A Bone to Pick: The good and bad news about food, with wisdom and advice on diets, food safety, GMOs, farming, and more

by Mark Bittman

Overview

Since his New York Times op-ed column debuted in 2011, Mark Bittman has emerged as one of our most impassioned and opinionated observers of the food landscape. The Times’ only dedicated opinion columnist covering the food beat, Bittman routinely makes readers think twice about how the food we eat is produced, distributed, and cooked, and shines a bright light on the profound impact that diet—both good and bad—can have on our health and that of the planet.

In A Bone to Pick, Mark’s most memorable and thought-provoking columns are compiled into a single volume for the first time. As abundant and safe as the American food supply appears to be, the state of our health reveals the presence of staggering deficiencies in both the system that produces food and the forces that regulate it. Bittman leaves no issue unexamined; agricultural practices, government legislation, fad diets, and corporate greed all come under scrutiny and show that the issues governing what ends up in our market basket and on our tables are both complex and often deliberately confusing. Unabashedly opinionated and invariably thought provoking, Bittman’s columns have helped readers decipher arcane policy, unpack scientific studies, and deflate affronts to common sense when it comes to determining what “eating well” truly means. As urgent as the situation is, Mark contends that we can be optimistic about the future of our food and its impact on our health, as slow-food movements, better school-lunch programs, and even “healthy fast food” become part of the norm.

At once inspiring, enraging, and enlightening, A Bone to Pick is an essential resource for every reader eager to understand not only the complexities inherent in the American food system, but also the many opportunities that exist to improve it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780804186544
Publisher:	Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed
Publication date:	05/05/2015
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

MARK BITTMAN is one of the country’s best-known and most widely respected food writers. His How to Cook Everything books, with over a million copies in print, are a mainstay of the modern kitchen, and his manifesto on pursuing a part-time vegan diet, VB6, debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. Bittman's writings on food policy and cooking appear in the Dining, Op-Ed, and Magazine sections of the New York Times.

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Excerpted from "A Bone to Pick"
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Copyright © 2015 Mark Bittman.
Excerpted by permission of Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Table of Contents

Introduction x

A Food Manifesto for the Future xiii

1 Big Ag, Sustainability, and What's In Between

How to Feed the World 2

Sustainable Farming Can Feed the World 7

Pesticides: Now More Than Ever 10

That Flawed Stanford Study 13

A Simple Fix for Farming 17

Not AH Industrial Food Is Evil 20

Local Food: No Elitist Plot 24

Lawns into Gardens 27

Celebrate the Farmer! 30

Abundance Doesn't Mean Health 33

2 What's Wrong with Meat?

Rethinking the Meat Guzzler 38

We're Eating Less Meat. Why? 43

Banned from the Barn 46

Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others 49

On Becoming China's Farm Team 52

Should You Eat Chicken? 55

A Chicken Without Guilt 59

3 What Is Food? And What is Not?

Make Food Choices Simple: Cook 66

Is Junk Food Really Cheaper? 69

What is Food? 74

Is "Eat Real Food" Unthinkable? 77

Why Won't McDonald's Really Lead? 80

Parasites, Killing Their Host 83

Yes, Healthful Fast Food & Possible. But Edible? 86

It's the Sugar, Folks 94

Is Alzheimer's Type 3 Diabetes? 97

Cereal? Cookies? Oh, What's the Diff? 100

Farmers' Market Values 103

4 The Truth About Diet(s)

(Only) Two Rules for a Good Diet 108

What Causes Weight Gain 111

Which Diet Works? 114

Will China Defeat Obesity? 117

Butter Is Back 120

Can You Eat Too Little Salt? 123

Got Milk? You Don't Need It 127

More on Milk 130

Dietary Advice for the Gluttony Season 133

When Diet Meets Delicious 136

Finding Your Comfort Food 140

The Frankfurter Diaries 143

Bagels, Lox, and Me 146

Why I'm Not a Vegan 149

5 The Broken Food Chain

Dietary Seat Belts 154

11 Trillion Reasons 157

The Right to Sell Kids Junk 160

¡Viva México! 163

Bacteria i,F.D.A.o 167

E. Coli: Don't Blame the Sprouts! 170

The F.D.A.'s Not Really-Such-Good News 173

The 20 Million 179

Fast Food, Low Pay 182

The True Cost of Tomatoes 185

6 Legislating and Labeling

Bad Food? Tax It, and Subsidize Vegetables 190

Some Progress on Rating and Health 196

Why Do GMOs Need Protection? 200

Why Aren't GMO Foods Labeled? 204

Leave "Organic" Out of It 207

My Dream Food Label 210

Rethinking the Word "Foodie" 214

Hunger in Plain Sight 217

Can Big Food Regulate Itself? Fat Chance 220

Tobacco, Firearms, and Food 223

Don't End Agricultural Subsidies, Fix Them 227

Stop Subsidizing Obesity 230

Fixing Our Food Problem 233

A Few Final Thoughts

Why Take Food Seriously? 238

Do Sweat the Small Stuff 241

Acknowledgments 245

Index 247

Editorial Reviews

“An intelligent rallying cry for anyone seeking a safe and healthy food supply, and all that entails.” – Kirkus Reviews

“A Bone to Pick, a new collection of Bittman’s columns and features, is destined to become a staple for those who want to consider, more deeply, what’s on their plate.” – Salon.com

“[Bittman’s] complaints about what he calls a “broken” food system are consistently balanced with viable solutions; his resounding message (“eat real food”) is simple enough, and supports his overall goal of human health and agricultural sustainability.  Bittman’s compelling essays are a call to action and a reminder to readers that the future of food – and of the planet – is in their own hands.” – Publishers Weekly

“In this engrossing, provocative look at the country’s food politics, Bittman examines the importance of creating a sustainable future for agriculture and food in the US. [A Bone to Pick] is sure to be a call for action for both readers at home and policy makers in creating a movement for a healthier future”. – Clean Eating

From the Publisher

2015-03-09
When a book begins with an essay titled "A Food Manifesto for the Future," you know the author is on a mission. Food writer Bittman's (How to Cook Everything Fast, 2014, etc.) collection of previously published New York Times articles deftly deconstructs how America's reliance on fossil fuels, the cruel mass production of animals, and an overuse of hyperprocessed junk foods have created a food system in tatters and left many Americans sick. Regular readers of the Times will know Bittman's work. However, by gathering the articles into a complete narrative, the compilation provides an all-inclusive look at the author's findings across a range of topics. For those readers unfamiliar with Bittman's knowledge of the issues, it makes grasping a multifaceted subject less daunting. Moreover, if at times the author repeats some points, it matters little compared to the importance of the information. Written between 2008 and 2014, the articles are arranged topically rather than chronologically. This structure allows readers to grasp the evolution of issues such as the sustainability (or not) of big agriculture; the issues surrounding the production and consumption of meat; what constitutes real food; dieting; the various ways America's food chain fails its citizens; and how legislation and labeling affect what we eat. Bittman bolsters his conclusions with the voices of numerous scientists, and he calls out big pharma and industrialized agriculture for the use of antibiotics in meat. He also scolds the food industry for its workers' low wages. The author's keen analysis of the weakness of the Food and Drug Administration and its failures regarding food safety proves especially informative and enraging. Bittman successfully links a sound food system not just to the tastes of foodies (a word the author dislikes), but also to larger public health issues. An intelligent rallying cry for anyone seeking a safe and healthy food supply, and all that entails.

Kirkus Reviews

Mark Bittman's collection of op-ed pieces, which originally appeared in the NEW YORK TIMES, supports his principal concerns about how and what America eats. Narrator Robert Fass wisely opts for a conversational style, punctuated with a little attitude, to keep listeners' full attention, even in the more fact-filled articles. Although Bittman writes from a variety of perspectives, he focuses on only a few issues: the interplay of food and health, food safety, federal laws, and agribusiness. In addition, he's passionate about home cooking and eating real food. Fass's performance is expressive and engaging, but Bittman's message can become repetitive. Listeners will best appreciate this important collection one or two articles at a time, making this audiobook the perfect choice for a daily commute or lunchtime break. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

APRIL 2015 - AudioFile