Michael Pollan's 2006 book The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals is well-written and scary in its unblinking analysis of the modern food "industry". Among the risks it explores are:
- monoculture — over-reliance on a few species for the bulk of our nutrition
- disease — including human, animal, and plant, and the related over-use of pharmaceuticals
- unsustainability — nonrenewable inputs from petrochemicals, destruction of soil fertility, etc.
- waste — esp. associated with lengthy supply and distribution chains
Omnivore also wrestles with ethical issues surrounding vegetarianism and the universal but mostly-hidden cruelty toward animals raised for their meat. Pollan dithers on the topic, admits his personal inconsistency, and tries to treat all sides fairly. In the final chapters he goes hunting, for wild pig and for mushrooms, and provides a fascinating discussion of the psychology of both endeavors. The book is far from perfect—there are jarring editorial bumps, perhaps due to the fact that much of the material was published earlier in the Sunday New York Times magazine—but overall it's important reading.
(cf. CompassionateCarnivorism (2002-11-19), CompactLiving (2007-03-08), ...) - ^z - 2009-05-16