In recent years, how and what we eat has been transformed. “These changes are written on the land, on our bodies and on our plates,” Wilson writes. The 21st‑century diet consists of “unhealthy food, eaten in a hurry”; the product of an environmentally damaging food supply system that is out of control.
Hunger has been in decline: in 2006 the number of overweight people exceeded those who were underfed. The modern diet - now remarkably similar around the world - contains too much sugar and refined oils, but is deficient in micronutrients, such as iron. The result is an epidemic of obesity and diseases such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes and preventable forms of cancer: “The same food that has rescued us from hunger is also killing us.”
Indeed, one of the many remarkable facts in Wilson’s important book is that our diet is now a greater cause of death and disease globally than either alcohol or tobacco, with some 12 million dying in 2015 due to dietary factors.
As well as explaining how we came to be in this “food hell” – with its calorific fast food and fads, from avocado toast to black charcoal smoothies - Wilson offers valuable suggestions for ways in which individuals can change how they eat (smaller plates, more variety, make time to cook and enjoy food), as well as how governments can help. Cities are leading the way: Amsterdam has cut child obesity by 12% through city-wide policies to discourage unhealthy eating, and in Copenhagen “the majority of adults cycle to work and the food culture centres on dishes which are healthy, sustainable and delicious.”
Wilson finds hope in data showing that veganism is becoming more popular (increasing by 350% since 2006 in the UK) and, as sales of raw ingredients rise, more people are returning to home cooking. Her book is both an urgent plea to reject ultra-processed products and a heartfelt celebration of the true value of food. Cooking is not just good for your health but “an antidote to so much of the craziness of modern life”.
• The Way We Eat Now is published by 4th Estate (RRP £9.99). To order a copy go to guardianbookshop.com. Free UK p&p over £15.
