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The Chain by Ted Genoways

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The Chain

Farm, Factory, and the Fate of Our Food

Ted Genoways

HarperCollins · Print & ebook · October 20, 2015

Reading lane: Agribusiness

A powerful and important work of investigative journalism that explores the runaway growth of the American meatpacking industry and its dangerous consequences “A worthy update to Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and a chilling indicator of how little has changed since that 1906 muckraking classic.” — Mother Jones “I tore through this book.

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At a Glance

Who It's For

Good for readers who enjoy Agribusiness and How the Food Business Works.Strong fit for readers who prefer grounded, real-world context.

Book Details

Authors
Ted Genoways
Publisher
HarperCollins
Published
October 20, 2015
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
Agribusiness · How the Food Business Works
Reading lane
Agribusiness

Affinity

Publisher Categories

  • Agribusiness

  • How the Food Business Works

  • Immigration & Migration

About This Book

A powerful and important work of investigative journalism that explores the runaway growth of the American meatpacking industry and its dangerous consequences “A worthy update to Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and a chilling indicator of how little has changed since that 1906 muckraking classic.” — Mother Jones “I tore through this book. . . . Books like these are important: They track the journey of our thinking about food, adding evidence and offering guidance along the way.”...

Read full description

A powerful and important work of investigative journalism that explores the runaway growth of the American meatpacking industry and its dangerous consequences “A worthy update to Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and a chilling indicator of how little has changed since that 1906 muckraking classic.” — Mother Jones “I tore through this book. . . . Books like these are important: They track the journey of our thinking about food, adding evidence and offering guidance along the way.” — Wall Street Journal On the production line in American packing-houses, there is one cardinal rule: the chain never slows. Under pressure to increase supply, the supervisors of meat-processing plants have routinely accelerated the pace of conveyors, leading to inhumane conditions, increased accidents, and food of questionable, often dangerous quality. In The Chain , acclaimed journalist Ted Genoways uses the story of Hormel Foods and its most famous product, Spam—a recession-era staple—to probe the state of the meatpacking industry, from Minnesota to Iowa to Nebraska. Interviewing scores of line workers, union leaders, hog farmers, and local politicians and activists, Genoways reveals an industry pushed to its breaking point—while exposing alarming new trends, from sick or permanently disabled workers to conflict between small towns and immigrant labor. A searching exposé in the tradition of Upton Sinclair, Rachel Carson, and Eric Schlosser, The Chain is a mesmerizing story and an urgent warning about the hidden costs of the food we eat.

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