Review by Choice Review
Not long ago, in the US at least, the injunction not to waste food was considered a moral imperative. Today, according to this expose, the food wasted, especially by rich nations, could feed the hungry of the world several times over. The culprits of this profligacy include not only Western consumers with their access to cheap food and increasing predilection for meat, but also food manufacturers, who seem constitutionally incapable of finding efficiencies in their production lines, and governments whose often well-intentioned regulations/subsidies seem to promote, not reduce, waste. The most prodigal of all, according to writer/journalist Stuart (The Bloodless Revolution, CH, Sep'07, 45-0254), are large supermarket chains. These stores promote the impression of an "infinite, abundant cornucopian choice," set needlessly conservative sell-by dates for their wares and unrealistically high aesthetic standards for farmers' produce, and frequently browbeat food manufacturers into acquiescing to contracts that can be terminated at a moment's notice due to slow sales. This waste spews out collateral damage to the environment (global warming and deforestation) and jeopardizes animal welfare. In a chapter titled "Action Plan," Stuart offers modest solutions to these problems. In one creative green solution, he proposes resurrecting long discarded laws permitting the feeding of swill to pigs. Summing Up: Recommended. All collections. D. M. Gilbert Maine Maritime Academy
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
Every day all around the globe, appallingly enormous amounts of otherwise edible food go to waste even while humans are starving. Stuart aims to educate people about where such waste occurs, how much of it there is, and what possible steps can be undertaken to reduce it substantially if not eliminate it altogether. Stuart is less concerned about dinner leftovers spoiling in refrigerators than he is about the tons of foods that both restaurants and grocery stores toss out on a daily basis. Agriculture, fish culture, and animal husbandry also waste significant amounts of perfectly edible foods. He finds islands of hope in enlightened distribution programs in Asian countries. To American readers' distraction, Stuart's primary focus and most of his examples come from the UK and Europe, but the general situation is similarly distressing on either side of the Atlantic. Notes and a huge bibliography lead readers to additional resources on this pressing environmental issue.--Knoblauch, Mark Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Stuart (The Bloodless Revolution) writes of the perilous illusion of abundance and how countries can reduce food waste by accurately examining how much they toss away due to poor storage or unused surplus-and why. European and American food manufacturers, supermarkets and consumers throw away between 30% and 50% of their food supply-enough to feed the world's hungry. Waste also occurs as a result of inadequate harvesting and farming techniques, prevalent in countries like Pakistan, where the author examines the need for better grain harvesting and land cultivation. Stuart's thoughtful illumination of the problem and his proposed solutions are bound to get even the most complacent citizen thinking about how slowly wilting vegetables might have a second life. Simply growing more food, Stuart argues, is not necessarily the answer. Agriculture takes up space and often results in deforestation. If rich countries could cut waste by treating food more carefully, while developing countries gained the equipment necessary to improve their output, he contends, a significant reduction in global food waste-and even global hunger-could be achieved. Stuart's brief is passionately argued and rigorously researched, and is an important contribution to the discussion of sustainability. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Compelling and thought-provoking, with the power to change a reader's daily habits, this book, first published in the United Kingdom, offers a simple thesis: wasting food wreaks environmental havoc and contributes to global hunger. To argue his point, historian/activist Stuart (The Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism from 1600 to Modern Times) focuses primarily on the "food profligacy" of developed nations, exploring a range of topics from food manufacturing policies to the ethics of biofuel development. The case study of the waste produced by British supermarkets is particularly fascinating. Occasionally, the text feels imbalanced, with a lengthy chapter devoted to reintroducing the practice of swill feeding, while little attention is paid to proper food handling and storage. Verdict Stuart is an impassioned writer who pairs quirky personal anecdotes with alarming statistics to craft an irrefutable argument. Although some of Stuart's suggestions for addressing food waste are directed toward the general public, this work is most suitable for academic readers, who will appreciate his detailed research and extensive bibliography. Stuart's highly readable study may also appeal to well-informed general readers interested in food policy.-Kelsy Peterson, Johnson Cty. Community Coll. Lib., Overland Park, KS (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Adult/High School-Stuart looks at the amount of food countries currently waste, why it is happening, and how the world can reduce it. Although many of the author's examples and statistics come from the UK and Europe, he does try to bring in a global perspective whenever possible. He supplements the facts with his personal experiences as a "freegan" in the UK. The first section begins with the author's path to writing Waste before focusing on the consumer side of the problem, looking at how supermarkets and restaurants dispose of their waste, and how individuals buy more than they need and end up throwing away a large portion of it. The second section examines how produce, fish, and meat are wasted before they even reach supermarkets and restaurants. The third part looks at ways that we can reduce waste by providing examples of good practices in smaller countries and tips for improvement at all levels. The book contains a plethora of supporting material. It is well written and would appeal to anyone who has enjoyed the movie Food Inc. and Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma (Penguin, 2007), and who is interested in looking at the other end of our food problem.-Kelliann Bogan, Colby-Sawyer College, New London, NH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A useful account of how we waste food. British author Stuart (The Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism from 1600 to Modern Times, 2007) knows firsthand that in one day a supermarket in a major city can throw out enough food to feed 100 people. A practitioner of the anti-consumerist "freegan" lifestyle, he has salvaged discarded, unspoiled food from store dumpsters in many countries. Here he shows how developed nations treat food as a "disposable commodity" at every step of the journey from farm to dinner table. In the United States alone, "around 50 per cent of all food is wasted." Farmers discard misshapen produce; fishermen throw back fish that are too small or the wrong species (killing most in the process). Supermarkets overstock to keep their shelves full and ensure they always have shoppers' favorite products; others simply predict sales badly. Consumers overbuy out of a "primeval hoarding instinct" and discard about one quarter of their food purchases in the form of leftovers or unopened packages. If all the waste stopped, Stuart argues, it would free up food for the world's hungry and reduce the greenhouse-gas emissions from agriculture that contribute to global warming. The global impact is such that the UN has called for a halving of food waste by 2025. Thus far, few governments and industries have acted. Drawing on interviews and travels in many countries, the author explores diverse aspects of the global food problem, including the effects of growing wasted food on the earth's water, land and other resources, and the post-harvest losses of food in developing countries that occur for lack of processing and other technologies. Arguing that much waste is avoidable, Stuart outlines numerous steps than can be taken, from more mindful shopping by affluent consumers to redistribution of supermarket surpluses to the poor. He finds models for action in several Asian nations, including Japan, where the concept of mottaiai, which condemns waste, is reflected in a 2001 law requiring food businesses to recycle their food waste. Occasionally rambling but rewarding reading on a worldwide crisis. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
