This book was first published in 1971. But I’m noting the 2021 publication date below, because I read the revised edition which has of course a new introduction and preface, but also additional chapters and rewritten chapters, plus many added or revised recipes (and some were deleted). While it’s still outdated in regards to the nutritional info (according to some other reviews I’ve read), the content about how politics and economics shape our food options, seems just as relevant today. Not to mention the environmental issues! To be honest, I skimmed a large portion of this book (which is why I gave it three stars instead of four)- one of the introductions in particular was hard to read, it felt very rambling and full of short snippets that expected me to already know a lot about the author and her stance on things. I had less interest in reading about the politics around food, though it is eye-opening to realize how much goes wrong with food systems all over the world. Lappé insists that most countries produce well over the amount of food needed for their populations, but so much is wasted, or exported (because that makes more money) or in myriad ways made inaccessible to the poor, that far too many people still suffer from hunger. Her other big point is that far too much land is used to grow food for livestock- and that more food would be available for people, if we just ate the plants that grow on that land ourselves. Eating low on the food chain, consuming mostly fruits, vegetables and grains. She’s not vegetarian though and quite a few of the recipes in the book contain animal products (though none feature meat). It’s about eating whole foods instead of processed items, and making plant foods the center of the diet, not meat. The reciepes provided are supposed to give you plenty of protein through a variety of whole grains and vegetables (lots of them feature beans or legumes). I’m curious to try a few so copied some of them down.
Borrowed from the public library.