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Loading... Stolen Harvest: the Hijacking of the Global Food Supply (2000)by Vandana Shiva
   No current Talk conversations about this book.  RachelRachelRachel | Nov 21, 2023 |    ) StefanieBrookTrout | Feb 4, 2017 | About the Author: Vandana Shiva (b. November 5, 1952, Dehra Dun, Uttarakhand, India), is a philosopher, environmental activist, eco feminist and author of several books. Shiva, currently based in Delhi, is author of over 300 papers in leading scientific and technical journals. She received her Ph.D. in physics from the University of Western Ontario, Canada, in 1978 with the doctoral dissertation:“Hidden Variables and Non-locality in Quantum Theory”. Shiva participated in the nonviolent Chipko movement during the 1970s. The movement, some of whose main participants were women, adopted the approach of forming human circles around trees to prevent their felling. She is one of the leaders of the International Forum on Globalization, (along with Jerry Mander, Edward Goldsmith, Ralph Nader, Jeremy Rifkin, et al.), and a figure of the global solidarity movement known as the alter-globalization movement. She has argued for the wisdom of many traditional practices, as is evident from her interview in the book "Vedic Ecology" (by Ranchor Prime) that draws upon India's Vedic heritage. Saraswati_Library | Feb 17, 2010 |  booksofcolor | Aug 1, 2009 | no reviews | add a review
For the farmer, the seed is not merely the source of future plants and food; it is a vehicle through which culture and history can be preserved and spread to future generations. For centuries, farmers have evolved crops and produced an incredible diversity of plants that provide life-sustaining nutrition. In India alone, the ingenuity of farmers has produced over 200,000 varieties of rice, many of which now line store shelves around the world. This productive tradition, however, is under attack as globalized, corporate regimes increasingly exploit intellectual property laws to annex these sustaining seeds and remove them from the public sphere. In Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of the Global Food Supply, Shiva explores the devastating effects of commercial agriculture and genetic engineering on the food we eat, the farmers who grow it, and the soil that sustains it. This prescient critique and call to action covers some of the most pressing topics of this ongoing dialogue, from the destruction of local food cultures and the privatization of plant life, to unsustainable industrial fish farming and safety concerns about corporately engineered foods. The preeminent agricultural activist and scientist of a generation, Shiva implores the farmers and consumers of the world to make a united stand against the genetically modified crops and untenable farming practices that endanger the seeds and plants that give us life. No library descriptions found. 
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)338.47664Social sciences Economics Production Secondary industries and services Services and specific products TechnologyLC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.78)
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Wikipedia in English
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"The cheapness of industrially produced food and expensiveness of organic foods does not reflect their cost of production but the heavy subsidies given to industrial agriculture." p 119
This is a book about how agro giants are taking over food production and destroying crop diversity, livelihoods, etc.
The author is Indian and the book focuses on the agricultural landscape of India, which was a refreshing perspective. Sadly, mentions of the U.S. were (rightly) negative.
Also sad is the misplaced worship of food culture. In India, seeds and harvests are worshiped. In the U.S., agro profits made from exploitation are worshiped.
The book was really informative. I knew a little about the subject going on, but the book provided me with a much more thorough understanding.
It's not necessarily the easiest to read, though, since there are a lot of statistics and acronyms used. Also, this is relatively old now (published in 2000), so while the general ideas are still valid, the actual numbers aren't current.
It's certainly worth a read, especially considering it's so short (under 150 pages!). (