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“One problem with the food system is that price is the bottom line rather than having the
bottom line be land stewardship, an appreciation for the environmental and social value P
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For much of the later twentieth century, food has been abundant and convenient for most residents of n
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advanced industrial societies. The luxury of taking the safety and dependability of food for granted pushed it mF
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to the back burner in the consciousness of many. Increasingly, however, this once taken-for-granted food sys- rsI
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tem is coming under question on issues such as the humane treatment of animals, genetically engineered an
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foods, and social and environmental justice. Many consumers are no longer content with buying into the AH
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mainstream, commodity-driven food market on which they once depended. Resistance has emerged in tivT
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diverse forms, from protests at the opening of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide to ever-greater interest in ts
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alternatives, such as CSAs(community-supported agriculture), fair trade, and organic foods. The food system h
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isincreasingly becoming an arena of struggle that reflects larger changes in societal values and norms, as lleV
expectations are moving beyond the desire for affordable, convenient foods to a need for healthy and envi- ngE
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ronmentally sound alternatives. In this book, leading scholars and scholar-activists provide case studies that tR
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illuminate the complexities and contradictions that surround the emergence of a “new day” in agriculture. e
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The essays found in The Fight Over Foodanalyze and evaluate both the theoretical and historical contexts of baO
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the agrifood system and the ways in which trends of individual action and collective activity have led to an F
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“accumulation of resistance” that greatly affects the mainstream market of food production. The overarching o
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theme that integrates the case studies is the idea of human agency and the ways in which people purposely S
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and creatively generate new forms of action or resistance to facilitate social changes within the structure of t
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predominant cultural norms. Together these studies examine whether these combined efforts will have the
THE FIGHT OVER
strength to create significant and enduring transformations in the food system.
FOOD
Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
Wynne Wrightis Assistant Professor of Community,Food, and Agriculture at Michigan State University.
Gerad Middendorfis Associate Professor of Sociology at Kansas State University.
Producers, Consumers, and Activists
RURAL STUDIES SERIES ISBN 978-0-271-03275-7
Challenge the Global Food System
90000
THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS
UNIVERSITY PARK, PENNSYLVANIA
WWW.PSUPRESS.ORG 9 780271 032757 Edited by Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
PENN
STATE
PRESS
00Front.qxd 10/25/2007 2:21 PM Page i
THE FIGHT OVER FOOD
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THE FIGHT OVER
FOOD
Producers, Consumers, and Activists
Challenge the Global Food System
Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
The Pennsylvania State University Press
University Park, Pennsylvania
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Disclaimer:
Some images in the original version of this book are not
available for inclusion in the eBook.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The fight over food :producers,consumers,and activists challenge the global food system /
[edited by] Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf.
p.cm.— (Rural studies series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
----(cloth :alk.paper)
----(pbk.:alk.paper)
.Food supply—Social aspects.
.Agriculture–Social aspects.
I.Wright,Wynne.
II.Middendorf,Gerad.
III.Series:Rural studies series (University Park,Pa.).
..
.´—dc
Copyright ©
The Pennsylvania State University
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
Published by The Pennsylvania State University Press,
University Park,PA -
The Pennsylvania State University Press
is a member of the
Association of American University Presses.
It is the policy of The Pennsylvania State University Press to
use acid-free paper.This book is printed on Natures Natural,containing
% post-consumer waste,and meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence
of Paper for Printed Library Material,.–.
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction
Fighting Over Food:Change in the Agrifood System
Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
part i.conceptual framework
Agency and Resistance in the Sociology of
Agriculture and Food
Alessandro Bonanno and Douglas H.Constance
Agency and the Agrifood System
William H.Friedland
Resistance,Agency,and Counterwork:
A Theoretical Positioning
Norman Long
part ii.case studies:making room for agency
Counterhegemony or Bourgeois Piggery?
Food Politics and the Case of FoodShare
Josée Johnston
Resistance,Redistribution,and Power in the
Fair Trade Banana Initiative
Aimee Shreck
Sustaining Outrage:Cultural Capital,Strategic Location,and
Motivating Sensibilities in the
U.S.Anti–Genetic Engineering Movement
William A.Munro and Rachel A.Schurman
Social Life and Transformation in
Salmon Fisheries and Aquaculture
Michael Skladany
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vi contents
part iii.case studies:constraints to agency
Infertile Ground:The Struggle for a
New Puerto Rican Food System
Amy Guptill
Possibilities for Revitalizing Local Agriculture:
Evidence from Four Counties in Washington State
Raymond A.Jussaume Jr.and Kazumi Kondoh
Consumers and Citizens in the Global Agrifood System:
The Cases of New Zealand and South Africa in the
Global Red Meat Chain
Keiko Tanaka and Elizabeth Ransom
Conclusion:
From Mindful Eating to Structural Change
Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
Index
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Like the individual,collective,and institutional work required for transform-
ing our agrifood system,this book is the product of a similar collaboration.
The momentum for this project originated with the creative energies of
members of the International Sociological Association’s Research Commit-
tee on Agriculture and Food (rc-).In June the editors of this volume
organized and convened a two-day miniconference in Austin,Texas,entitled
“Resistance and Agency in Contemporary Agriculture and Food:Empirical
Cases and New Theories.”This event brought together scholars and scholar-
activists committed to assessing the multifarious changes under way in the
agrifood system.We owe much to those at the miniconference for sharing
their research and joining us on the path that would ultimately lead to The
Fight Over Food.
It is almost impossible to recall the many individuals who had a hand in
this project from start to finish.From those who encouraged the project to
those who offered words of advice along the way,we are indebted.We would
like to begin by acknowledging William Friedland and Norman Long,who
supported the development of this volume.Special thanks go to Ray Jussaume,
Douglas Constance,and Patrick Mooney for their guidance at various stages.
We also want to acknowledge Carmen Bain,Alessandro Bonanno,William
Friedland,Amy Guptill,Elizabeth Ransom,and Keiko Tanaka for their dili-
gent work in reviewing chapters and providing insightful and constructive
commentary.
As editor of the Rural Studies Series,Clare Hinrichs played a key role
in encouraging the development of this project and applied her keen eye to
numerous drafts.She was especially skilled at helping us fit the conceptual
pieces together in the early stages.Peter Potter and Sanford Thatcher at Penn
State University Press also proved exceptional in their ability to help us navi-
gate the publishing process,providing much needed feedback and support.
We also gratefully acknowledge the comprehensive review of this manuscript
by two anonymous reviewers who invested an enormous amount of time
and thought in helping us improve the work.
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viii acknowledgments
Finally,colleagues and friends are often a sounding board for ideas in the
germination stage.We greatly appreciate the collegiality of Kent Sandstrom,
Jerry Stockdale,and Robert Schaeffer,who took the time to listen and pro-
vided valuable perspective at times when we were mired in detail.This is
surely a much improved book because of the efforts of this cadre of support-
ers,but the editors and contributors alone take responsibility for any omis-
sions,interpretive failings,and conceptual and methodological missteps.
00Front.qxd 10/25/2007 2:21 PM Page 1
introduction
fighting over food:
change in the agrifood system
Wynne Wright and Gerad Middendorf
Time magazine recently reported the story of a man in Ann Arbor,Michi-
gan,who had been pulled over in his pickup truck by the state police for haul-
ing illegal cargo.This was the culmination of a sting operation that resulted
in seizure of the cargo.But this was no ordinary drug bust;the driver of the
mud-splattered pickup truck was a dairy farmer dealing in raw milk (Cole
).A growing number of consumers,often from urban locales,are seek-
ing out the warm,white liquid straight from the udder for what they perceive
as its superior nutritional value.The Food and Drug Administration (fda)
does not see it that way.The fda line is that unpasteurized milk contains
E.coli,salmonella,and listeria—all risks to human health.It is illegal to trans-
port raw milk across state lines,just as it is illegal to sell raw milk in twenty-
three states.As a result,farmers and raw milk drinkers have found a creative
way to circumvent this obstacle by partnering together to organize a small
cooperative venture,known as a cow-share.It is legal to drink straight from
your own cow,so by organizing a cow-share co-op,consumers are effectively
drinking from the cow they own and partnering with the farmer to do the
milking and caretaking.The confiscation of the raw milk has set off some-
thing of a maelstrom in Michigan.Raw milk drinkers are a dedicated bunch;
members of the farmer’s cow-share cooperative could not run fast enough
to the aid of their farmer,offering support in numerous ways.It seems that
this case is not so unique.People appear to be struggling over the meaning
of raw milk—dubbed “real”milk by its supporters—in a number of states.
New York, Maryland, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Nebraska, Colorado, Ari-
zona—the raw milk crack down is spreading,while at the same time resist-
ance is mounting.The conflict over raw milk and the growing divide among
producers,consumers,and the state is merely the most recent example of a
Description:'One problem with the food system is that price is the bottom line rather than having the bottom line be land stewardship, an appreciation for the environmental and social value of small-scale family farms, or for organically grown produce.' --Interview with farmer in Skagit County, WashingtonFor mu
