American Wasteland : How America Throws Away Nearly Half of Its Food (and What We Can Do About It) ISBN: 9780738215624 Platform/Publisher: Ebook Central / Hachette Books Digital rights:Users: Unlimited; Printing: Limited; Download: 7 Days at a Time Subjects: Environmental Studies; Business/ Management;
Since the Great Depression and the world wars, the American attitude toward food has gone from a "use it up, wear it out, make do, or do without" patriotic and parsimonious duty to an orgy of "grab-and-go" where food's fetish and convenience qualities are valued above sustainability or nutrition. Journalist Bloom follows the trajectory of America's food from gathering to garbage bin in this compelling and finely reported study, examining why roughly half of our harvest ends up in landfills or rots in the field. He accounts for every source of food waste, from how it is picked, purchased, and tossed in fear of being past inscrutable "best by" dates. Bloom's most interesting point is psychological: we have trained ourselves to regard food as a symbol of American plenty that should be available at all seasons and times, and in dizzying quantities. "Current rates of waste and population growth can't coexist much longer," he warns and makes smart suggestions on becoming individually and collectively more food conscious "to keep our Earth and its inhabitants physically and morally healthy." (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Jonathan Bloom is a freelance journalist and food waste expert who writes the blog Wasted Food. An accomplished eater and fledgling composter, he has covered both serious and quirky topics related to food and the environment. His work has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Newsweek , and Variety , among others. A Boston native, he lives in Durham, North Carolina, with his family, and many, many containers for leftovers.
