What the World Eats
An interview with Faith D’Aluisio and Peter Menzel
Family meals have been a daily tradition in cultures worldwide, especially during the Holidays. But with a myriad of circumstances from increased trade, global brands, fast food, urban/rural shifts and more, where appetites are shifting to increasing energy-intensive palates, what changes are being served on over 6 billion dinner plates a day?
What The World Eats, adapted from the earlier James Beard award-winning book, Hungry Planet , looks at the world's cultures by focusing on what families eat in one week's time. Cultural geographers Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio compellingly present a vibrant cornucopia of “in the field” observations conveyed through thought-provoking photography, humanizing stories, and recipes, cultivated from visits and 525 meals with 25 families in 21 countries around the world. Beyond each family's photo surrounded by their week's worth of food, we gain insights into their everyday lives, struggles and hopes, (such as hunting seal for stew, raising guinea pig), all via food as a universal thread. Additionally numerous fascinating facts such as costs and quantity for their food, healthcare costs, amount of sugar consumed, obesity statistics, accompany photo galleries and illustrated charts about fast food, safe water, literacy rates, and more. ( Did you know that 47% of China's population lives on less than $2 per day?)In the course of their work over the last 15 years during visits with families in their homes and kitchens around the world, Menzel and D'Aluisio have talked, compared notes, and “developed interesting comparisons to help fellow humans to better understand one another.” WTWE offers rich sustenance to us all, and inspiration to ask questions and learn more about the expanding global food economy, world hunger, current events, sustainable agriculture, and cultural similarities and differences.
Jennifer: You've mentioned "The world is used to hearing about hunger in the context of...refugees or crop failures and famines...but now we're facing something different." During your visits to families in over 21 countries, you've seen first hand the changing face of hunger. Can you comment about its most pressing contributing factors and the role of multinational food corporations?
Faith: I'm not sure we would draw such a direct connection between hunger and the multinationals. Sure these corporations are a big user of valuable food resources, turning basic foodstuffs into highly processed, highly packaged goods that are more expensive and less nutritious than the original food from which they are derived, but there are a lot of other factors that contribute to whether a family will get enough food to eat.
One would have to have lived under a rock over the last year not to know that fuel prices have increased astronomically, and so have food prices, hitting the poorest of us the hardest.
In the so-called developed world families often spend less than 20 percent of income on food. Compare that to what families in the developing world spend—upwards of 80 percent or more and you can understand what a 50 percent increase in the cost of flour to make her family's staple flatbread means to a 27-year old impoverished mother of three in Yemen's capital city of Sana'a.
There are any number of causes of hunger—warfare, politics, famine, desertification, urbanization—any of which can easily unlink the food chain, but the fact that, at the turn of the new century, there were just as many overfed as underfed people on the planet for the first time in human history has meant that malnutrition is manifesting itself in an additional way: over nutrition. As people become more affluent, they eat more meat and dairy products as well as more highly processed foods, and calorie counts soar.
Perhaps even more troubling than affluent people overfeeding themselves is seeing people who haven't even reached a level of balanced nutrition eating packaged highly processed products. In paces like Papua, the Indonesian part of the island of Papua New Guinea, merchants followed the money as the logging trade moved into remote jungle communities in Papua. Chips, soda, candies, and ramen noodles are for sale to newly moneyed hunter-gatherers for whom getting protein and minimum daily nutrients is a constant struggle.
What the World Eats: The Aboubakars Family - Chad
Jennifer: From your visits and displayed in your food portraits, what have you observed as the most striking cultural similarities and differences in what families? Do these differences highlight any societal changes, particular attitude/philosophy, or relationship to and with the Earth?
Peter : Food preferences are set at an early age and most people around the world do continue in the tradition of their parents as far as diet goes. But more and more people are living in cities, so this obviously changes their food choices and makes them more susceptible to advertising, and often limits their intake of fresh fruits and vegetables.
What the World Eats: The Cavens Family - U.S.
Faith: The easiest items to visually compare in our food portraits, from one family to the next, are branded ones like Coca Cola because marketing and consistent packaging means that we recognize the products immediately. Readers tell us this is one of the first things they do when they open the book—checkout the food lists and the food portraits to see. Coke is ubiquitous; you can find it in the larder of families with even the thinnest of pocketbooks. Alma, the mom in our family in Mexico serves Coke to her children for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—Mexico is number one in the world in per capita consumption of Coke. During a recent visit we weren't surprised to see that it's now being sold in Mexico in super 3-liter bottles. The number two drink offered to special guests in remote villages of the tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is warm Pepsi, after hot, salty butter tea.
One of the more interesting food groups to compare from one culture to the next in the developing world is the staple food that forms the centerpiece of a people's diet. In parts of China— white rice, in Bhutan— red rice. In rural South Africa, they eat corn porridge. In the Ecuadorian Andes, they eat potatoes and corn. In eastern Chad and Sudan's western province of Darfur, aiysch, a congealed millet or sorghum grain porridge, is eaten. This is the food of D'jamia Souleymane of Darfur. Her grandmother taught her mom to make it, her mother taught her, and she's teaching her daughters. She and thousands of other women prepare aiysch three times a day for their families, but less of it than they used to because they all live in a refugee camp in Chad. D'jamia misses her fruit trees, mutton, and her independence. Interestingly, the diets of the poorest families we have covered are often healthier than those of the richest. The poorer families themselves aren't the healthiest though, because with poverty comes limited access to health care and education. The best of both worlds may be good health care and a low calorie, grain based diet.Many people we interviewed in urban China are like the Dongs of Beijing; their diet is changing from one that is strictly traditional, to one embracing the global marketplace. European ice cream and American fast food now figure into their dietary equation. The Cui family, on the other hand, in rural Beijing province, still eats a traditional diet, with few branded items.
Jennifer: Can you comment about what you've observed "food quality" to represent in these various cultures?
Faith: Food quality is important to just about everyone we've met, but shoppers who have the ability to make real choices seem to be the most demanding. Susana, the mom in our rural Guatemala family bypassed several produce vendors. When we asked her if she was going further a field to buy from a friend she told us, “no,” that a seller some distance away had the most consistently good vegetables and grew them “over there.” She pointed in a vague direction. Plus, Susana said she trusted her. This was true as well when we shopped with Fatoumata Toure in the African village of Koukourou, Mali, on the banks of a Niger River tributary. Fatoumata turned up her nose at many vendors' dried fish as we walked with her through the market place. She finally found a basket of fish that she thought was worthy of purchase for her combined family of 14 (she, her co-wife, a sister-in-law, one husband, and many children) but the vendor had stepped away. We waited for a half-hour and almost missed making the food portrait because Fatoumata wouldn't buy the lower quality fish. Again, I couldn't see the difference, but she picked fish up, sniffed them, flipped them around, shook the basket, and made her decision.
Choosing food is a social experience in some countries and a sensory experience in others, but in Manila it's both; Lita, Cabaña has a regular route she follows to get the best prices for the best food she can afford. She can't afford meat very often, but her family loves fish and she looks for milkfish that is “clear-eyed and doesn't smell.” There are several people that she visits specifically because she has developed a good relationship with them and they provide good quality. She pinches, sniffs, and questions as she moves from one fish market to another for produce. After all this poking and prodding and careful buying we're surprised to see her stop at a stall to buy a small jar of Cheez Whiz. They eat it for breakfast, spread on traditional bread.
Jorg Melander, in Hamburg, Germany, was also a stickler for fresh produce, good bread, and cheese, but he was less picky when it came to boxed items. We see that a lot—it's hard to gauge quality when you can't really see, smell, or touch the product.
What the World Eats: The Mendozas Family - Guatemala
Jennifer: It seems like these traditional ways of eating and buying fresh, local, seasonal and having a relationship to the people who grow our food, is what many of us in the U.S. are trying to re-connect with. Just one more good reason for buying directly from your local farmer's market, which also addresses food security concerns.With the promotion, and penetration of fast food and globally branded products, have you observed a rising threat to indigenous ways of eating and the preservation of traditional cultural values?
Peter : Yes, people's diets are changing and fast food and globally branded products are making inroads nearly everywhere. When people have more money to spend, they generally consume more meat and dairy products and more sugar. Fast food may seem cheap to us, but often it is something very expensive for a family. In Istanbul, for instance, the mother there told us that she can feed her family for an entire day for the price of a meal in a fast food restaurant
Jennifer: What have you learned as you've shared meals and talked with families that have interested you the most about food consumption around the world and its causes and effects?
Faith: That one man's nectar is another man's poison. Our favorite food preference story actually comes from a meal we had several years ago when we were invited to a termite and tomato lunch by a group of women we came upon in northeastern South Africa, who were catching termites. They were thrilled that we wanted to talk to them and take photos. During lunch they casually asked us where we had visited last, and we answered honestly that we had been in central China tasting scorpions on a scorpion ranch. Well, the shock was palpable and our translator Marius did some heavy damage control. “They're disgusted,” said Marius. These termite eaters were disgusted by scorpion eating.
Jennifer: What do you think are the most hopeful developments for humankind; in regards to food, nutrition, and the politics of food?Peter : Education. Understanding basic nutrition and that health is dependent on a balanced diet that avoids excess. For Americans, we would like to have people eat less, and give more consideration to quality rather than quantity.
Jennifer: You also visited Okinawa, which has the highest concentration of centenarians in the world. Could you share any tips or insights into longevity that you observed?
Peter : People in Okinawa and most places in Japan, have traditions that encourage them not to overeat. One of the phrases often repeated is "hara hachi bu' : 80%. People remind each other to slow down eating when they reach a level they feel is 80 % full because of the lag time between stomachs and the signals it sends to their brain when full. Diet is of course important: they eat relatively little meat and instead get protein from fish and vegetables like soy. The other important factor is strong societal regard for old age and the ties between family members. The island of Okinawa and most of Japan now is realizing a drop in these longevity numbers due to fast food, less traditional exercise and the decreased role of family and community in modern life there.
Jennifer: What do you hope readers will understand and do after reading your books?
Faith: All of our books are meant to allow the reader the opportunity to compare and contrast cultures that he or she might never experience on his or her own. Food is an especially interesting subject because the end result is the same—we humans all have to eat—while the methods to get there run the gamut. Beyond that, we don't like to get too preachy, but we can share what we learned— eat what we want, but moderately and locally.
See their latest photos and learn more about WTWE at their newly launched website www.whattheworldeats.com . You can download a special WTWE's Teacher's Guide, for free, and visit their Link section for numerous resources on nutrition, health, and additional educational info.
Reprinted with permission from What the World Eats by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio. Copyright © 2008 by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio. Photography copyright © 2008 by Peter Menzel. Tricycle Press, Berkeley, CA. www.tenspeed.com .
Peter Menzel is a freelance photojournalist known for his coverage of international feature stories on science and the environment. His award-winning photographs have been published in GEO, Stern, Le Figaro, Der Spiegal, Paris Match, Focus, Muy Interesante, El Pais, National Geographic, Smithsonian, the New York Times Magazine, and Time. He has received a number of World Press and Picture of the Year awards.
Photo of Faith D’Aluisio and Peter Menzel.
Faith D'Aluisio is a former award-winning television news producer. She is the editor and lead writer for the book-publishing imprint Material World Books.
Together they are co-creators of many bestselling and award-winning books, including: Material World, A Global Family Portrait, Man Eating Bugs: the Art and Science of Eating Insects, Robo sapiens: Evolution of a New Species. Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, received the coveted James Beard Best Book Award in 2006 and was awarded Book of the Year from the Harry Chapin World Hunger Media Foundation.
Menzel and D'Aluisio are now working on another world-wide nutrition book to be completed in 2009.
Jennifer Joe's interests include being passionate about organics, healing, sustainable peace and restorative practices for the people and the planet; jjoe@eco-creation.us
Please view our ARCHIVES section for links to interviews, many other food, sustainability, healthy living articles, past FOODBITES columns, with additional featured recipes from innovative organic restaurants, cookbooks, retreat centers, such as; Tassajara Zen Center, Café Gratitude, Pasqual's, Blossoming Lotus Café, and many more.
FoodBites Tidbits: Seasonal Recipes and News to Use:
The following are featured original recipes, compliments of Chris Constable, chief creator of vegan specialties at Ocean Beach People's Organic Food Co-op, (619) 224-1387, http://obpeoplesfood.coop . O.B. People's, San Diego's only community/member owned grocery store/co-op, has been serving the community since 1971 and specializes in organic, sustainably grown, and vegetarian foods. They're also nationally recognized for their unique Green Building, educational efforts and activism, and supporting the community.
Roasted Pumpkin and Barley Pilaf
2 tablespoons Earth Balance
1 cup leeks -- chopped and washed
1 teaspoon fennel seeds -- ground
1 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 pounds pumpkin -- cubed
1 cup barley
3 cups vegetable broth
3/4 cup pumpkin seeds – roasted
Combine the broth and the barley, bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, cover and cook for 40 minutes. Combine the pumpkin with the olive oil and place on a baking sheet. Roast at 400 for about 30 minutes or until done. Saute the leeks in the Earth Balance until the leeks are soft, then add the spices and saute for 1 more minute. Combine everything and place in a baking dish. Bake at 350 uncovered until slightly browned on top.Creamy Leek and Potato Soup
3 pounds russet potatoes -- peeled and diced
1/2 container Earth Balance
3 cups leeks -- chopped and washed thoroughly
2 teaspoons sea salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 cup unbleached white flour
1 quart unsweetened soymilk
2 cups cashews -- lightly roasted
2 cups waterPlace the potatoes in a pot with just enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and cook until just done.
Saute the leeks in the Earth Balance until soft, then add the spices. Add the flour and stir well for a few minutes, then add the potatoes with their water. Stir well. Add the soymilk and turn down to a simmer. Place the cashews and the water in the blender and blend until smooth. Add to the pot and stir well. Simmer for about 20 minutes, then serve.To receive an additional assortment of vegetarian, vegan, and specialty recipes from our community of local and organic, growers and chefs, please see http://www.lightconnection.us/PDF/ThanksgivingRecipes.pdf.
Recipes included are: Carrot Cashew Loaf, Autumn Yam Bisque, Mini-Squash w/ Herbed Spelt Bread Stuffing & Wild Mushroom Gravy, an assortment of persimmon and kumquat recipes and more.Slow Foods Chef Presents - Eating Greener: The Ecology of Food and Why It Matters
On Nov. 9 th , Eco-Chef Aaron French will present “Eating Greener” at the Natural History Museum of L.A. County. This is part of Sustainable Sundays a new program at NHM, which allows visitors the opportunity to learn from museum scientists and guest researchers about international conservation issues. Aaron is a scientist, trained at UCSD and SFSU with a B.S. and Masters in Ecology, published author, popular food columnist, Slow Food Nation contributor, and chef of The Sunnyside Café in Albany, CA. He spent years as a tropical ecologist, working with rare and endangered species and studying how animals help re-grow rainforests through seed dispersal.
“Eating Greener,” includes a lecture, cooking demo and Q &A time. It will offer participants an integrated framework for our food systems and provide context for current buzzwords such as “local,” “organic” and “sustainable.” Participants will learn steps each person can take to foster and promote sustainability in their local food region. http://www.nhm.org/sustainablesundays . The presentation begins at 12:30 p.m. on November 9. Tickets can be purchased at the door; $9 for adults and $2 for kids. Conservation International's Jen Morris will also be presenting information about investing in global pro-conservation, small- and medium-sized businesses at 2:30 p.m.
He's sharing his fast and easy Winter Greens & Wild Mushroom Crepes recipe , “a great wrapper to fill with holiday leftovers”, below.
Winter Greens & Wild Mushroom Crepes
Makes 8-12 crepes
Fast and easy, these are great served for brunch or dinner. I'm always looking for ways to reduce my waste in the kitchen, and these crepes make a great wrapping for most leftovers you might have. The vegetables, mushrooms and goat cheese make these crepes softer than the regular version. Eat them while still hot out of the pan.
Ingredients
4 large leaves winter greens: chard, kale, mustard, etc. Washed and stems removed
1 cup wild mushrooms, cleaned and trimmed
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoons pepper
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons soft goat cheese
About 1/4 cup water
Oil or nonstick spray for cooking1. Slice the cleaned wild mushrooms into thin strips. Sautee the mushrooms until just soft , or half cooked.
2. Slice the greens into thin (1/8 inch) strips, and wilt in a saucepan with a little water until soft. Remove to a colander, and press out all water until greens are dry.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk and slowly add in the flour, a little at a time, to make a smooth batter.
4. In a small saucepan, heat the butter and goat cheese, stirring until melted, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour into the batter. Add the salt and pepper; stir. Add the mushrooms and cooked greens. Whisk the batter until the greens and mushrooms are evenly distributed. If the mixture is thick, slowly add up to 1/4 cup water as needed. You want the batter to quickly and smoothly coat the bottom of the pan when it's tilted.
5. Heat a 9-inch nonstick frying pan (or crepe pan) over medium-high. Lightly oil or spray the pan with cooking spray. Use 1/4--1/3 cup of batter for each crepe and cook until golden, about 1-3 minutes per side. Flip over with a rubber spatula.
6. Wrap around your favorite warmed fillings and enjoy.
Fast for a World Harvest
40% of the people on our planet—more than 2.5 billion—live in poverty, struggling to survive on less than $2 a day. In every nation on earth, people go to sleep hungry even though our planet produces enough food to feed every woman, man, and child. In the past six months alone, 100 million people, no longer able to afford the food they need, have joined the ranks for the hungry.On the Thursday before Thanksgiving 1974, 250,000 people nationwide participated in the first Oxfam America Fast for a World Harvest ; they fasted for the day or a meal, donating their food money to Oxfam. So began a national movement to alleviate global poverty and hunger. More than just a means of addressing hunger issues, the Fast has come to symbolize the grassroots nature of working together for change. Learn more at www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/act_now/fast . Read this month's FoodBites for more info on What the World Eats and resources.
Farmer in Chief by Michael Pollan
Food for Thought and more – read Michael Pollan's letter to our President-Elect – Farmer in Chief , which appeared in the New York Times Magazine on October 12, 2008! http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
With a suddenness that has taken us all by surprise, the era of cheap and abundant food appears to be drawing to a close. What this means is that you, like so many other leaders through history, will find yourself confronting the fact that the health of a nation's food system is a critical issue of national security. Food is about to demand your attention….
10 Things the Food Industry Doesn't Want You to Know
U.S. News & World Report's Adam Voiland featured an interview with Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University and David Ludwig, t wo highly respected nutrition experts who argue that you can't take marketing campaigns at face value. You can read the entire interview at http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/2008/10/17/10-things-the-food-industry-doesnt-want-you-to-know.html
The highlight points of the article are below:
1. Junk food makers spend billions advertising unhealthy foods to kids. 2. The studies that food producers support tend to minimize health concerns associated with their products. 3. Junk food makers donate large sums of money to professional nutrition associations. 4. More processing means more profits, but typically makes the food less healthy. 5. Less-processed foods are generally more satiating than their highly processed counterparts. 6. Many supposedly healthy replacement foods are hardly healthier than the foods they replace. 7. A health claim on the label doesn't necessarily make a food healthy. 8. Food industry pressure has made nutritional guidelines confusing. 9. The food industry funds front groups that fight anti-obesity public health initiatives. 10. The food industry works aggressively to discredit its critics.
The bottom line, says Nestle, is quite simple: Kids need to eat less, include more fruits and vegetables, and limit the junk food.
David Ludwig, a pediatrician and the co-author of a commentary published in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association that raises questions about whether big food companies can be trusted to help combat obesity. Ludwig and article co-author Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University, both of whom have long histories of tracking the food industry
USDA's New Biotechnology Regulations Could Allow Drugs in FoodOn October 13, 2008, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) denounced newly proposed U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rules governing genetically engineered crops, including food crops engineered to produce pharmaceutical and industrial products. The proposed rules, UCS charged, would not protect the U.S. food supply from potential contamination by drugs from "pharma" crops, and could allow drugs that it deems "safe" to enter the food supply. This contamination could occur through cross-pollination or seed mixing between pharma food crops and crops intended for consumption.
The USDA ignored recommendations for a ban on the outdoor production of pharma food crops from the Grocery Manufacturers Association, major food companies, UCS, and more than 100 environmental, agricultural, health, and consumer organizations.
Following is a statement by Jane Rissler, UCS's Food and Environment Program deputy director: "Under the proposed rules, USDA's new motto is 'Only safe levels of drugs in U.S. food.' If these proposals are enacted into law, American consumers must accept the possibility of drugs in their breakfast cereal or other common foods. Moreover, these rules likely will lead to contamination scares, which will hurt the food industry.
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