Geographies of Food: An Introduction

Description

What is the future of food in light of growing threats from the climate emergency and natural resource depletion, as well as economic and social inequality? This textbook engages with this question, and considers the complex relationships between food, place, and space, providing students with an introduction to the contemporary and future geographies of food and the powerful role that food plays in our everyday lives. Geographies of Food explores contemporary food issues and crises in all their dimensions, as well as the many solutions currently being proposed. Drawing on global case studies from the Majority and Minority Worlds, it analyses the complex relationships operating between people and processes at a range of geographical scales, from the shopping decisions of consumers in a British or US supermarket, to food insecurity in Sub-Saharan Africa, to the high-level political negotiations at the World Trade Organization and the strategies of giant American and European agri-businesses whose activities span several continents. With over 60 color images and a range of lively pedagogical features, Geographies of Food is essential reading for undergraduates studying food and geography.

Moya Kneafsey is Professor of Human Geography, Food, and Local Development at the Centre for Agroecology, Water, and Resilience at Coventry University, UK. Damian Maye is Professor of Agri-Food Studies at the Countryside and Community Research Institute, University of Gloucestershire, UK. Lewis Holloway is Professor of Human Geography at the University of Hull, UK. Michael K. Goodman is Professor of Geography at the University of Reading, UK.

To study the food system is to pry open the modern world and lay bare its complex, messy and unjust relations of power and history. To do that, you need a textbook to be admirably clear, multi-disciplinary, global and unafraid to confront students with the most fraught and difficult controversies. This is such a guide, and it's sure to become the definitive set text for any undergraduate food studies class, across the social sciences. * Raj Patel, Research Professor in the Lyndon B Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, Austin, USA * The authors deliver a much-needed survey answering fundamental "what," "where," "who," "how," and "why" questions about food. Those new to the field will never experience the world as eaters the same again, while fellow food scholars will be reminded why geography is such an inspiration to their critical work. * Michael S. Carolan, Professor of Sociology, Associate Dean for Research & Faculty Development, Colorado State University, USA * Geographies of Food: An Introduction provides students and researchers with an excellent critical entry point to examine the extraordinary breadth and depth of research on connections between food and its geographies. The book address geographies of food at a range of scales, from global to individual and household and invites readers to think about how these scales connect. As a researcher from the Majority World, I particularly appreciated the book's integration of materials and debates from both the Majority World and Minority World, and the efforts to place these within global geopolitics. The book is exceptionally readable and suitable as an introductory text for undergraduate student, but also for researchers wishing to broaden their knowledge of contemporary debates in food studies. The clear learning outcomes at the start of each chapter, the interesting and challenging activities embedded within the chapters and the further reading section at the end of each chapter make Geographies of Food: An Introduction an excellent text book that should stimulate student interest and critical engagement. * Jane Battersby, Senior Lecturer Department of Environmental and Geographical Science, University of Cape Town, South Africa * With growing scholarly and societal interest in the challenges confronting current and future food systems, there is an urgent need for a wide-ranging introduction to the issues at hand. This authoritative and accessible book offers students and practitioners alike the tools to develop a 'geographical imagination' about food. Essential reading. * David M. Evans, Professor of Organization and Sustainability, University of Bristol, UK * Written in a lively, accessible style and packed with goodness, Geographies of Food collects important issues and talks them through in a clear and engaging way. The book reflects the best scholarship in the field right now. An essential teaching and learning resource. * David Bell, Professor of Cultural Geography, University of Leeds, UK * [A] useful, informed text. * Times Higher Education * This book engages us with a seemingly simple question: where does food come from? Answering this question, the authors take the reader on a wild ride, engaging with a complex global food system but never losing sight of the main plot points, or the everyday struggles to get dinner on the table. The injustices and corporate concentration are revealed, but so is the human agency seeking to preserve food as a democratic right, a source of identity, and a form of joy. This is an impressive book that will engage seasoned food scholars, and a work brilliantly to introduce the topic of food geography to new readers. * Josee Johnston, Professor of Sociology, University of Toronto, Canada *