2006-06-02 If food facts could speak, this book would be a desperate scream

Erik and Tim succeed in neatly presenting the extremely complex environment of the food supply chain as well as the substantial misconceptions that society has about food, its entire production and consumption chain as well as its consequences. For anyone even slightly motivated to reconsider his food choices and dietary behaviour, this book gives a wealth of arguments for tackling things differently. This atlas should be compulsory study in every education. Moreover its concept and design has strong educational potential.
I may fancy maps and atlases more than the average person, but the sheer pleasure of discovering so many insights in a such a simple way will surely work for most readers. The visuals used fit this type of information extremely well with and they make the key learnings from this atlas quite obvious for anyone.
As a compact database, the atlas is equally useful for the professional who needs to get a first view on some other aspects of this complex area where he may have less expertise.
If more people would have only a superficial understanding of some of the issues and causal interrelationships that figure in this book, it would already make a significant difference for the way our societies would value and use natural resources . This book is therefore very recommendable and useful reading and will definitely change the way you look at food and your daily consumption patterns.