Table of Contents

List of Figures List of Tables List of Contributors Introduction: Anthropology, Food, and Modern Life James L. Watson, Harvard University, USA and Jakob A. Klein, SOAS, UK Part One: Food, Self and Other 1. Culinary Stereotypes: The Gustatory Politics of Gastro-Essentialism Michael Herzfeld, Harvard University, USA 2. Muslim Foodways Maris B. Gillette, University of Missouri-St Louis, USA 3. Food, Commensality and Caste in South Asia James Staples, Brunel University, UK 4. Jewish Foods at the Turn of the Twenty-First Century Joëlle Bahloul, Indiana University, USA 5. Approaches to Food and Migration: Rootedness, Being, and Belonging Emma-Jayne Abbots, University of Wales Trinity St David, UK 6. Local Foods, Local Specialties, and Local Identity Nir Avieli, Ben Gurion University, Israel Part Two: Food Security, Nutrition, and Food Safety 7. Observer, Critic, Activist: Anthropological Encounters with Food Insecurity Johan Pottier, SOAS, UK 8. Feeding Farmers and Feeding the Nation in Modern Malaysia: The Political Economy of Food and Taste Francesca Bray, University of Edinburgh, UK 9. Children's Food Jennifer Patico, Georgia State University, USA and Eriberto Lozada, Davidson College, USA 10. Cows' Milk as Children's Food: Insights from India and the U.S. Andrea S. Wiley, Indiana University, USA 11. Food, Borders, and Diseases Alan Smart, University of Calgary, USA and Josephine Smart, University of Calgary, USA 12. Rethinking Food and Its Eaters: Opening the Black Boxes of Safety and Nutrition Heather Paxson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA 13. Food Provisioning and Foodways in Postsocialist Societies: Food as Medium for Social Trust and Global Belonging Yuson Jung, Wayne State University, USA 14. Feeding the Revolution: Public Mess Halls and Coercive Commensality in Maoist China James L. Watson, Harvard University, USA Part Three: Food as Craft, Industry and Ethics 15. Church Cookbooks: Changing Foodways on the American Prairie Rubie S. Watson, Independent Scholar, USA 16. The Anthropology of Cooking David Sutton, Southern Illinois University, USA 17. Supermarket Expansion, Informal Retail, and Food Acquisition Strategies: An Example from Rural South Africa Elizabeth Hull, SOAS, UK 18. Ethical Consumption: The Moralities and Politics of Food Peter Luetchford, University of Sussex, UK 19. Artisanal Food and the Cultural Economy: Perspectives on Craft, Heritage, Authenticity, and Reconnection Harry G. West, University of Exeter, UK 20. Practicing Food Anthropology: Moving Food Studies from the Classroom to the Boardroom Melissa L. Caldwell, University of California, Santa Cruz, USA Afterword Cristina Grasseni, Leiden University, The Netherlands

Promotional Information

Joint Winner of the CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title of the Year Award 2017, this field-defining handbook combines rich ethnography and analyses of the key areas in the anthropology of food.

About the Author

Jakob A. Klein is Lecturer in Social Anthropology at SOAS, University of London, UK. James L. Watson is Fairbank Professor of Chinese Society and Professor of Anthropology, Emeritus, Harvard University, USA.

Reviews

The volume’s greatest strength is, perhaps, that it is forward looking, and thus very useful for defining a set of issues that are likely to occupy anthropological research for years to come ... For food scholars, the “Handbook” is a must-read.
*Anthropos*

Jakob Klein and James Watson bring together a welcome addition to the world of food studies in their new book The Handbook of Food and Anthropology. The book provides an insightful reference for anthropology and food studies scholars because of its attention to social and cultural contexts and rich ethnographic accounts [...]
*Kimberly Lok Wong, Temple University, USA*

An excellent collection that would make Goody and Mintz, to whom the book is dedicated, proud.
*Julie Guthman, University of California at Santa Cruz, USA*

Comprehensive and thorough, this collection is an essential reference for any anthropologist working on food. It opens a door into the breadth and richness of a disciplines engagement with food, both a basic human need and a source of pleasure. This book is a solid foundation for both newcomers to the field, and veteran investigators.
*Richard Wilk, Indiana University, USA*

This book confirms the fundamental contribution that anthropologists have made to the study of food, culture and society. With research extending from kinship and commensality to novel work on corporate ethnography and bioengineering, this collection makes a compelling case for the anthropological study of food and modern life.
*Peter Jackson, University of Sheffield, UK*

At last, a handbook that reflects the emergence and importance of the study of food as a core feature of twenty-first century anthropology. Embracing environmental subjects, transnational business, globalism, policy and practice, it serves up the penetrating insights into everyday life that are anthropology’s traditional speciality while looking ahead to the transdisciplinary future of food. Truly, a feast.
*Kaori O’Connor, UCL, UK*

A well-balanced and creatively prepared selection of essays, this book reveals that understanding food, now more than ever, requires attention to the scientific possibilities, political promises, and ethical concerns entangled with nutrition, taste, and hunger. It represents the best current work in this field, helping us think about how to provision this hungry planet safely and equitably.
*Leo Coleman, editor of 'Food: Ethnographic Encounters'*