Swindled : the dark history of food fraud, from poisoned candy to counterfeit coffee
(Book)
Author
Published
Princeton : Princeton University Press, c2008.
Physical Description
xiv, 384 pages : illustrations, map ; 24 cm.
Status
Summary
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Copies
Location | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Casper College Library - Main Collection | TX531 .W688 2008 | On Shelf |
Laramie County Community College - Main Collection | TX531 .W68 2008 | On Shelf |
Northwest College - Hinckley Library - Second Floor | 363.1926 W746S | On Shelf |
Subjects
Library of Congress Subjects
More Details
Published
Princeton : Princeton University Press, c2008.
Format
Book
Language
English
Notes
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (p. [351]-361) and index.
Summary
From the Publisher: Bad food has a history. Swindled tells it. Through a fascinating mixture of cultural and scientific history, food politics, and culinary detective work, Bee Wilson uncovers the many ways swindlers have cheapened, falsified, and even poisoned our food throughout history. In the hands of people and corporations who have prized profits above the health of consumers, food and drink have been tampered with in often horrifying ways-padded, diluted, contaminated, substituted, mislabeled, misnamed, or otherwise faked. Swindled gives a panoramic view of this history, from the leaded wine of the ancient Romans to today's food frauds-such as fake organics and the scandal of Chinese babies being fed bogus milk powder. Wilson pays special attention to nineteenth-and twentieth-century America and England and their roles in developing both industrial-scale food adulteration and the scientific ability to combat it. As Swindled reveals, modern science has both helped and hindered food fraudsters-increasing the sophistication of scams but also the means to detect them. The big breakthrough came in Victorian England when a scientist first put food under the microscope and found that much of what was sold as genuine coffee was anything but-and that you couldn't buy pure mustard in all of London. Arguing that industrialization, laissez-faire politics, and globalization have all hurt the quality of food, but also that food swindlers have always been helped by consumer ignorance, Swindled ultimately calls for both governments and individuals to be more vigilant. In fact, Wilson suggests, one of our best protections is simply to reeducate ourselves about the joys of food and cooking.
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Citations
APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)
Wilson, B. (2008). Swindled: the dark history of food fraud, from poisoned candy to counterfeit coffee . Princeton University Press.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Wilson, Bee. 2008. Swindled: The Dark History of Food Fraud, From Poisoned Candy to Counterfeit Coffee. Princeton University Press.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)Wilson, Bee. Swindled: The Dark History of Food Fraud, From Poisoned Candy to Counterfeit Coffee Princeton University Press, 2008.
MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)Wilson, Bee. Swindled: The Dark History of Food Fraud, From Poisoned Candy to Counterfeit Coffee Princeton University Press, 2008.
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