Food Ethics

Food Ethics None of us can avoid being interested in food. Our very existence depends on the supply of safe, nutritious foods. It is then hardly surprising that food has become the focus of a wide range of ethical concerns: Is the food we buy safe? Is it produced by means which respect the welfare of animals and conserve the environment? Are modern biotechnologies employed in food production immoral? This book addresses such issues by applying ethical principles to many areas of current concern. The contributors provide original and thoughtprovoking treatments of a number of highly topical issues– from global hunger and its ethical implications to the cultural factors affecting food consumption. This interdisciplinary study will prove to be essential reading for all those concerned with food, as professionals, students or consumers. Ben Mepham is Director of the Centre for Applied Bioethics at Nottingham University. He has published widely in the fields of bioethics and applied biology. Professional Ethics General editors: Andrew Belsey, Centre for Applied Ethics, University of Wales, Cardiff and Ruth Chadwick, Centre for Professional Ethics, University of Central Lancashire Professionalism is a subject of interest to academics, the general public and would-be professional groups. Traditional ideas of professions and professional conduct have been challenged by recent social, political and technological changes. One result has been the development for almost every profession of an ethical code of conduct which attempts to formalise its values and standards. These codes of conduct raise a number of questions about the status of a ‘profession’ and the consequent moral implications for behaviour. This series seeks to examine these questions both critically and constructively. Individual volumes will consider issues relevant to particular professions, including nursing, genetic counselling, journalism, business, the food industry and law. Other volumes will address issues relevant to all professional groups such as the function and value of a code of ethics and the demands of confidentiality. Also available in this series: Ethical Issues in Journalism and the Media edited by Andrew Belsey and Ruth Chadwick Genetic Counselling: Practice and Principles edited by Angus Clarke Ethical Issues in Nursing edited by Geoffrey Hunt The Ground of Professional Ethics Daryl Koehn Ethical Issues in Social Work edited by Richard Hugman and David Smith Food Ethics Edited by Ben Mepham London and New York First published 1996 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2002. Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Selection and editorial matter © 1996 Ben Mepham; individual chapters © 1996 the contributors All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or ot