Many books will tell you how and why you should change the way you eat. Ravenous is not one of those books. It does include dietary changes we should make to protect our health and the health of the planet, but purposefully moves the focus away from individual responsibility. Instead it builds a picture of the system we are trapped in when it comes to food, the negative impacts that system is having on our health and the environment, and why policy is required to change it.
The book sets out to “explain why our modern diet has created a global crisis of diet-related disease and environmental destruction”. It is a complex topic that Henry Dimbleby and Jemima Lewis address concisely and accessibly. The book is a summary of key challenges in the UK’s modern food system, everything from obesity, diet-related disease, and food inequalities to food waste, animal welfare, farming practices, land use, and the great meat debate. All topics equally relevant to Ireland.
In 2019 Dimbleby, co-founder of the Leon chain of restaurants, was commissioned by the UK government to create a national food strategy for England. He undertook extensive public engagement and spoke to hundreds of experts. The Government failed to take on board most of his recommendations. But much of the work he carried out informs this book.
Ravenous traces development of our modern food system from the Green Revolution, bringing with it huge increases in crop yields but also chemicals and fertilisers, which have wrought havoc on the environment, and an abundance of cheap sugar, flour and vegetable oils to produce the ultra-processed foods that have wrought havoc on health.
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The book is in three sections. Our Bodies looks at how the UK has become trapped in a “junk food cycle”, resulting in 60 per cent of UK adults being overweight or obese, and diet being the number one cause of preventable illness. It illustrates why eating better is not all about willpower, and unpicks the challenges faced by those on low incomes in feeding their families a healthy diet, issues that go far beyond food affordability. Dimblebly promises early on to dispel “myths and misconceptions” about food; among these that exercise is a good way to lose weight.
Ravenous does an admirable job of illustrating the interconnectedness of the food system and its challenges. It covers a lot of ground
Our Land shifts the focus to the climate and biodiversity impacts of the food we produce and eat, and the important question of land use. Central to this is the question of the environmental impact of eating meat. Eighty five per cent of the farmland, at home and abroad, that feeds the UK is used for rearing livestock or growing their feed, but meat, dairy, and eggs contribute just 32 per cent of the calories consumed. Dimbleby, and the research, are clear: the UK must reduce its meat consumption. He proposes a portion of the land used for livestock production be returned to nature.
Ravenous does an admirable job of illustrating the interconnectedness of the food system and its challenges. It covers a lot of ground, which means in some places detail is lacking, leaving you hungry for more information. The book does not address the question of control and ownership in the food system. Dimbleby explores technological solutions to the environmental impacts of the food system, but does not consider the risk associated with putting control of our food supply increasingly in the hands of big companies.
At times it feels as though Dimbleby is a little too sympathetic to the food industry; they are trapped in the same broken system that we are, he says. But multinational food companies make eye-watering profits and have played a role in perpetuating many of the myths that persist around diet, have knowingly continued to produce food that damages health, and lobby against policies that could improve the situation (something the book does acknowledge).
The third and final section, Our Future, considers what lies ahead and how food culture could shift to tackle the urgent problems in our food system. The message is clear: everyone has a part to play but the necessary change will not come without government intervention. Citizens, Dimbleby says, must demand this. But citizens need to know what to demand. “People don’t consciously experience food in a systemic way,” says Dimbleby, and this is often as true for politicians as anyone else. We are so caught up in the system, it is hard to see that we are part of it. This book can certainly help open our eyes.
Ruth Hegarty is managing director of Egg and Chicken
