Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them
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- Create Date：2023-02-26 10:20:31
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Dan Saladino
- ISBN：1250863090
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Summary
A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice
“What Saladino finds in his adventures are people with soul-deep relationships to their food。 This is not the decadence or the preciousness we might associate with a word like ‘foodie，’ but a form of reverence 。 。 。 Enchanting。” —Molly Young， The New York Times
Dan Saladino’s Eating to Extinction is the prominent broadcaster’s pathbreaking tour of the world’s vanishing foods and his argument for why they matter now more than ever。
Over the past several decades， globalization has homogenized what we eat， and done so ruthlessly。 The numbers are stark: Of the roughly six thousand different plants once consumed by human beings， only nine remain major staples today。 Just three of these—rice， wheat， and corn—provide 50 percent of all our calories。 Dig deeper and the trends are more worrisome still: 95 percent of milk consumed in the United States comes from a single breed of cow， while one in four beers drunk around the world is the product of one brewer。
In Eating to Extinction， the distinguished BBC food journalist Dan Saladino travels the world to experience and document our most at-risk foods before it’s too late。 From an Indigenous American chef refining precolonial recipes to farmers tending Geechee red peas on the Sea Islands of Georgia， the individuals profiled in Eating to Extinction are essential guides to treasured foods the rest of us have forgotten or didn’t know existed。 Take honey—not the familiar product sold in plastic bottles， but the wild honey gathered by the Hadza people of East Africa， whose diet consists of eight hundred different plants and animals and who communicate with birds to locate bees’ nests。 Or consider murnong—once the staple food of Aboriginal Australians， this small root vegetable with the sweet taste of coconut is undergoing a revival after nearly being driven to extinction。 And in Sierra Leone， there are just a few surviving stenophylla trees， a species now considered crucial to the future of coffee。
Throughout this original and entertaining book， Saladino shows that when foods become endangered， we risk the loss of not only traditional foodways， but also flavors， smells， and textures that may never be experienced again。 And the consolidation of our foods has other steep costs， including a lack of resilience in the face of climate change， pests， and parasites。 Our food monoculture is a threat to our health—and to the planet。 In response， Saladino provides a road map to a food system that is healthier， more robust， and， above all， richer in flavor and meaning。
“What Saladino finds in his adventures are people with soul-deep relationships to their food。 This is not the decadence or the preciousness we might associate with a word like ‘foodie，’ but a form of reverence 。 。 。 Enchanting。” —Molly Young， The New York Times
Dan Saladino’s Eating to Extinction is the prominent broadcaster’s pathbreaking tour of the world’s vanishing foods and his argument for why they matter now more than ever。
Over the past several decades， globalization has homogenized what we eat， and done so ruthlessly。 The numbers are stark: Of the roughly six thousand different plants once consumed by human beings， only nine remain major staples today。 Just three of these—rice， wheat， and corn—provide 50 percent of all our calories。 Dig deeper and the trends are more worrisome still: 95 percent of milk consumed in the United States comes from a single breed of cow， while one in four beers drunk around the world is the product of one brewer。
In Eating to Extinction， the distinguished BBC food journalist Dan Saladino travels the world to experience and document our most at-risk foods before it’s too late。 From an Indigenous American chef refining precolonial recipes to farmers tending Geechee red peas on the Sea Islands of Georgia， the individuals profiled in Eating to Extinction are essential guides to treasured foods the rest of us have forgotten or didn’t know existed。 Take honey—not the familiar product sold in plastic bottles， but the wild honey gathered by the Hadza people of East Africa， whose diet consists of eight hundred different plants and animals and who communicate with birds to locate bees’ nests。 Or consider murnong—once the staple food of Aboriginal Australians， this small root vegetable with the sweet taste of coconut is undergoing a revival after nearly being driven to extinction。 And in Sierra Leone， there are just a few surviving stenophylla trees， a species now considered crucial to the future of coffee。
Throughout this original and entertaining book， Saladino shows that when foods become endangered， we risk the loss of not only traditional foodways， but also flavors， smells， and textures that may never be experienced again。 And the consolidation of our foods has other steep costs， including a lack of resilience in the face of climate change， pests， and parasites。 Our food monoculture is a threat to our health—and to the planet。 In response， Saladino provides a road map to a food system that is healthier， more robust， and， above all， richer in flavor and meaning。
Reviews
Elizabeth
，
As heard on the Splendid Table:https://play。podtrac。com/APM-Splendid。。。 As heard on the Splendid Table:https://play。podtrac。com/APM-Splendid。。。 。。。more
Emma
，
like reading a bunch of fascinating and hyper detailed articles。 loved it
Andy Park
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braiding sweetgrass but about food
Margaret
，
An ambitious， immersive and important book。 Saladino has made a tour of the world's vanishing foods - its animals， vegetables， crops， and shown us why it matters so much that retaining diversity in the food chain matters so much。 Disease can rampage through a single variety at horrifying speed， and if that variety is all we have， the consequences are obvious。 Too many of our foodstuffs are in too few hands。 The cultures that are injected into our cheeses worldwide to make them what they are are An ambitious， immersive and important book。 Saladino has made a tour of the world's vanishing foods - its animals， vegetables， crops， and shown us why it matters so much that retaining diversity in the food chain matters so much。 Disease can rampage through a single variety at horrifying speed， and if that variety is all we have， the consequences are obvious。 Too many of our foodstuffs are in too few hands。 The cultures that are injected into our cheeses worldwide to make them what they are are in the hands of some 5 suppliers。 The cattle we breed are - worldwide - largely a single breed。 Seeds worldwide are in the hands of just four corporations So many of the foods we rely on were once developed in response to local conditions - the soil and the climate。 Now， most foods are grown as a a one-size-fits-all。 Whereas foodstuffs used to be so different and varied from one country and region to the next， now the entire world derives 50 % of its calorie-intake from just three foods: wheat， corn and rice。 Saladino shows us that besides this being so dangerous - an epidemic could wipe away a foodstuff completely， it's also impoverishing our diets， and the rich variety of local foods。 He discusses globalisation， the crippling effects of war。This engaging and readable books takes us with Dan Saladino as he visits hunter-gatherers in Tanzania， Bere barley growers in Orkney， German lentil growers， apple growers in Kazakhstan 。。。。 and so many more。 Each adventure was full of interest， and left me with a desire to try the foods and drink he sampled。 It also left me with a determination to do what I can to support the remaining foods being saved by passionate and committed producers。 The most important book I'll read this year。 。。。more
Megan
，
Really depressing book， but definitely a must-read to become aware of how endemic monocultures are in our society today。 Waaaaaaaaaaughhhhh o（TヘTo）
Lelde Dalmane
，
Great read。 The writing is skillful and I just loved how the author gave everything a context - whether it was cultural， historic， technological， or something else。 It really gave "the bigger picture" when it comes to food and diversity。 It also gave this profound place for everything local。 And what we might consider weird。 The book made me think a lot and that's great when it comes to any read。 But unfortunately， chapters fell into the same patterns。 This is completely understandable and natur Great read。 The writing is skillful and I just loved how the author gave everything a context - whether it was cultural， historic， technological， or something else。 It really gave "the bigger picture" when it comes to food and diversity。 It also gave this profound place for everything local。 And what we might consider weird。 The book made me think a lot and that's great when it comes to any read。 But unfortunately， chapters fell into the same patterns。 This is completely understandable and natural given the story of food and how everything lacks diversity。 It just became tiring right about the middle of the book。 I still enjoyed it and got lots of information， but the structure got me bored - nearly every chapter followed the same pattern。 。。。more
Ana Surface
，
Absolutely loved this book！ It’s heartbreaking and hopeful。 The amount of time and research to find these beautiful stories of people saving food that’s coming extinct is inspiring。 I think the key to reading such a chunky book is taking it slow。 I read this on and off for months and it kept me in that mind space for much longer and helped me not to be overwhelmed by information。 So happy I randomly pick this up at the bookstore without even hearing about it online。
Chelsea Downey
，
Learning about food and how to save the planetWhen I first visited Colombia in 2019， my travel companion and I attended a "Sensorial Fruit Experience" hosted in a shop outside Bogota's city center。 Our guide， fluent in English from undergraduate years in Washington State， took us on a journey for nearly two hours。 We were introduced to fruits we'd never heard of and new varieties of fruits we knew， like passion fruit。 Many of these never leave Colombia。 After reading this book， I think the wider Learning about food and how to save the planetWhen I first visited Colombia in 2019， my travel companion and I attended a "Sensorial Fruit Experience" hosted in a shop outside Bogota's city center。 Our guide， fluent in English from undergraduate years in Washington State， took us on a journey for nearly two hours。 We were introduced to fruits we'd never heard of and new varieties of fruits we knew， like passion fruit。 Many of these never leave Colombia。 After reading this book， I think the wider world needs to taste these diverse fruits。I left off a star because this book starts off very slow and dry。 The intro felt disconnected from the human aspects so thoroughly explored later。 Then the Wild and Cereal sections almost made me give up， even though I loved the Hadza honey stories。But then Vegetables was more engaging and Meat drew me in completely。 Every American knows how Native Americans depended on the bison for their livelihood。 This chapter set in the Great Plains goes into heartbreaking and then hopeful details。Overall， the author does a fantastic job of setting the stage of a new area， diving into surrounding history， and planting a human element。 This book goes from the Faroe Islands to Japan and Uganda， Tibet to Albania， Syria to Venezuela。 I appreciated the focus on progress being made， attempts to reverse the decline。I definitely had some favorite sections I wanted to highlight， besides just bison in the US。 Shio-katsuo in Japan was intriguing along with their vegetarian past。 I went crazy for the history of apples from Kazakhstan， my favorite fruit。 Similar reaction to learning of all the banana options in Uganda。 Even as someone with a full dairy allergy， I would love to visit Albania and its cheesemakers that outlasted communism。But the country of Georgia and its long， proud， unique history of wine making was my standout favorite。 Followed closely by the chocolate revolution growing in Venezuela。This book ended at page 377 in the Kindle version， so it's not short。 But you can easily break it into chunks。 I am inspired to grow my own backyard herbs （or try） and patronize local farmers。 There's still hope， Saladino was clear on that！ 。。。more
Maddie Woda
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I loved this book so much that I would not be surprised that it changes the way I live indefinitely 🥕
Erin
，
20+ years ago， I read the book Zero， about the mathematical concept （single-subject nonfiction being all the rage at the time） and I noticed that an entire lack of any coverage of the history of the number in the Far East。 This book， I'm happy to say， covers its subject globally。Each chapter of this fascinating book made me eager to eat a new food， and to look forward to a time when I can grow my own garden to make a small dent in the world of monoculture。 I've been idly concerned about the Cave 20+ years ago， I read the book Zero， about the mathematical concept （single-subject nonfiction being all the rage at the time） and I noticed that an entire lack of any coverage of the history of the number in the Far East。 This book， I'm happy to say， covers its subject globally。Each chapter of this fascinating book made me eager to eat a new food， and to look forward to a time when I can grow my own garden to make a small dent in the world of monoculture。 I've been idly concerned about the Cavendish banana's imminent demise for a while; this book gave me a whole host of additional foods to be worried about！ 。。。more
Maggie Lauderdale
，
thought provoking and well written—i enjoyed gaining a larger appreciation for the importance of food variety and landraces！
Kat Goldin
，
I think this was an interesting read， but it was very long and （sadly） repetitive。 Which is the nature of the problem with losing diversity…but I wonder if it would’ve worked better in a shorter or maybe altogether different format that could allow each story to shine。
Jillian
，
i learned a lot from this book， but the organization does feel like a collection of magazine articles versus a book。 that's not a bad thing， but it does take a bit longer to read as it's so episodic。 i learned a lot from this book， but the organization does feel like a collection of magazine articles versus a book。 that's not a bad thing， but it does take a bit longer to read as it's so episodic。 。。。more
Liv
，
4。5
Bibiana
，
Very good book up there with books you must read。 However， it made Mr sad & mad that we humans really fuck stuff up all the time。 And have probably have since the dawn of time。 Will we stop all this insane madness or will be all die out because we think we know it all？ Another very good read & a total Debbie Downer。
Derrick
，
Good book。 Love the premise and the history tied into the book。 After a while， however， it started to feel repetitive as each food seemed to have taken the nearly same path to near extinction to the last one。
Stephen Ho
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Great learning material - made me want to discover different types of food and pay more attention to my ingredients
Shane
，
The effect of corporations and bludgeoning nature has led to a loss of variety: both genetically and socially。
Richard
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The journey created in this book is a worldwide escape into the crevices of hope， love， passion， and history。 The finding of knowledge， as great as it is， belies the fear that the monotony of our agricultural system will undermine the need to diversify our diets。 As our world prevents the diversification of the bodies and minds of humans， our future （and the world and its plants and animals） might be much scarier than our past。 Will anyone rise up to say health and humanity is more important tha The journey created in this book is a worldwide escape into the crevices of hope， love， passion， and history。 The finding of knowledge， as great as it is， belies the fear that the monotony of our agricultural system will undermine the need to diversify our diets。 As our world prevents the diversification of the bodies and minds of humans， our future （and the world and its plants and animals） might be much scarier than our past。 Will anyone rise up to say health and humanity is more important than standardization and profit？ What a beautiful and important book and I am sorry for the overused but totally applicable expression。 。。。more
Rebecca Secula
，
Incredible book。 Every story was interesting and engaging。 I recommend it to everyone who eats！
Melanie Gillman
，
I enjoyed this a lot。 The book covers a lot of different foods from different countries， so some of the topics feel brief — my only complaint is I wish I could’ve gotten more info/more of a deep dive about some of the foods！
Angel Williamson-Salois
，
Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladino。。。Imma start with the fact that thia guys last name is Saladino， and he's writing about food is fantastic。Y'all， this book rocked my world。 Dan Saladino travels the world， and discusses with all different cultures as to why their big deal food products are not such a big deal anymore， and it's DEVASTATING。Did you know that reducing the variety of food， as we have done to produce more food more quickly， is Eating to Extinction: The World's Rarest Foods and Why We Need to Save Them by Dan Saladino。。。Imma start with the fact that thia guys last name is Saladino， and he's writing about food is fantastic。Y'all， this book rocked my world。 Dan Saladino travels the world， and discusses with all different cultures as to why their big deal food products are not such a big deal anymore， and it's DEVASTATING。Did you know that reducing the variety of food， as we have done to produce more food more quickly， is actually one of the worst things we could've done？ Now we have acres upon acres of the same foods that are susceptible to the same illnesses。 Wheat， bananas， coffee， apples， rice， and so on and so on are not doing well。 We also need a variety of foods。for our own health and bodies， and today's food is all friggin trash smothered in pesticides to try to keep diseases， and it's not working well。Maybe we need to have less kids guys？ Maybe the planet can't sustain the amount of people who need to eat？ Most of the food grown on the planet is legit just grown to feed our meat。 Our meat that lives in ABSOLUTE squalor， and is getting sick because of that。 Bird flu。 Swine flu。 Covid。 All come from animals getting sick and the zoonotic diseases getting into us through the shit we eat。Maybe that's what we should be thinking about y'all。 Did you know the amount of fossil fuels that are needed to just get water and nutrients into these fields is insane？！？！？ This winter I'm starting to garden indoors and this spring I'll start outdoors。 If I can grow all my own food I'd be happy。 I know people want to look at it like "Left wing scare tactics" that are happening just so that your fun and food are ruined， but that's stupid。The planet will go on， but another 20 or 30 years of us doing the same shit， and the human race is going to go down the tubes。 。。。more
Zana
，
Good thing I was so interested in the subject because this was dry and boring as hell
Andrew Figueiredo
，
I first heard about this "Eating to Extinction" on a podcast episode with Dan Saladino and knew immediately that I had to read it。 I've always been especially interested in vanishing foods， languages， etc。From apples to wheat and everything in between， Saladino tells the stories of disappearing foods from around the world。 A large portion of Americans probably look at their supermarket shelves and see all kinds of fruits and vegetables， leading them to assume that we live in an era of culinary d I first heard about this "Eating to Extinction" on a podcast episode with Dan Saladino and knew immediately that I had to read it。 I've always been especially interested in vanishing foods， languages， etc。From apples to wheat and everything in between， Saladino tells the stories of disappearing foods from around the world。 A large portion of Americans probably look at their supermarket shelves and see all kinds of fruits and vegetables， leading them to assume that we live in an era of culinary diversity。 Yet， Saladino's work shows that "what we're being offered appears at first to be diverse， until you realise it is the same kind of 'diversity' that is spreading around the globe in identical fashion; what the world buys and eats is becoming more and more the same。" In our attempts to control and command nature in the name of abundance （producing enough food for the world is an honorable goal）， according to Saladino we "attempted to oversimplify nature， and this is starting to backfire"。 Standardization to an extreme often leads to an inability to adapt to changing circumstances like new plant diseases or climate change。 As Saladino puts it， "where nature creates diversity， the food system crushes it。" Landraces of crops specialized for particular areas have a "biological toolkit to deal with whatever the environment throws" at them; embracing true diversity in our food also creates a more resilient， decentralized food system。 As the cloned Cavendish banana （profiled in this book） makes clear， "[w]e cannot depend on single varieties for the future of our food。"The book proceeds through thematic sections with each covering a different type of food/crop。 Saladino incorporates anthropology， evolutionary biology， and history into his explanations， making this a great book for STEM-types， gardeners， and dispositional small-c conservatives like myself。 Some of the local varieties he discusses are truly incredible。 I'll list a few as a taste （pun intended） for potential readers:-The Hadza tribe （hunter-gather group） has developed a relationship with birds that guide them to honey-filled hives in baobab trees。 The Hadza scale the trees for honey and calm the bees down， and then the birds swoop in for their fill too。 This interconnection reveals how people can collaborate with creation as opposed to trying to dominate it。 -Olotón maize in Oaxaca secretes nitrogen-filled slime to nourish itself even in nutrient-poor soil。 Nitrogenous oozing corn is a far cry from monocropped maize that requires tons of fertilizers。 When the latter poured into Mexico after NAFTA， it squeezed out local varieties and destroyed family farms， showing how corporate globalization may not account for crucial variables like local diversity or smallholder ownership。-The Oca root in Peru allows indigenous communities in the Andes to be self-sustaining and provides important nutrients in an environment where many other crops may not grow。-Wild apple orchard forests in Kazakhstan containing a multitude of varieties were cut down for cotton production during Communism， demonstrating in an especially stark way how centralized totalitarianism rolls over the particular。-EU regulations banned the production of raw milk Stilton cheeses， enacting "cultural vandalism" under the guise of a pro-local designation。 Ill-informed regulation undermined a "way of life， a special ecosystem， a connection to nature we can't afford to squander。"-We take coffee for granted， but diseases threaten the varieties we rely on and displace communities that are forced to migrate northward。 Migration then becomes a political lightning rod， but too many leaders ignore root causes like climate change and food monoculture。Saladino's book is about food， but it more importantly raises the question what a "slower" approach to politics， economics， and life itself might look like。 Perhaps some inefficiencies， like the Irish fishermen who didn't mind letting some wild salmon go， serve a greater purpose that gets extinguished when the driving force behind everything is bigger， faster， more efficient， and more profitable。 I'm not suggesting de-growth， which is often peddled from an ignorant position， but more like a thousand global efforts to restore local diversity。 The author argues that we must change our own habits but also rethink the global food system。 Clearly， this will require something beyond our own borders， yet intimately concerned with what makes the local special。 Saladino provides numerous examples， from a seed bank in Svalbard that protects local seed varieties to an Italian town working with Mauritanian women to save a fish-based delicacy to a mounting global effort to protect ocean sanctuaries。 It's easy to feel like our food system could collapse at any minute， especially in the wake of supply chain crises that left shelves bare。 But books like this one should serve both as clear warnings and as inspirations to change the way we live。 。。。more
Linda
，
Interesting points， and a lot of good research。 But I felt it was a slog--too repetitive and detailed。 I wish it were half as long。 I only managed to get halfway thru the book。
Art Thomas
，
This was really a remarkable book。 I had it on the nightstand for a while but kept putting off what I expected to be a slow read。 Being on the ground and "meeting" all of the people involved in the struggle made it read like a combination travelogue and special report。 We're all familiar with the concept that the globalization of food supply is destroying small farmers。 As food becomes more and more homogeneous， we're losing a lot of culture， tradition and quality。 It also puts the human race at This was really a remarkable book。 I had it on the nightstand for a while but kept putting off what I expected to be a slow read。 Being on the ground and "meeting" all of the people involved in the struggle made it read like a combination travelogue and special report。 We're all familiar with the concept that the globalization of food supply is destroying small farmers。 As food becomes more and more homogeneous， we're losing a lot of culture， tradition and quality。 It also puts the human race at risk as pathogens can tear through crops quickly。 It's one thing to know about it though and quite another to hear from those fighting to keep native crops alive。Despite the dire nature of the subject matter this is an inspirational book。 The message should be out there more， and we should all be aware of what's going on。 It also doubles as a list to get access to those foods that are accessible。 。。。more
Forrest
，
If you have an interest in food， biodiversity， or sustainability， then this book is for you。 Saladino touches on a few different foods for every category （fruits， veggies， cheese， etc） that are found all across the globe。 Each food is its own chapter of around 10 pages， which makes them very digestible and allowed me to hone in on what makes them so special to their culture and environment。 Saladino takes deep dives into the history of all his foods without making it read like a textbook， and hi If you have an interest in food， biodiversity， or sustainability， then this book is for you。 Saladino touches on a few different foods for every category （fruits， veggies， cheese， etc） that are found all across the globe。 Each food is its own chapter of around 10 pages， which makes them very digestible and allowed me to hone in on what makes them so special to their culture and environment。 Saladino takes deep dives into the history of all his foods without making it read like a textbook， and his anecdotes of how he experiences them in today's world shows his appreciation for each culture and the people he has met during his travels。 I was left with a hunger to not only try all these foods but a greater sense of duty to protect the diversity on our planet。 。。。more
Anna
，
I learned so much reading this book。 About foods I have never heard of （and some of which I will most likely never try， and some of which I might not try even if given the chance。。。 maybe） and about why we eat what we eat in our current world。What wasn't new to me was the need to eat more different kinds of things， but this book just convinced me to continue adding more and more different， hopefully local things in my diet。 Too bad I live in a country where most of the land is filled with pastu I learned so much reading this book。 About foods I have never heard of （and some of which I will most likely never try， and some of which I might not try even if given the chance。。。 maybe） and about why we eat what we eat in our current world。What wasn't new to me was the need to eat more different kinds of things， but this book just convinced me to continue adding more and more different， hopefully local things in my diet。 Too bad I live in a country where most of the land is filled with pastures and buildings， so there isn't all that much space for less popular crops。。。I feel like this book is perfect for anyone who enjoys food。 Because unless things change， we might have to learn quite a few things from the past very， very soon， and it would be good that there would be more people around who have not forgotten how things other than modern wheat， rice and meat work。 。。。more
Katherine miao
，
Took off one star for North American Bison！！
Avid reader
，
Wow， what a thrilling and informative read。 Dan Saladino is a good writer and by reading his book， I learnt a lot about endangered food and cultures。 It also made me reflect upon the state of our food supply and agriculture。 I only wished there were more chapters and some illustrations of what some of these foods and drinks are。
Tag
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eating to extinction the world's rarest foods and why we need to save them