Stand Together or Starve Alone: Unity and Chaos in the U.S. Food Movement

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America has a perplexing, multifaceted problem that combines hunger, obesity, and unhealthy food. This book examines how this situation was created and shows how people working together can resolve this longstanding issue. The United Statesone of the world's wealthiest and resource-richest nationshas multiple food-related problems: declining food quality due to industrialization of its production, obesity across all age groups, and a surprisingly large number of households suffering from food insecurity. These issues threaten to shorten the lives of many and significantly reduce the quality of life for millions of others. This book explores the root causes of food-related problems in the 20th and 21st centuries and explains why collective impactthe social form of working together for a common goalis the method that needs to be employed to reach a successful resolution to hunger, obesity, and the challenges of the industrial food system. Authored by Mark Winne, a 45-year food activist, the book begins with background information about the evolution of the U.S. food movement since the 1960s that documents its incredible growth and variety of interests, organizations, and sectors. The subsequent sections demonstrate how these divergent interests have created a lack of unity and constitute a deterrent to achieving real change and improvement. Through examples from specific cities and states as well as a discussion of group dynamics and coalition-building methods, readers will come away with an understanding of a complicated topic and grasp the potential of a number of strategies for creating more cohesion within the food movementand realizing meaningful improvements in our food system for current and future generations.

Reviews

[T]he most important book going on today's food movements. . . his book is a seedbed for city food advocates in all countries. I read his book through my city lens, and invite you to see how his book can help city-based food organizers everywhere. . . . I thank Mark Winne for prodding me to think of such joint city ventures. I am sure many other people will have their own reasons to thank him for a life well lived, and thoughtfully dedicated to food security that benefits the entire community. * Dr. Wayne Roberts, author and former director of the Toronto Food Policy Council *
Winne's firsthand knowledge strengthens the book, and although he draws on the literature at times, he is not merely an academic making recommendations without understanding their potential effects on the ground. . . . Winne provides a solid treatise that will appeal to both students and practitioners within the food movement. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals. * Choice *

Author Bio

Mark Winne is senior advisor to the Center for a Livable Future at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He is cofounder of the Community Food Security Coalition, where he also worked as the Food Policy Council Program Director.