The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (Paperback) by Michael Pollan

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02/03/08

Anita rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

Read in February, 2008

recommended to Anita by: Book review on Salon.com
recommends it for: people who care about their health, animals, farmers, the environment, and humanity

Michael Pollan is a journalist, and an omnivore, curious about where the food he puts in his mouth comes from. In the book he follows four meals from the very beginning of the food chain to his plate. What he finds is that the food we put in our mouths turns out to be a big decision- a moral, political, and environmental one.

Part One- CORN
The discussion begins with CORN. Part one of this book is shocking. I knew corn was the main crop grown in America and that farmers growi...more

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12/09/07

Lisa Vegan rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: bookclubs-secondary, non-fiction, philosophy, reviewed

Read in December, 2007

recommends it for: omnivores & anyone interested in the state of agriculture in the U.S.

I was resistant to reading this book because I’m not an omnivore, and also I thought that Pollan’s book The Botany of Desire was brilliant and I suspected I would not feel as fond of this one, which is certainly true. He does write well, but I didn’t find that this book had the eloquence or elegance of the other.

The sub-title of this book could read: It’s Really Ok To Eat Dead Animals, Really It Is. Which I realize for most people it is. But eating flesh foods and other foods...more I was resistant to reading this book because I’m not an omnivore, and also I thought that Pollan’s book The Botany of Desire was brilliant and I suspected I would not feel as fond of this one, which is certainly true. He does write well, but I didn’t find that this book had the eloquence or elegance of the other.

The sub-title of this book could read: It’s Really Ok To Eat Dead Animals, Really It Is. Which I realize for most people it is. But eating flesh foods and other foods made from animals such as dairy and eggs is simply what the vast majority of this book’s readers and the population as a whole do; it’s not an unique argument.

But, I loved the fungi chapter and the corn section. The chapter on mushrooms I’m sure I enjoyed so much because a close friend of mine has told stories of her rural Indiana upbringing and of the very small morel patch they have on their property. So it was really fun for me to read about the foraging/hunting of the mushrooms, including local morels. (The author lives about 30 minutes drive from me and I recognized many of the locations in the book.) The corn section (about the deliberate infusion of corn products into just about every processed food) made me determined to cut way down on the processed foods that I often eat: the one real way this book changed me, not an insignificant one.

A good part of this (apparently beloved) book seemed to me to be the author’s belabored argument that it’s perfectly fine to eat animals. His treatise looked like his attempt to avoid cognitive dissonance (his term although I was already thinking of it like that) so that he could continue to eat in peace as an omnivore, along with about 97% of the U.S. population; being omnivorous is the dominant paradigm. Anyway, his waxing poetic over the glories of killing and eating animals did not sway me. It’s interesting that Pollan continually rebuts his own arguments, but I wasn’t convinced his questioning was as honest as he wanted it to appear, as it seemed to me he already knew the answers he wanted to arrive at about being omnivorous. And I wouldn’t be surprised if he would agree with me about that.

Some of his facts and figures were off. When he talks about tens of millions of animals killed for food in the U.S. for instance; actually, the latest figures I’ve read are 11 billion every year, not including fish. Even the call to eat locally, which I usually subscribe to, is not to be so simplified. One contradictory example I can think of (this issue is not addressed in the book) is the consuming of products (chocolate, coffee, dried fruit, nuts) from the distant rainforest, which, in my opinion, is much preferable to continuing to cut down rainforest trees, and which the natives will allow if they can’t make their living from the rainforest in other ways.

I know my philosophy is shared by a relative few, but the fast food meals, the description which was intended to highlight the large amounts of corn products in all the foods, while I found that surprising and unfortunate, it was the cow and chicken parts of the meal that disturbed me the most. And, as far as the “idyllic” Polyface Farm, I truly wonder what they could do 100% plant products grown. (less)

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10/13/07

Sara rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: lifestyle

Read in January, 2006

recommends it for: Everyone I know

Man, this book is great. The best book I read last year, easily. Mushrooms, chicken slaughter, sustainability, french fries, soul-searching questions, it's all here. Just read it already.

Okay, if that didn't sell you, here's more info, from the review I wrote for my farm community (Stearns Farm, Framingham, MA):

The Omnivore’s Dilemma created a lot buzz since its publication in 2006, so you may have read it already. If you haven’t picked it up yet, consider checking...more Man, this book is great. The best book I read last year, easily. Mushrooms, chicken slaughter, sustainability, french fries, soul-searching questions, it's all here. Just read it already.

Okay, if that didn't sell you, here's more info, from the review I wrote for my farm community (Stearns Farm, Framingham, MA):

The Omnivore’s Dilemma created a lot buzz since its publication in 2006, so you may have read it already. If you haven’t picked it up yet, consider checking it out. At 464 pages, it is definitely on the long side, but it’s an engaging, easy read, and it puts the question “where do we get our food?” front and center in a fascinating way. Its four different sections break up the book nicely (you could read one section a month, for example, if your reading time is limited), and it is also coming out in convenient paperback form next month.

In the book, Michael Pollan traces the history and ingredients of four different meals: one from McDonald's, one from Whole Foods market, one from a small farm in Virginia, and one composed of ingredients that he gathered (and killed) on his own. The meal from McDonald’s (about 70% of which is derived from corn) allows him to take a trip down the rabbit-hole into the world of high fructose corn syrup and the massive, genetically-modified mono-farms that produce the majority of corn in this country. The Whole Foods meal is obviously a step up from this, although here Pollan explores the conundrum of eating organically if that means flying peaches in from Chile in December. This section of the book does a fine job explaining that “organic” does not necessarily mean sustainable. Next Pollan spends a week on a farm in Virginia that serves in many ways as an idyllic model for where to get your food. (Hello, Stearns!) Finally, in a section that is as much “adventure series” as it is agricultural critique, Pollan creates a gourmet meal for his friends using only items he gathered himself, including bread made with yeast collected from his backyard and sea salt procured from the Northern California coast on which he lives.

Hunting and gathering all of your own food these days may seem unfeasible, especially to create the kind of elaborate feast Pollan does. (Although Stearns provides the opportunity to get much closer to that goal). However, even if you are unable to rustle around in the woods for wild boar or visit a fire-blackened forest to pick morel mushrooms, as Pollan does, you will come away from the book re-energized with the commitment to eat locally and sustainably. Pollan may not have deliberately set out to promote CSAs such as Stearns Farm, but that is a happy side benefit of the work. He also writes sensitively and without a sense of moral superiority—it can feel unusual to read a book on this subject that doesn't make you feel bad about yourself. And yet, the information Pollan presents simply and persuasively will compel you to both thought and action, making The Omnivore’s Dilemma an excellent read and great inspiration for the next time you are out in the pick-your-own beds, gathering food for your family’s dinner.
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03/30/07

Patrick rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: justfinished

Read in March, 2007

recommends it for: everyone

I thoroughly enjoyed The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. He's been one of my favorite writers, ever since I read A Place of My Own, some years ago. And I stumble across stories by him in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, often quite by accident, and then look at the byline to see who this talented writer is, and there's Pollan again.

The book has the distinct danger of making you annoying to your spouse/partner/children, because you'll be reading along and feel compelled to sh...more I thoroughly enjoyed The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. He's been one of my favorite writers, ever since I read A Place of My Own, some years ago. And I stumble across stories by him in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, often quite by accident, and then look at the byline to see who this talented writer is, and there's Pollan again.

The book has the distinct danger of making you annoying to your spouse/partner/children, because you'll be reading along and feel compelled to share a fact about how industrial corn production has wormed its way into nearly every aspect of the American diet. I know my 12-year-old daughter cringes when we go the store, and I inspect the ingredients, calling out, "Yep, there's corn in this, too."

Pollan is an immensely fun writer, because he enjoys learning about this stuff, and he's skilled at taking the reader along on the journey, not just through the facts, but through feedlots, and chicken slaughtering, and mushroom hunting. He takes a close look at the industrialization of food production (which depends heavily and crazily on corn), large scale organic farming, and then at a sustainable farming operation, and then around a meal that he assembles using his hunting and gathering skills (relying heavily on the skills of others).

For our family, this book seems perfectly timed, since we've been making huge dietary changes around here since Halloween, cutting out animal products and most refined and processed foods. We were doing it for health reasons, but this books adds an entirely new level of justification. Not that Pollan is saying you should become a vegan. Not at all. He's saying that we owe it to ourselves to become more conscious about what we actually put in our mouths, and the effects that its creation is having on us, our culture, and our planet.

My only disappointment is that in the final wrap-up, he focuses on the extreme distance between the industrialized food he and his family consumes and the meal that he makes through hunting and gathering, without mentioning enough of the sustainable farm that he'd visited. (That section made me want to go out and buy some land and start farming. Tomorrow.) We spent so much time with Pollan through this book, I wanted a stronger sense of whether all this had actually managed to change his day-to-day buying and eating habits. But those are really minor points.

(Also, don't miss a terrific essay Pollan wrote for the NY Times in January, Unhappy Meals, about what we really should eat. Really, it's the answer to what was bugging me about the end of his book. It should be included as an addendum to every copy of The Omnivore's Dilemma.)(less)

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09/27/07

Bobbi rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

Read in March, 2007

recommends it for: everyone

Pollan takes on fake food in a big way in Omnivore's Dilemma. If you can get through the first section on corn -- which is important and ultimately fascinating, but is so dense that many readers will give up rather than wade through it -- it is a great read. This book has already tipped off the "local food fad" almost single-handedly, although many other books and articles have followed on its heels (see my review of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, for example).
...more Pollan takes on fake food in a big way in Omnivore's Dilemma. If you can get through the first section on corn -- which is important and ultimately fascinating, but is so dense that many readers will give up rather than wade through it -- it is a great read. This book has already tipped off the "local food fad" almost single-handedly, although many other books and articles have followed on its heels (see my review of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, for example).

Pollan is a foodie to the core and he traces the origins of four meals all the way back to their basic sources. As we follow his journeys, we learn that modern-day Americans eat much more corn than we realize, to our detriment. Everything, from meat to ethanol, is made up largely (and unnaturally) from corn that is grown in ways that deplete our soils, waste our resources, enrich the few and malnourish the many.

Pollan also explains, in great detail, why it really is worth it to grow a tomato or buy one at the farmer's market (from the farmer who grew it, not from a produce dealer who has carted it across the country and is renting a stall). It turns out that we are eating a lot of food that bears no real resemblance to the food eaten a couple of generations ago, even though it may look the same. Much of our food comes down to a pile of chemicals and corn that have been smooshed together to make up a cardboard-like representation of of food. Once you've tasted a peach that really tastes like a peach, you will forever associate it with summertime and you will never again settle for a rock-hard peach that was grown on the other side of the world and bred for durability and ease of travel instead of nutrition and flavor.

His section on Joel Salatan of Polyface Farms was absolutely fascinating. He explains, animal by animal and crop by crop, how interrelated every living thing on his farm is. I actually woke my husband up to read him the section about the hogs and the corn and how they make compost and heat the barn all at once (use your imagination). By the time Salatan explains why he doesn't cut down stands of trees when this would apparently improve his farm by giving him moore room to graze his animals and/or raise vegetables, it all makes sense (the trees help control the temperature, provide shade, and prevent soil erosion -- who knew?). The author so immerses us in Salatan's thinking and practices that we perfectly understand his refusal to FedEx a steak to Pollan, as well as his refusal to raise more hogs this year (he would have to grow extra corn, which would require using more land that needs to lay fallow this year, which would require a few more chickens to make the fertilizer, which would increase the number of eggs produced but require more space for them to roam, and then he might have to cut down some trees, which could upset the whole ecosystem of the farm by allowing too much erosion of the soil...you get the picture. I would guess that Omnivore's Dilemma is largely responsible for making Salatan a cult figure in the generally disparate worlds of Slow Food devotees and Christian homeschoolers.

As one might expect from a Berkeley professor, Mr. Pollan is not a fan of Wal-Mart. However, his readers would be surprised to see how he takes on Whole Foods and large-scale organic growers and livestock operations with equal ferocity. Last year's spinach scare proved many of Pollan's points.

By the time that Mr. Pollan gets around to hunting wild boar and truffles (he's not exactly the hunting type) to prepare a gourmet meal, he had me wrapped around his finger like a piece of bacon around a fresh-grown asparagus. Michael, call me, we'll do dinner. You can cook. Actually, I suspect that if Mr. Pollan and I sat down to dinner we would eat only great food and argue a lot, but we would have a good time.(less)

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05/09/07

Tracy rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: nonfiction

Read in May, 2007

recommends it for: anyone who eats

I'll never look at corn the same way again.

This book provokes a lot of thought about the origins of our food and the biological, political, social and economic implications of those origins. I liked that Pollan approached the topic journalistically, with admirably little in the way of political agenda. To structure his book, he uses the format of following the path of four finished meals from origin to plate - one McDonald's meal, one comprised of supermarket organic products, one ...more I'll never look at corn the same way again.

This book provokes a lot of thought about the origins of our food and the biological, political, social and economic implications of those origins. I liked that Pollan approached the topic journalistically, with admirably little in the way of political agenda. To structure his book, he uses the format of following the path of four finished meals from origin to plate - one McDonald's meal, one comprised of supermarket organic products, one from a "beyond-organic" self-sustaining farm in Virgina, and one he forages almost entirely on his own.

Pollan goes into food science labs and discovers how ubiquitous the use of corn has become in modern diets, and how corn-derived food systems are synthesized and refined into ever more variations to increase our usage and meet industrial demands for market growth. The McDonald's meal he and his family share, for example, ends up being comprised of over 70% corn or corn-fed product (from beef and milk cows fed corn silage and loaded with antibiotics when it sickens them, to corn starches used in buns and chicken nugget fillers, to the high-fructose corn syrup used to sweeten soda and milkshakes). Pollan makes a strong case for how corn and its refined offspring have contributed to the ever-expending girths of Americans in recent decades.

Next he looks at the organic market, examining the compromises that many organic producers have had to make to support the demands of national chains like Whole Foods, and what "organic" does and does not necessarily mean. He contrasts corporate organic production with a week he spends working on a farm in Virginia run by a maverick Christian/libertarian farmer who carefully manages a "beyond organic" operation of interdependent, high-yielding crops and livestock on his land. The story of how this farmer guides his farm in a sustainable, symbiotic cycle is absolutely amazing.

Lastly, Pollan goes off the grid completely in growing and foraging the means for an entire omnivorous meal - not only growing vegetables/herbs and learning how to scout for edible mushrooms, but actually learning how to hunt and shoot a wild pig in N. California (something my own husband recently did, much to our culinary benefit). The vast majority of people who eat meat will never even lay eyes on the living body of an animal they eat, let alone take responsibility for its demise; so I find a lot of honesty in Pollan's having taken that step in his exploration of the food chain.

Overall, this book rocked my world in terms of understanding our modern food chain and its impact on all of us both individually and as a society. As a result, I've been doing a lot of thinking about how I can improve both my diet and my contribution to local/organic food sources. I'm determined to find more ways to eat locally and organically, and I feel lucky to live in one of the best places to do so.(less)

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01/26/08

Mandy Nelson rated it:

Read in May, 2008

Ok friends, I LOVED this book. It was a little long and it kind of meandered and changed tone in the last 1/3 but it was good all the way through. This book is about the industrial food chain and the author's adventures in trying to trace where his food comes from. He researches the 3 different processes that go into 3 types of meals: an industrially produced meal (McDonald's), an organic meal (Whole Foods) and a hunter/gatherer meal (he kills/collects everything he eats for this meal). If ...more

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12/13/07

Laura rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

He makes some good points but in the end, it smacks of well-off white man over simplifying an incredibly complex issue. What the book has going for it is that it's a best seller, especially to the faux-liberal, over educated set and it's at least making them THINK about where their food is coming from. What I don't like though, is that it lets them off the hook as far as accountability if they just go about buying the RIGHT kind of meat. Well, all of that free range "humane" meat go...more

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06/29/07

Steph rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: howtheworldworks

Read in June, 2007

recommends it for: People who like to snack while reading

Full disclosure: I've probably eaten beef 5 or 6 times in the last 13 years; I had a year in middle school when I dabbled with vegetarianism; I currently live with a vegan and don't eat meat in the house; I loved both Supersize Me (movie) and Fast Food Nation (book). I also own Joel Salatin's book You Can Farm and have fantasies about becoming a beekeeper.

So the parts of The Omnivore's Dilemma that really struck a chord with me are the ones about the industrialization of our food s...more

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11/07/08

Trevor rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

I love food. I really love food. I believe it is one of the most fascinating cultural facts in our lives. I particularly love food that is taken as meals and then the words that gather about meals – not least that most beautiful word ‘sharing’. Because food is never better than when it is shared as ours.

Recently I was delighted to learn the etymology of the word ‘companion’. That has become my favourite way to describe the people I’m fond of. The word comes from L...more

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07/20/08

Rashaan rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: academics--textbooks---pedagogy-

Read in August, 2008

A wise man recently told me, "Capitalism is here to stay." With that in mind, Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma is a feel good guide to consumerism at its most sustainable, organic, locally grown, and ultimately high-end. Yes, this is an eye-opening read that will, at first, make you want to stop eating all together then compel you to grab a sturdy pair of boots you can kick around in, throw on some clothes that will certainly get dirty, if not bloody, and step into the splendors...more A wise man recently told me, "Capitalism is here to stay." With that in mind, Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma is a feel good guide to consumerism at its most sustainable, organic, locally grown, and ultimately high-end. Yes, this is an eye-opening read that will, at first, make you want to stop eating all together then compel you to grab a sturdy pair of boots you can kick around in, throw on some clothes that will certainly get dirty, if not bloody, and step into the splendors of the natural world. Pollan leads us on an epicurean journey that most of us could take only through the guiles of his literary skills and a comfortable armchair. We dredge through the horrors of industrial farming, contemplate over the simplicity of small, sustainable growers, and track through the forests of Northern California hunting wild boar and foraging for chanterelles. What we discover on his trek for the "Perfect Meal" is no real surprise to anyone who pays attention to the news. Americans are squeezed tightly between the behemoth corporate Charybdis that's killing us with corn-fed livestock and wreaking havoc across the country, spilling into our oceans. Then there's Scylla to our left, the over-priced, just beyond our reach, pure and golden harvest of sustainable, organic, locally grown food. However, unless you live in Northern California--and Pollan does!-- or one of the few corners of the U.S. where you can easily access this food on a weekly basis without the guilt of carbon footprints, or have the property to grow for yourself--ahem! subprime mortgage crisis, you'll just have to imagine the good life and take Pollan's word for it.

Pollan seems to willfully neglect the chasm between the haves (those who can waltz into Chez Panisse, meet with Alice Waters, and enjoy fresh goat cheese and endive) and the vast amount of have-nots, who demand and therefore fuel our fast food nation. In one chapter Pollan indulges in the quintessential American family experience of ordering 2 Big Macs, super-sized fries, and a Happy Meal. He queasily downs the over-processed, cholesterol clogging feed with his family in the comfort and convenience of his convertible car. What he fails to recognize is that people do this not necessarily because its fun, but if we're treated as "Human Resources" we will act like Human Resources. Just pull onto your nearby freeway, and you'll see for yourself. It's not hard to spot any nameless driver passing by, cheeseburger or breakfast burrito in one hand, steering wheel in the other. For most people, eating is not a ritual to be shared with the family and support local businesses. Eating is simply re-fueling; something workers or resources do on their way to or from work. Expressways as feedlots is by no means acceptable, but it is the state of our society, or at least a stratum and economic phenomenon that Pollan has decidedly left out.

Pollan means well and we certainly can't go on eating the same food in the same way. Lest we keep pumping money into a health and food system, which in turn pumps our television with commercials that in one minute entice us with grease-laden, over-processed meat to clog our hearts and arteries. Then the next minute another commercial urges us to get hooked on Lipitor or Lopressor, which we probably wouldn't need if we hadn't eaten those cheeseburgers in the first place. We also can't ignore that the cost of our appetites is speedily deteriorating the Elysian fields that made us a First World Super power.

Capitalism is here to stay, and consumers need to be informed--should be informed, about what we put in our bodies and how we feed our children. We need to start paying the real cost of food up front instead of getting hit with the hidden costs through doctor's bills and E Coli recalls. Still, Pollan's feast is difficult to swallow, much less nearly impossible to sit down to and really enjoy because he has an expense account and two years to scour the East and West Coasts for his meal. The Omnivore's Dilemma is perilous indeed. But I can't help wonder who exactly is this omnivore that Pollan's referring to? Poring over his book, I learn his omnivore has time to hunt for morels, knows how to make a souffle, and has two weeks to spare to arrange a dinner party for twelve guests among the bountiful gardens of Berkeley, California. Pollan's omnivore's dilemma comes down to what to eat and how to eat it when you have the time and means to contemplate. That's all very well and good, but the rest of us "omnivores" are still over-worked, under-nourished, and starving.
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06/08/08

Kristin rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

bookshelves: foodie

Read in October, 2008

This was an amazing book. Pollen takes the reader on a food adventure that is thought provoking, disturbing and quietly challenges they way we all look at the meal in front of us - all without being obnoxious or righteous.

The book begins simply enough in an Iowa cornfield as Pollen breaks down the history of corn and the future of this simple grain. He deftly weaves this into how we eat this product and what it’s doing to us and agriculture. From Iowa we travel with him as he vi...more This was an amazing book. Pollen takes the reader on a food adventure that is thought provoking, disturbing and quietly challenges they way we all look at the meal in front of us - all without being obnoxious or righteous.

The book begins simply enough in an Iowa cornfield as Pollen breaks down the history of corn and the future of this simple grain. He deftly weaves this into how we eat this product and what it’s doing to us and agriculture. From Iowa we travel with him as he visits his steer (#534) in the Colorado fields and in the feedlot of Kansas (Nebraska?).

The middle portion of the books moves into sustainable agriculture at its finest as he spends a week at Polyface farm. As a person familiar with farms, Polyface was amazing. Pollen starts the week on his stomach in a field examining the soil, he helps to move the cows from pasture to pasture, he assists in moving the chicken pens and describes they symbiotic relationship between the chickens and the cows. He talks about the rabbit and chicken house and the symbiotic relationship that exists there, he describes the cow barn in the spring and how the pigs turn 3 feet of cow muck, hay and fermented corn into black compost. And Pollen contrasts and compares “conventional farming” with this picture of “sustainable farming”.

In the third segement, Pollen has moved to California and examines what it means morally and ethically to be a vegetarian (giving up meat for a month). He has also decided to make a meal completely from those items he has grown, foraged and hunted himself.

This book is presented in such a down to earth matter that the reader can’t help but start to question how their food arrived on the table. Pollen doesn’t pontificate. He doesn’t raise his fist and pump it toward the sky and tell us we are all Bad People for Eating Meat. He doesn’t bombard us with anthropormophisism or silly sentiment. He took himself on a quest, shown us what he found, and I appreciated that more than anything.

Has this changed how I view my eating habits? You bet it has. Even more surprising, it changed the husbands. (less)

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08/24/07

Ginny rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

A truly important book by gifted writer and journalist Michael Pollan. It's not without its flaws, however, and for all the promise of the first two-thirds of the book, it kind of leaves the reader hanging at the end.

In the first part, Pollan exposes the damaging effects of industrial agriculture, and—-importantly—-this includes large-scale organic production which is not nearly as benign as most people would like to believe. Later in the book he addresses the inhumane aspect o...more A truly important book by gifted writer and journalist Michael Pollan. It's not without its flaws, however, and for all the promise of the first two-thirds of the book, it kind of leaves the reader hanging at the end.

In the first part, Pollan exposes the damaging effects of industrial agriculture, and—-importantly—-this includes large-scale organic production which is not nearly as benign as most people would like to believe. Later in the book he addresses the inhumane aspect of industrial agriculture as well—-organic production included. He puts it succinctly: you look away, or you stop eating meat.

In the second part of the book, we see farming as it should be, on Polyface Farm in the Shenandoah Valley. Here, farming practices are closely tied to nature including the natural behavior of farm animals. While the system doesn't adhere completely to organic regulations, it is far more sustainable and humane than industrial organic agriculture and certainly more so than conventional agriculture. Polyface Farm is not able to separate itself from industrial agriculture completely (by law, the steer are killed in conventional slaughterhouses) but it still seems like a very nice place. Unfortunately, the scale on which it operates means that this type of sustainable farming can never produce enough food for the U.S. population. Food from farms like Polyface is likely to be available to only a privileged few.

The last part of the book struck me as downright nonsensical. Pollan explores the possibility of putting together the ultimate local meal—-one composed of food that he himself has hunted, gathered and grown. But don't try this at home, he says. It is not at all a realistic way to eat. Well—-no—-not if you do it by gathering chanterelle mushrooms with a bunch of chefs from Chez Panisse, hunting wild boar in the California woods, and diving for abalone along a rocky coast. Granted, most Americans would be hard-pressed to produce their own food, but Pollan doesn't even explore the option in any kind of realistic or meaningful fashion.

In the end, it appears that the problems associated with food production are insurmountable. Industrial agriculture provides most of the food in this country and is a wasteful and unsustainable system. But more sustainable systems are not realistic for feeding the population. Pollan does not offer any clear cut answers, much to my surprise. (I didn't expect him to solve the problem; I did expect a little guidance!) But the thoughtful reader can still pull together a plan of action to minimize the environmental and ethical cost of a meal. Reduce intake of animal foods. Buy locally-produced food. Grow or produce as much as is realistic for you. Pollan makes his readers think about where their meals come from and how to measure the true cost of our "inexpensive" food. This is a must-read for anyone who expresses a desire to live and eat responsibly.
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10/06/07

Tien rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

This is a really good book that gets only two stars because it gets annoying. He starts by taking a fascinating look at corn and our very odd decision to be continually dependent on it. And then he walks through Whole Foods and dissects its philosophy and discovers that, surprise, the foods there aren't as organic and local as they advertise. (But he still shops there, of course. It's still Whole Foods.). And then it goes a bit downhill from there. Will a foodie please, please write about h...more

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01/21/09

Stephanie rated it:

(review of isbn 1594200823)

Read in February, 2009

recommended to Stephanie by: Idahospud's Book Club
recommends it for: Nerds like me

It’s not every day you read a book that threatens to change your life. I use the word “threaten” very deliberately, because they are changes that I know I'm going to find challenging.

Michael Pollan challenges his readers to examine their food a little closer, to consider where it comes from. And it's a logical request I think. We can spend days searching for the perfect doctor or mechanic, but how much time do we take to really think about our food? Do you know where your steak...more It’s not every day you read a book that threatens to change your life. I use the word “threaten” very deliberately, because they are changes that I know I'm going to find challenging.

Michael Pollan challenges his readers to examine their food a little closer, to consider where it comes from. And it's a logical request I think. We can spend days searching for the perfect doctor or mechanic, but how much time do we take to really think about our food? Do you know where your steak came from? Is your asparagus from a nearby farm, or far-flung Argentina? Are your peaches organic, and if so, what does that really mean? Most of us have no idea how to answer these questions.

In most cases, the answers are simple. Most of our food likely comes from a massive industrial farm or feed-lot hundreds of miles away, fed by incredible amounts of fossil fuels -- the fertilizer, the machines used for harvesting, the trucks it took to transport the food to your local mega-mart, to name just a few uses of fossil fuel. Pollan's descriptions of these farms (and in particular, the feed lots) can be quite disturbing. However, Pollan does not outright condemn this "industrial food chain." He concedes that it would be difficult to feed billions of people inexpensively without it. Instead, he advocates having several different avenues for delivering food to our tables, and he describes several alternatives. It is up to the reader to determine how they want to eat.

As for me, my eyes have been opened to the appeal of "eating locally," where possible. (Emphasis on "where possible." There aren't too many oranges grown in Idaho.) By eating foods produced as close to my home as possible, I support the local economy, less fossil fuels are used, and the food should have fewer preservatives, hormones, and other chemical ingredients. Best of all, the food should be fresher and more flavorful. Yes, it will cost more, but I think it will be worth it. At least I'm willing to try it. Consider it an experiement. I've already found local sources of milk, eggs and meat that I'm going to try.

I found Pollan's writing engaging and easy to read. (Disclaimer: I am a huge nerd, and the topic really spoke to me. If you don't like science, you may not find this book as fascinating.)

A few words of warning: if evolution makes you uncomfortable, you may not like this book, as it often talks about the evolution of plants, animals and humans. Also, there were two or three instances where objectionable language was used. (less)

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08/04/08

Josephine rated it:

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bookshelves: non-fiction

Read in July, 2008

On our recent road trip, Kevin and I listened to Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma on audiobook. Our farmer friends recommended it, oh, two whole years ago, so we finally decided to pick it up.

Now, this is a long audiobook for a single car trip. 13 discs. 15 hours and 58 minutes of super-detailed nonfiction. I wasn't sure I could handle it. But Michael Pollan's prose is engaging, and his subject matter completely absorbing. I was hooked.

Essentially, The Omnivore's D ...more

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10/31/07

Peter rated it:

Read in December, 2007

recommends it for: people who want to understand what they are eating

I started into this worried it was going to force me into vegetarianism, that I was going to read some passage about calves born into rancid waste, and a blue light somewhere in my brain would turn green and a gag reflex would accompany the thought of meat moving forward.

...Which speaks either to my penchant for pessimism, or the ominous relationship we have to our food chain, where we _don't_ really want to know how food got there, we just want to eat it.

But read the boo...more I started into this worried it was going to force me into vegetarianism, that I was going to read some passage about calves born into rancid waste, and a blue light somewhere in my brain would turn green and a gag reflex would accompany the thought of meat moving forward.

...Which speaks either to my penchant for pessimism, or the ominous relationship we have to our food chain, where we _don't_ really want to know how food got there, we just want to eat it.

But read the book I did, fearful to encounter that meat-snatching passage within the book. Thankfully, Pollan is not an alarmist, but rather a quite methodical inquisitor about the roots of our food. It sounds kind of..esoteric, but he makes it fascinating, like a great humanities teacher he tells the larger story of food: of why we grow so much fricking corn in America, and how it's bad for almost everyone involved: ourselves, our diet, farmers in other countries.

The good thing is that the book never descends into a polemic, unlike Michael Moore's work, Pollan's evenhandedness keeps the reader open to what he is saying. Nothing is extreme or revolutionary or incendiary.

I feel like this book will, in the long term, shape the way I think about food by giving me a vocabulary for considering my personal and our cultural relationship to food. He discusses how America as a nation of immigrants never developed a stable national cuisine (unlike France or Italy), and the absence of that makes us vulnerable to an endless array of fad diets (coughAdkinscough) and an overall menu that is out of balance.

There is a fascinating chapter on mushrooms and fungi, which details how they are utterly different from plants, and grow from this crazy underground symbiosis with decomposing nutrients and tree roots, taking a single drop of sugar from the tree root in exchange for processed minerals from the soil.

There is an extended look at a farm outside Charlottesville--Polyface Farm--which models itself after natural ecosystems and creates this method of rotating cattle and chickens with grass growth cycles to create this wonderful whirlwind of spreadsheets, efficiency, and microdata on growth patterns of grass.

To wit: it's better to have grass pasture surrounded by trees, because a blade of grass will burn X calories turning the face of it's blade toward the sun to receive solar energy. Planting forests around removes wind, allowing the grass to grow higher. Brilliant.

In the end, it's about food, but it's also about systems in general. It begins to feel like a universal look at the interrelationship of history and commerce, and how everything is this big interconnected fabric, but that you can begin to see some of those connections, and kind of surf those links to great personal and collective gain.

12/2007

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10/28/07

Chris rated it:

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Read in November, 2007

Pollan's book is not just a fascinating look at the modern state and evolution of our industrial food complex; it's not merely an anthropological investigation of the history of eating and cultural rituals; it's more than a scientific discourse of the biological nature of corn, small farm ecosystems, and fungi -- it's also, surprisingly, a page turner. When I was finished, I wanted the book to be twice as long.

The book is also not (as many people seem to think) a political screed or...more

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09/15/07

Joanna rated it:

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bookshelves: books-on-food

Read in June, 2008

Lengthy review to come. In the meantime, let me just say---I learned a lot from this book. I also enjoyed some segments very much.

I would have done some extensive editing.

The final chapter is sublime.

OK, my real review:

I am a convenience eater. Michael Pollan's work is transforming me into a conscious eater. Two concrete changes in my behavior: I will now pay the price of a fancy mocha coffee beverage for a dozen eggs gathered from happy ch...more

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08/20/07

Tim rated it:

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Read in September, 2007

Has served to overcome my general revulsion of journalists mascarading expose as scientific truth (e.g. Malcolm Gladwell or Thomas Friedman). Well worth reading, though a second, scientific perspective (read "not Schlosser") would be a good companion to fill out what this book offers.

---Finished: I take back what I said, what I thought was gearing up to be analytical and thought provoking really unwound over the course of the book. Pollan comes off a lot more like a hom...more

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