The Way We Eat Now

The Way We Eat Now
Bee Wilson

‘At no point in history have edible items been so easy to obtain. Humans have always gone out and gathered food, but never before has it been so simple for us to gather anything we want, whenever and wherever we want it, from sachets of squid ink to strawberries in winter.’‘It’s now becoming clear that the way that most people currently eat is not sustainable – either for the planet or for human health. If we want to stop getting swallowed up by our own food and to re-establish eating as something that gives us both joy and health, it makes sense to find out where we are right now, how we got here and what it is that we share.’Why does it no longer seem odd that we’re able to eat sushi in Italy and Neapolitan pizza in Dubai?What has happened to the food we eat to make this possible, and how have these blurred boundaries influenced cultural development, as well as national appetites?From bananas and grapes to ultra-processed snacks, we may not spend enough time thinking about the origins of the food we’re eating, or how their ingredients might have altered over time. In The Way We Eat Now, award-winning food writer Bee Wilson examines the current food climate, exploring how we have found ourselves here, and at what potential cost.The Way We Eat Now also introduces us to the countries and communities that are making revolutionary efforts towards improving their populations’ relationship with food, and considers how we too might re-establish a more balanced connection with what, as well as how, we eat.

Copyright (#ulink_5ea33d6e-af6a-5cb5-897b-4a959af50951)

4th Estate

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.4thEstate.co.uk (http://www.4thEstate.co.uk)

First published in Great Britain by 4th Estate in 2019

Copyright © Bee Wilson 2019

Bee Wilson asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Diagrams redrawn by Martin Brown

Cover photographs © Shutterstock

All reasonable efforts have been made by the author and the publisher to trace the copyright holders of the images and material quoted in this book. In the event that the author or publisher are contacted by any of the untraceable copyright holders after the publication of this book, the author and the publisher will endeavour to rectify the position accordingly.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

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Source ISBN: 9780008240769

Ebook Edition © Jan 2019 ISBN: 9780008240776

Version: 2019-02-12

Dedication (#ulink_19e0fac6-41fc-56a0-8df7-ee7adfe724a6)

For Leo

Epigraph (#ulink_d7bc502e-3308-5062-a027-8926d4ec26bc)

‘Ever the eaters and drinkers, ever the upward and downward sun, ever the air and the ceaseless tides’

Walt Whitman, ‘Song of Myself’

Contents

Cover (#ue2251058-aa00-57d6-852a-2a6d843daf6d)

Title page (#u9745dc18-3f23-5c56-820f-d82a8468f59d)

Copyright (#ua2b4ff59-6d4f-550b-906a-6dd23ee7fae9)

Dedication (#ufc4d0a14-c443-5d4d-93fb-a00b4c0f65e2)

Epigraph (#u3758c699-141b-5754-8629-8d94749ccea9)

INTRODUCTION: The Gatherers and the Hunted (#uf810ee30-aeb6-5f10-91a9-829d44c012a9)

1: The Food Transition (#uc8c693e4-cdc4-5d8b-9d08-42b579e4ef08)

2: Mismatch (#uf1624efb-3b52-5b9b-bf3f-cdad56a205f6)

3: Edible Economics (#litres_trial_promo)

4: Out of Time (#litres_trial_promo)

5: The Changeable Eater (#litres_trial_promo)

6: Dinner Without Duty (#litres_trial_promo)

7: Eating by the Rules (#litres_trial_promo)

8: The Return to Cooking (#litres_trial_promo)

9: Crossing the Bridge (#litres_trial_promo)

EPILOGUE: New Food on Old Plates (#litres_trial_promo)

Footnotes (#litres_trial_promo)

References (#litres_trial_promo)

Bibliography (#litres_trial_promo)

Illustrations (#litres_trial_promo)

Index (#litres_trial_promo)

Acknowledgements (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

INTRODUCTION: (#ulink_11e1b722-6dbf-5e60-b3e7-a3dcd8372b45)

The Gatherers and the Hunted (#ulink_11e1b722-6dbf-5e60-b3e7-a3dcd8372b45)