General Awareness · Environmental Studies

Food Systems and Society

3,957 Questions

Food systems and society encompass the production, distribution, and consumption of food, including its cultural and safety aspects. This topic covers food safety regulations, sustainable agriculture, and culinary heritage. These concepts are useful for general awareness preparation in state PSC and civil services examinations.

Sustainable agriculture practicesFood safety standardsCulinary heritage and identityFood nutrition labelsFood industry innovationChemical food preservatives

Food Systems and Society Questions

Multiple choice

Which of the following is an important part of preparation of food that involves heat?

Directions: Read the given passage and answer the question that follows.

Food Facts: Different parts of the world have their own local cuisine. The diets and general food habits of various cultures depend on social, religious, economic and safety factors as well as the availability of different foods. Examples of food and cuisine that are popular or famous in certain areas of the world include hummus in the Middle East, apple pie in the USA, raw fish in Japan, cheese in France, roast meat and vegetables in England, curry in India and tortillas in Mexico. Pumpkins are usually labelled as vegetables but they contain seeds and are technically fruit. India is the world’s largest producer of bananas, producing nearly 22 million tons in 2007. Humans use many different methods for gathering food which include farming, hunting, gardening, foraging and fishing. Humans eat meat from a number of different animals, common examples include meat from chickens, cows, sheep and pigs. Other food products that come from animals include milk, eggs and honey. Although humans are omnivores (eating both plants and animals), many people choose not to eat meat and fish, they are known as vegetarians. Those who don’t eat or use any products made from animals (including eggs, dairy products and honey) are known as vegans. Cooking is an important part of food preparation that involves applying heat. In most cases this transforms the chemical make-up of food, altering its texture, flavor, nutritional properties and appearance. The types of equipment used in the cooking process include ovens, microwaves, toasters, grills, pots and frying pans. Various cooking methods include boiling, simmering, steaming, sautéing, pan frying and deep-frying.

  1. Farming

  2. Cooking

  3. Hunting

  4. Fishing
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Cooking is an important part of food preparation that involves applying of heat.

Multiple choice

Directions: The question given below contains four options expressing the same idea in a different manner. Choose the most concise and correct statement.

  1. On the whole, on food front, one may say that we can enjoy festivals in the consciousness that, though some things are dear, the basic foods are better in quality and still low in price.

  2. We can enjoy festivals knowing that though some things are dear, the basic foods are of better quality and still low price.

  3. Although we know that some things are dear, we can still enjoy festivals because the basic foods are better in quality and low in price.

  4. On the whole food front, although some things are dear, we can still enjoy festivals as basic foods are of better quality and quite cheap.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

(4) is incorrect because not whole food front is being discussed instead it is discussed in relation to festivals. (1) can be rejected on account of its length. Among (2) and (3), (3) is better in quality on account of usage of word although which perfectly matches the tense being used, though both of them are of same length.

Multiple choice

What was the theme of the World Food Day 2015?

  1. Food prices - from crisis to stability

  2. Social Protection and Agriculture: Breaking the Cycle of Rural Poverty

  3. Agricultural cooperatives - key to feeding the world

  4. Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition

  5. Family Farming: “Feeding the world, caring for the earth
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Correct answer is 2. 

Multiple choice

Directions: Fill in the blanks with appropriate words.

Many people believed that spices help ___________ food; however, nutritionists found that most spices were __________ of having any effect on the growth of microbes present in the food.

  1. preserve, incapable

  2. produce, impossible

  3. save, preventive

  4. spoil, probable
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The sentence presents a contrast. Belief is they do some good; actually they don’t. Hence, we would use the words 'preserve' and 'incapable'.

Multiple choice

The main use of salt in the diet is to

  1. produce in small amounts the hydrochloric acid required for the digestion of food

  2. increase the solubility of food particles in water

  3. ease the process of cooking

  4. make the taste of food better
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Salt (sodium chloride) serves multiple physiological functions. The primary uses are maintaining electrolyte balance, nerve conduction, and regulating fluid distribution. While hydrochloric acid production in the stomach does use chloride, this is not the main purpose - Na+ and Cl- ions are critical for cellular function throughout the body.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is/are not the function(s) of the Food Corporation of India?

  1. To provide remunerative prices to the farmers
  2. To make food-grains available at reasonable prices, particularly to the vulnerable sections of the society
  3. To maintain buffer stocks as measure of food security
  4. To intervene in market for price stabilization

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 4

  3. 1 and 4

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The Food Corporation of India was set up under the Food Corporation Act 1964, in order to fulfill the following objectives of the Food Policy:

  • Effective price support operations for safeguarding the interests of the farmers
  • Distribution of food-grains throughout the country for public distribution system
  • Maintaining satisfactory level of operational  and buffer stocks of food grains to ensure
National Food Security
In its 45 years of service to the nation, FCI has played a significant role in India's success in transforming the crisis management oriented food security into a stable security system. FCI's objectives are
  • to provide farmers remunerative prices
  • to make food-grains available at reasonable prices, particularly to vulnerable section of the society
  • to maintain buffer stocks as a measure of food security
  • to intervene in market for price stabilization
(Hence, all the four statements are correct.)
 

Multiple choice

Directions: For this question, select the best of the answer from the given choices.Argentina's beef cattle herd has dropped to under 50 million from 57 million ten years ago in 1990. The animals are worthless too: prices fell by over a third last year, before recovering slightly. Most local meat packers and processors are in financial trouble, and recent years have seen a string of plant closures. The Beef Producers' Association has now come up with a massive advertisement campaign calling upon Argentineans to eat more beef - their "juicy, healthy, rotund, plate-filling" steaks. Which one of the following, if true, would contribute most to a failure of the campaign?

  1. There has been a change in consumer preference towards eating leaner meats like chicken and fish.

  2. Prices of imported beef have been increasing, thus making locally grown beef more competitive in terms of pricing.

  3. The inability to cross-breed native cattle with improved varieties has not increased production to adequate levels.

  4. Animal rights pressure groups have come up rapidly, demanding better and humane treatment of farmyard animals like beef cattle.

  5. In the past such advertisements have failed to evoke sufficient interest among consumers.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The campaign will fail if it does not make an impact, or worse, makes a negative impact. Advertisement for ‘rotund’ meat will make a negative impact if people prefer ‘leaner meats’.

Multiple choice

What is the benefit of hydrocarbonoclastic microorganisms to humans?

  1. They are used in the food industry.

  2. They are useful in the petroleum Industry.

  3. They are utilised in polysaccharide production.

  4. They are used in vitamin synthesis.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Hydrocarbonoclastic microorganisms like methanogenic archaea benefit humans in the petroleum industry. They can metabolise or alter crude or refined petroleum products.

Multiple choice

Which among the following statements regarding the characteristics of mushrooms is incorrect?

  1. Mushrooms play a vital role in the development of new biological remediation techniques.

  2. Mushrooms are a high-calorie food.

  3. Mushrooms can be used for dyeing wool.

  4. Many mushrooms have psychoactive properties.

  5. China is the world's largest producer of edible mushroom.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Mushrooms are a low-calorie food eaten cooked, raw or as a garnish to a meal. In a 100 g (3.5 ounce) serving, mushrooms are an excellent source (higher than 20% of the Daily Value, DV) of B vitamins, such as riboflavin, niacin and pantothenic acid, an excellent source of the essential minerals.

Multiple choice

In the context of food and nutritional security of India, enhancing the Seed Replacement Rates of various crops helps in achieving the food production targets of the future. But what is/are the constraint/ constraints in its wider/greater implementation?

  1. There is no National Seeds Policy in place.
  2. There is no participation of private sector seed companies in the supply of quality seeds of vegetables and planting materials of horticultural crops.
  3. There is a demand-supply gap regarding the quality of seeds in case of low value and high volume crops.

Which of the following is the correct option?

  1. 1 and 2

  2. 3 only

  3. 2 and 3

  4. None
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

3 only

Multiple choice

Which of the following is/are the reasons due to which humans need food?

  1. Humans need food for energy requirements

  2. Humans need food for growth

  3. Humans need food for repairing damaged or injured body parts

  4. Humans need food for protection from diseases and infections

  5. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

This is the correct option as humans need food for all of the above reasons.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is incorrect?

  1. China is the world's largest edible mushroom producer.

  2. Many Mushrooms have psychoactive properties.

  3. Mushrooms can be used for dyeing wool.

  4. Mushrooms are a high-calorie food.

  5. Mushrooms play a vital role in the development of new biological remediation techniques.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Mushrooms are a low-calorie food eaten cooked, raw or as a garnish to a meal. In a 100 g (3.5 ounce) serving, mushrooms are an excellent source (higher than 20% of the Daily Value, DV) of B vitamins, such as riboflavin, niacin and pantothenic acid, an excellent source of the essential minerals.

Multiple choice

As far as economic importance is concerned, what are Laminaria, Sargassum, Fucus and Ascophyllum commonly used for?

  1. They are used as food for humans.

  2. They are used as fodder for animals.

  3. They all are used for antibiotic production.

  4. They all are N2 fixing algae.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Laminaria, Sargassum, Fucus and Ascophyllum are used as fodder for animals. They are especially used in coastal countries for their richness of nutrients.