals they are.

                                        

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Fish is a seafood that people catch to eat and also prawns and lobsters and oysters.  Fisherman catches fish with fishing lines but there are also trawlers that pulls the nets and catches a lot of fish at once.  This is not always a good thing, because the net can trap other sea animals and mammals like birds, dolphins and whales which then get killed.  They can also damage the coral reefs.

• If you are a vegetarian, talk about why this is your choice.
• If you are not a vegetarian , say why this is your choice.
• What do you think about trawlers and people that just catch everything and not put the little fish back in the sea to grow bigger and multiply.

Remember you have to respect the choices other people make BUT if you see people damaging nature it is your duty to say something about it or try and save what you can.  Nature was given to us to use, but also look after, not destroy it.

Different ways in which people get their food

You will maybe go to the shop with your mom and buy the food you need.  Have you ever wondered where the fruit and vegetables come from that you so easily just put in your trolley and pay for?  

There are farmers that worked really hard to get those fruit and vegetables to you.

There are more ways in which people get their food.

Some people grow most of the fruits and vegetables they eat themselves and will also keep a cow or goat for milk and meat.  They either grow enough fruits and vegetables for themselves and have enough animals to produce meat and other animal products like milk and cheese and butter for them and their families.  They are called subsistence farmers.  

Other farmers grow a lot of fruits and vegetables or keep a lot of animals that they can sell or use the animal products and they are called commercial farmers.

 Would you like to have your own vegetable garden?  Sometimes you do not have a big garden, put you can even grow vegetables in a pot and very interesting, you can grow it from kitchen scraps.  Does this sound impossible?  Have a look at this video for tips.

Some people collect their own food - they would go into the veld and pick certain berries or they will collect seafood such as mussels from the rock.  Fisherman catches their food and sometimes they just catch enough to feed themselves and their families and sometimes they catch enough to sell to other people and make money from it.

There are also people that hunt for their food.

No matter in which way we get our food, it is important that we know that fresh food is good for us with all the vitamins and minerals we need and we must be very thankful for the farmers and fisherman that works very hard that we can go to the shop to buy our food.

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