Food Politics

The politics of food is changing fast. In rich countries, obesity is now a more serious problem than hunger. Consumers once satisfied with cheap and convenient food now want food that is also safe, nutritious, fresh, and grown by local farmers using fewer chemicals. Heavily subsidized and underregulated commercial farmers are facing stronger push back from environmentalists and consumer activists, and food companies are under the microscope. Meanwhile, agricultural success in Asia has spurred income growth and dietary enrichment, but agricultural failure in Africa has left one-third of all citizens undernourished - and the international markets that link these diverse regions together are subject to sudden disruption. The second edition of Food Politics has been thoroughly updated to reflect the latest developments and research on today's global food landscape, including biofuels, the international food market, food aid, obesity, food retailing, urban agriculture, and food safety. The second edition also features an expanded discussion of the links between water, climate change, and food, as well as farming and the environment. New chapters look at livestock, meat and fish and the future of food politics. Paarlberg's book challenges myths and critiques more than a few of today's fashionable beliefs about farming and food. For those ready to have their thinking about food politics informed and also challenged, this is the book to read.
"The author is an academic, not a journalist, and his efforts to get the food facts right ring through every page. Paarlberg challenges many of the ideas that are frequently voiced - but rarely questioned - in popular food discourse...Although many of his claims call into question sacrosanct principles in activist and academic circles, there are good reasons to hear Paarlberg out; he backs up his arguments with data, and writes based on decades of experience as a political scientist and policy analyst working in the field." --Nature Geoscience

"Paarlberg's book is a timely contribution to the discussion about the politics of food, both domestically and internationallyEL. Although advocates of alternative farming methods are unlikely to agree with Food Politics, they should nevertheless read it. Paarlberg is a serious, knowledgeable scholar." --Journal of Politics

"[Paarlberg] is one of the most distinguished academics in the field of global food politics and is able to draw on a lifetime of research. Although the book is clearly underpinned by a considerable body of evidence, the writing style is engaging and easily digestible. It would serve as an excellent introduction to the topic for students." --International Studies Review

"Going well beyond its title, Food Politics addresses key questions about agriculture, including consumers' concerns about food safety, producers' concerns about price volatility, and taxpayers' concerns about subsidies. Paarlberg organizes his material around a long list of questions about food policies and practices...His answers to these and many other questions are accessible and nuanced." --Foreign Affairs

"A much needed corrective to a clanging bandwagon of culinary protest that asks well-off consumers to drop out, stay local and go green, while the rest of the world worries about its next bowl of rice." --The Texas Observer

"The great strength of Food Politics is the breadth of topics covePREFACE TO SECOND EDITION ; CHAPTER ONE: AN OVERVIEW OF FOOD POLITICS ; CHAPTER TWO: FOOD PRODUCTION AND POPULATION GROWTH ; CHAPTER THREE: THE POLITICS OF HIGH FOOD PRICES ; CHAPTER FOUR: THE POLITICS OF CHRONIC HUNGER AND FAMINE ; CHAPTER FIVE: FOOD AID AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE ; CHAPTER SIX: THE GREEN REVOLUTION CONTROVERSY ; CHAPTER SEVEN: THE POLITICS OF OBESITY ; CHAPTER EIGHT: THE POLITICS OF FARM SUBSIDIES AND TRADE ; CHAPTER NINE: FARMING, THE ENVIRONMENT, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND WATER ; CHAPTER TEN: LIVESTOCK, MEAT, AND FISH ; CHAPTER ELEVEN: AGRIBUSINESS, SUPERMARKETS, AND FAST FOOD ; CHAPTER TWELVE: ORGANIC AND LOCAL FOOD ; CHAPTER THIRTEEN: FOOD SAFETY AND GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOOD ; CHAPTER FOURTEEN: WHO GOVERNS THE WORLD FOOD SYSTEM? ; CHAPTER FIFTEEN: THE FUTURE OF FOOD POLITICS ; SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READING ; INDEX