The Sunday Read: The Strange Arithmetic of How America Feeds Itself
You’ll never look at your grocery cart the same.
The curious logic of global food trade: We’re both the world’s biggest beef exporter AND the world’s second-largest beef importer. We catch Alaskan salmon, freeze it, ship it to China for processing, then buy it back with a “Made in China” label.
Is the math mathing?
What if you realized there was a theft of historic proportions right under your nose, yet barely discussed in history books? Between 1910 and 1997, Black farmers lost more than 90% of their land. The value? A conservative $326 billion.
From post-Civil War trespassing laws designed to force freed Black people back into wage labor, to heirs’ property policies that systematically stripped families of their inheritance, the pattern is undeniable. If you want to understand wealth inequality in America, start here.
Like dying of thirst in the middle of the sea: In San Antonio, mesquite pods rot on the ground while food bank lines wrap around blocks. Prickly pear fruits shrivel unpicked.
But some states consider it stealing to harvest without permission. Discover the backstory behind the anti-foraging laws still enforcing artificial scarcity today. Read The Racist Reason You Can’t Eat Nature’s Free Food
Join me in the comments with your thoughts.
—Sharon McMahon, Editor-in-Chief
One more thing: Next week, we’re covering how America’s political parties became what they are today. Has your family’s party loyalty shifted over generations? Did your grandparents vote differently than you do? Send a letter to the editor, we want to hear your story.