Food and Globalization Flashcards
what is globalization?
Globalization is the process in which people, ideas and goods spread throughout the world, spurring more interaction and integration between the world’s cultures, governments and economies.
what is the columbian exchange?
The Columbian Exchange refers to the exchange of diseases, ideas, food crops, and populations between the New World and the Old World following the voyage to the Americas by Christopher Columbus in 1492.
Historiography?
handful of previous historiography focusing on the effects of the exchange on the Old World or focus on channels other than legal institutions.
Also, there has been a focus on the effects on the New World from the exchange.
More recent historiography has focused on the effect on the Old World.
Economic studies have thus far mainly focused on how European institutions, through colonialism, were transplanted to non-European parts of the world
Which historians have you read regarding this topic? (9)
Crosby (Ping-ti Ho)
Jones (Sherratt, Constantini)
Nunn (Mokyr, Hersh)
Mintz
Mintz quote on Columbian exchange?
‘surely the single most important food globalisation event in world history’
Crosby argument summed up? stat
- The one thing guaranteed to increase population is the increase and improvement of the food supply
- The coming together of the continents was a prerequisite for the population explosion of the past two centuries
- played an important role in the Industrial Revolution.
- The transfer across the ocean of the staple food crops of the Old and New Worlds made possible the extraordinary population growth of the 19th and 20th centuries
- 1/3 of the plant food raised to feed man and his animals in the world today comes from plants of American origin –> there would simply be less humans on earth if it wasn’t for American crops (C)
Crosby’s analysis arguing for the importance of the columbian exchange when regarding population growth?
- Malthus oversimplified but is basically right in preindustrial societies that increase in food leads to increase in population
- This is further examplified given how much population growth depended on the rate of famine.
- Entirely new new food plant or set of food plants will permit the utilization of soils and seasons which have previously gone to waste, thus causing a real jump in food production and, therefore, in population.
Evaluation of Crosby’s argument?
- Hypotheses about past events are not susceptible to scientific proofs, and the historian can never hope to have a hypothesis certified
- Cause and effect of foodstuffs and pop should not be taken as fact irregardless
- the agricultural and demographic histories of most of the areas under examination have yet to be written, much less correlated.
Most important New World plants? (9)
Maize Beans - e.g. soy, rich in protein Peanuts Potato Sweet Potato Manioc Tomato Chile pepper e.g. Capsicum Cocoa
What are the quantitative and qualitative effects of New World Crops?
- Quantitative and qualitative effects
- Problem of Old World ‘diminishing returns’ eradicated by influx of New World crops
- Do not compete but complement existing plants (isolated evolution)
- Eradication of the fallow season –> increase in productivity
- Ability to be grown in soils that were useless because of sandiness, altitude and aridity
- Climate less of an issue e.g. maize –> many types –> production of good crops in extreme variety of climates
which case studies does Crosby look at?
Europe
Africa
Far East (China)
Which crops were most important in Europe and why?
Stat
Maize
- Only in south because hot climate essential
- Fed animals –> healthier animals for human consumption
- Staple of peasant class e.g. French 18thC
- prospers in areas too dry for wheat
- produces food fast - very short growing season
- X2 of yield/unit of land than wheat
Potato
- started in 16thC as a novelty and aphrodisiac
- concentrated in Northern Eu
- e.g. Irish, no medical science, industrialisation or decent gov… yet: 1754 3.2m –> 1845 8.2m
- used as a counter-famine e.g. Russia (now leading producer in world)
- produces several time more food/unit of land as wheat or any other grain
Irish famine (1845-52) stemmed from massive shortage of potato crop
Which plants were most important in Africa and why?
Greatest number of population outside of Americas that rely on American foods
Same latitude as S. America so transfer very easily
Exports of cacao (70% of worlds production in west africa) and peanuts essential to African economy
Maize
- non-perishable food that fed slaves from Africa to Americas
- 70% of total crop area in SA
Manioc
- prospers from sea level to 7000 feet and in poor soil
- ignores drought and pests (v.imp)
- produce more food by weight/unit of land than any other tropical plant
The rapid rise in African pop coincides not only with medical advances and political stability but with the introduction of maize and manioc
Pre-1850 we might hypothesize that the increased food production enabled the slave trade to go on as long as it did without pumping the black well of Africa dry
Why is studying role of American crops in far east so important
because the pressure of population on the food supply has been so great for so long that East Asians probably depend less on animals as source of nourishment than any other large group of people in the world
e.g. 98% of the calorific content of the Chinese diet is of vegetable origin.
What does the case study of India show?
stat
1600 - 1800 little population change, around 100-120m
HUGE rise in pop:
1845: 130m
(1855: 175m)
(1867: 194m)
1871: 255m
- all despite famine, war and plague
- Coincides with British rule bringing political stability, transportation improvement and medical advances AND American food introduction
Maize
- Little indication early 19thC –> widespread last decades of 19thC breadth and length
- top producer in the world now
Sweet potato
- in diet of all classes
- grow in soil too poor for others
Manioc
- 11.6m calories/hectare compared to 5.5m and 5m for paddy rice and maize
Potato
- Hindu’s cant eat grains during fast days = imp
Chilli pepper began to spread in 18thC and is now indispensable to their cuisine
India has become the world’s leading grower of peanuts, producing almost 5.3 million metric tons a year
American food stuffs can be seen to have significantly contributed towards India’s nutritional health
Why is China the most informative East Asian country?
because of Ping-ti Ho’s splendid book, Studies on the Population of China, 1368-1953
