The New Geopolitics of Food

[Robin Garr]

Required reading for foodies who consider it important to be aware of the global aspects of food and the food economy. Long, but good stuff.

The New Geopolitics of Food - By Lester R. Brown, Foreign Policy
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2 ... page=0%2C0

Thanks Robin. It is almost a shock to read real journalism and in depth analysis anymore. None of this is new to anyone who's been paying attention, but it is an excellent summation of what we face in the coming century. One sentence in particular jumped out at me: "Each night, there are 219,000 additional people to feed at the global dinner table." I do not understand why population growth, once such a hot topic, is rarely talked about anymore.

I do not understand why population growth, once such a hot topic, is rarely talked about anymore.

Bob, I believe the reason has to do with embedded issues of racial politics and class politics as well. Over the past decade, the Sierra Club (to take an example) has had a number of candidates run for board positions who want to make population control an environmental issue. Such moves have been fiercely resisted by those who argue that the issue unfairly targets the poor and certain nations and/or ethnic groups since overpopulation is coupled with overconsumption by the affluent in the developed world. I believe that this illustrates the sort of political contortions engendered by the topic of overpopulation and is the principal reason that there isn't more open debate about this topic.

Mark Lipton

Mark, I think you're exactly right. And I think it's a pressing issue that is being studiously ignored.

I formed a chapter of ZPG in grad school -- Zero Population Growth. Around the time I got my PhD and moved on, I was starting to hear the "genocide" arguments...