I sit here reflecting upon my final quarter in college, and what a ride it was. Usually, over the course of these ten weeks, I would be stressing out about what exams I need to take, or what homework assignment I need to meet the deadline for, but this was so much more than that. I had to worry about the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic recession and getting laid off, and of course the fight to end the continued oppression of people of color in America. This has easily been the most chaotic time in my life, and I am sure this is the same for many. I just want to congratulate everyone for surviving and making it through this quarter!
For my action project, I had the chance to work with the Center for Food Safety (CFS) on developing a scorecard to grade shellfish aquaculture on their practices based on multiple criteria. Right off the bat, it really surprised me on how many aspects you could grade a shellfish aquaculture operation on. I previously had done research on geoduck aquaculture in a different class, but it was not that in-depth and it only focused on the ecological impacts, so this was a whole new experience to me. It really felt nice being part of something that could benefit the whole community, as this scorecard could really make a difference in the shellfish aquaculture industry.
While researching for this project and looking at the projects the CFS works on, it really occurred to me that the food industry still has a long way to go. If you go on the CFS website, you can see all the projects they are currently working on, and there is a lot! The CFS even has an app that allows you to dive deeper than the label on products, and to tell you if the food is truly organic and gmo-free. Why do we need all this? Shouldn’t there be 100% transparency on all of the food we are putting in our bodies? Maybe one day we will achieve that, but until then the fight continues to make sure that we keep companies accountable for what they are putting in our bodies.