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34th out of 84 books
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The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter
Peter Singer, the groundbreaking ethicist whom The New Yorker calls the most influential philosopher alive teams up again with Jim Mason, his coauthor on the acclaimed Animal Factories, to set their critical sights on the food we buy and eat: where it comes from, how it is produced, and whether it was raised humanely.
The Ethics of What We Eat explores the impact our ...more
Paperback, 336 pages
Published
March 6th 2007
by Rodale Books
(first published May 2nd 2006)
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This is a fantastic book, written in a non-academic style, covering issues such an animal welfare, organic foods, locally grown foods (with a surprising twist on that choice!), and fair trade items. I found this book incredibly well researched, and open to empirical facts rather than demonstrating any blind allegiance to any one particular view point. After reading this book, I've entered into several conversations with vegan/animal rights friends of mine who generally criticize Singer, who was ...more
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In his recent work, The Ethics of What We Eat (March 2007), Singer and farmer Jim Mason investigate the shopping choices of three families with diets exemplary of our current culture: Standard American Diet (SAD), Organic, and vegan. The Hiller-Neirstheimer family lives in Mabelville, Arkansas, shops at Wal-Mart and eats the SAD. They choose their groceries based on convenience and cost, and are unaware of ethical values concerning food. The Masarech-Motavalli family lives in Fairfield, Connecti...more
I'm not sure I would have liked this book so much if I wasn't already mostly-converted. On the other hand, if I had read it during my still-omnivorous years it may well have been the kick in the pants that I needed to actually make a change, much earlier than I actually did.
Far from taking a hardline approach and condemning all non-vegans out of hand, the authors take a compassionate look at the food choices made by three different families, and from that launch a discussion of the i...more
Far from taking a hardline approach and condemning all non-vegans out of hand, the authors take a compassionate look at the food choices made by three different families, and from that launch a discussion of the i...more
it is a bit preaching-to-the-choir with regards to its obvious bias towards animal rights, and environmental concerns, but i appreciate the fact that the authors were also sure to not condemn outright those people who do chose to eat meat, animal-products, etc., but rather stressed the importance that we act as fully informed consumers, and that we take the time to make sure what form of "business" we are supporting with our almighty-dollar.
family farms, "Humane" ...more
family farms, "Humane" ...more
The Way We Eat is disturbing. And sort of hopeless. It tells us that virtually anything that we eat nowadays is contaminated by cruelty, bad working conditions (slavery), injustice, greed, and social imbalance. It says that there is a tiny hope for a solution if we start to consciously decide what to buy and where. It is very altruistic, but when one strips out all the things that harm the environment, or have a poor family starving to death, or a cruel animal death behind, there is virtually no...more
Out of all the books that deals with food, this is the must have book to read! I have been trying to find some chapters or segments that I can use to teach to my class about animal rights, food politics, and the environmental concerns dealing with food. I was expecting to only find a chapter or perhaps a segment to use. To my surprise, the whole book is worthy to be taught in class.
Peter Singer is well-known in philosophical circles as an ethicist and utilitarian. He has written man...more
Peter Singer is well-known in philosophical circles as an ethicist and utilitarian. He has written man...more
If you care at all about what you put into your body (and if you don't care, you should) then you should read this book. The Way We Eat manages to look at the issues surrounding the food industry - from slaughterhouses, to agriculture, to the environment and onward - without either flinching, or imparting too much judgement. Not so much a book to make choices for you, as to inform the choices you make yourself. It presents information from both sides of various arguements, in the hopes that a mo...more
Man, eating is hard... Meat comes from places you don't want to know about. Fish is good for you and tastes great, but the oceans are being depleted. Bottom line is that our Western behavior is unsustainable.
So far this book has a good overview of the impact food processing has on the environment and the global economy. One of the authors is Peter Singer, who wrote "Animal Liberation," which is a seminal animal rights book. While this book does deal with animal suffering, it also deals with the organic and humane food movements, fair trade, buying locally, etc. The writers observe the eating habits of 3 families and follow the food trail.
Only read this book if you are ready to change the way you eat. Because once you read it you cannot go back to the way things were before. The authors explain what it is your actually eating and how it is produced. Once you know all the details it changes everything, especially about meat and dairy.
It's easy to be ignorant, as we lead busy lives and the media represents everything so nicely. It's always the big companies that have the best ads and are the cheapest so we buy their products...more
It's easy to be ignorant, as we lead busy lives and the media represents everything so nicely. It's always the big companies that have the best ads and are the cheapest so we buy their products...more
I've enjoyed reading this book. It truly opened my eyes to the cruel practices of the food industry along with the term "factory farming." The book has made me want to enforce the vegetarian practices I've began to maintain, especially during my Spring Break (I thought my parents would make meat-related products, but I've seemed to do excellently well in avoiding them.).
With this said, I do not believe that everyone who reads this book will immediately begin questioning whe...more
With this said, I do not believe that everyone who reads this book will immediately begin questioning whe...more
In this book Singer and Mason examine the origins of the foods composing the diets of three different American families: one that buys its groceries from Walmart and eats a lot of fast food, another that shops at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's but occasionally eats less healthily, and a vegan family whose primary concern in life is eating in a healthy and sustainable manner. Most of the book is taken up with descriptions of factory and smaller farms, different growing practices, and the requireme...more
The best book I've read in awhile. This book may really make me move much farther towards a meatless diet. Although I thought for many years that there are many reasons to eat less meat (including the environment and health), the ethical issue regarding animals is the most compelling for me personally. In fact, this book makes me realize that being vegetarian would only be one step along the way. Chickens raised to lay eggs and cows raised to give milk do not have a better story. I think I ...more
Amazingly enlightening. I became a Pescatarian after reading this book, and I'll likely move towards Veganism the more that I learn. This book not only points out the more obvious reasons for boycotting factory-farmed food, but clearly describes the devastating effects it's had on the environment--deforrestation, global warming, air, water and land pollution, etc.
When you know what goes on behind the scenes-how your food is produced and where it comes from-you have to make a choice. ...more
When you know what goes on behind the scenes-how your food is produced and where it comes from-you have to make a choice. ...more
An excellent book by Peter Singer and Jim Mason which covers a diverse set of food-pertaining issues, e.g. eating locally, meat vs vegetarian diets, organic cs conventional, fair trade certification, and so on. Although in my opinion the writers aren't as "eloquent" as Michael Pollan, their arguements are just as--if not more--convincing. They argue their positions very well and often back them up with solid data. In their scope, they go beyond Pollan and most other food writers I've r...more
Interesting and thorough examination of the ethical issues encountered in what we choose to eat. From factor farms to organic food to local food and even seafood, Singer and Mason trace the ethical implications of food production and consumption in an easy-to-read and very practical manner. I would have liked to see a bit more ethical and philosophical reasoning, but appreciated the practicality of the writing. I'm going to use this for an environmental ethics for undergrads course and I think i...more
This is an excellent book that, were I a different person, a saint and not a sinner, might have changed my life. I think it probably will change it somewhat; I will continue with the baby steps of eating and buying food more mindfully, as I've already begun to do, but I'm not becoming vegan any time soon. The Way We Eat gives the reader many points to ponder about the philosophical questions that arise about eating animals, the treatment of animals who provide food for us, the tension between e...more
i'm not quite sure what i think after reading this book. it's difficult reading ethics because at the end, everything feels like a gray area that you need to investigate further. when it comes to food choices and wanting to eat ethically, this ambiguity is pretty frustrating.
so what is my takeaway? pretty much that if you believe animals feel pain (which they pretty much do and it's proven) and you don't want to inflict that pain, being vegan is the answer. it's strange, because peter ...more
so what is my takeaway? pretty much that if you believe animals feel pain (which they pretty much do and it's proven) and you don't want to inflict that pain, being vegan is the answer. it's strange, because peter ...more
I wasn't sure if I'd like this. I'm already a vegetarian and sometimes find animal rights stuff a preachy to the point that it would only appeal to the already converted. This book was still a little preachy but very informative and fairly sophisticated in its philosophical analysis of the choices we make.
If you're looking for a simple description of what you should eat ("aside from be a vegan"), forget it, it doesn't and can't exist. Everything is way too complicated. If ...more
If you're looking for a simple description of what you should eat ("aside from be a vegan"), forget it, it doesn't and can't exist. Everything is way too complicated. If ...more
I knew going into this book that I wasn't likely to get an objective, unbiased view of the food system from the author of "Animal Liberation" but I tried to keep an open mind. Most of the book is really well done -- informative, factual, thought-provoking, and well-researched. I read this shortly after reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" so a lot of the information was familiar to me, but I appreciated the reinforcement of ideas I've already read about.
My biggest pro...more
My biggest pro...more
This was a very interesting book that looks at different food industries and food issues such as animal welfare, organic foods, locally grown foods, and fair trade items. It looks at the lives of three different families and the way they shop for food and why, and the ramifications of those choices. The book shows an obvious bias when it comes to animal rights and environmental issues, but I thought did a good job at exploring arguments from many different viewpoints. Although I don't agree w...more
This book is similar to Food Inc. and Omnivore's Dilemma in lifting the veil of where our food comes from and the price (beyond the monetary sense) we pay for our food choices. The issues of ethics come up as the focus of the book isn't about how what you eat impacts you but how your food choices impact others. I appreciated the chapters on fishing/seafood catching practices and has me reconsidering my seafood consumption as well as their discussions of the vastly different conditions of farms...more
Excellent book about America's large scale animal agriculture. The book describes it's inherent brutality and horrifice environmental impact on ground water, and air quality. In addition, to these negatives, the impact on people who work within the animal production industry is multi-faceted.
Slaughterhouse workers Suffer from one of the highest occupational injury rates, as well as the highest turnover rates.
Increasingly, this work is being done by illegal immigrants who have no acc...more
Slaughterhouse workers Suffer from one of the highest occupational injury rates, as well as the highest turnover rates.
Increasingly, this work is being done by illegal immigrants who have no acc...more
I was more taken with Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma, but liked the logic of this book a bit better. It was obviously focused on being vegan, but refrained from passing harsh judgement on the meat-eating families featured in the book. I had never contemplated dumpster diving or living a "freegan" lifestyle. Even eating meat that way has no ethical consequences because you are not paying to foster inhumane practices in any way and are, in fact, recycling by consuming "trash." As ...more
Joseph Young
rated it
·
review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
vegetarians, vegans, people interested in conscientious eating
Not a bad book, although definitely slanted. Had to stop listening 10 mins before arriving home for dinner everyday. The style is easy to listen to, for the most part. This book is quite comprehensive in that it goes after everything: Factory farms, rain forest land farms, regular family farms, fishing, and even 'organic' farms and local farms. Informative and gives you a decent plan if you are trying to be a vegan or vegetarian.
Audio book complaints: Please put audio markers at the ...more
Audio book complaints: Please put audio markers at the ...more
A detailed and informative look at where our food comes from and how it is produced. At times this book lost me in figures and percentages, but overall it emphasized the fact that animals have feelings and should be treated with decency. This I already knew, yet i did not know just how bad factory farms were. It will clear up any misconceptions you might have about that. It also speaks in detail about the benefits of organic produce and buying local. Sometimes painstaking but always informative.
John Colvin
rated it
·
review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
people that eat
Shelves:
animal-rights
This book worked to reaffirm choices that I have already made and helped to convince me to pursue veganism.
Singer's Practical Ethics is the book that convinced me to become a vegetarian. I found this title to be less intellectually stimulating than Practical Ethics. This, however, is not necessarily a critique of the book. It could be argued that Practical Ethics is dry and too philosophical. This book is much more accessible and uses a lot of anecdotal evidence. Towards the end...more
Singer's Practical Ethics is the book that convinced me to become a vegetarian. I found this title to be less intellectually stimulating than Practical Ethics. This, however, is not necessarily a critique of the book. It could be argued that Practical Ethics is dry and too philosophical. This book is much more accessible and uses a lot of anecdotal evidence. Towards the end...more
I had always been afraid of reading a book like this, because I knew it would severely challenge my eating habits, which were ingrained in me by a typical midwestern family. As expected, this book was a sustained and forceful critique of my meat eating diet. I have to say, though I did not agree with the authors unanimously, I find their conclusions to be convincing and well-argued.
Certainly this book has forced me to confront the consequences of my diet, and ask whether it is accept...more
Certainly this book has forced me to confront the consequences of my diet, and ask whether it is accept...more
this is the book that convinved me to be a vegetarian. I've been thinking of becoming a vegetarian since yaers ago, but I wasnt sure about it. then, i started to educate myself about being one, and started to give up red meat and chicken, but i still consumed fish back then. this book convinced me to give up seafood as well. very informative, for those who concern about what they really eat, what it cost just to give us, human, a piece of meat, the impact of livestock farming to environment, and...more
Lesley
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone interested in debating food politics and ethics
This book provides a really thorough debate on how the food choices we make impact the lives of others, the environment and our health in general. It follows the choices of three families, whose food preferences represent different groups of people - the typical American family who shops for food at WalMart and eats the "SAD" diet (Standard American Diet), the upper-middle class family who eats a mixture of organic/conventional foods and tries to buy ethically but is not strict about ...more
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Peter Albert David Singer is an Australian philosopher. He is the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University, and laureate professor at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE), University of Melbourne. He specializes in applied ethics, approaching ethical issues from a secular preference utilitarian perspective.
He has served, on two occasions, as c...more
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