An Edible History of Humanity

Biofuels are renewable energy sources made from organic material, such as plant matter or animal byproducts. Advocates for biofuels point to their potential for carbon neutrality and renewability. Standage suggests that humans need to turn their attention toward solar and wind energy rather than biofuels, arguing that carbon neutrality is not achievable within the fuel-powered agricultural industry.

Collectivization refers to a technique used by Stalin in which he merged peasant farms and placed them under the control of the state. While Stalin’s plan was intended to increase agricultural production and industrialization, collectivization led to widespread starvation and disease.

Named after Christopher Columbus, who mistakenly landed in Cuba while trying to find a new route to Asia, the Columbian Exchange refers to the global trade market that emerged in the 15th century. This network connected continents in the sharing of goods, people, and cultures. The Columbian Exchange is now widely believed to be a source of great climate and cultural impact.

Cultural diffusion is the distribution of cultural items, including religions, languages, and agricultural practices. The international trade of goods generally entails cultural diffusion.

Demic diffusion refers to the migratory patterns of people and the spread of population. Demic diffusion has three stages. In the first, the population of an area swells due to agricultural surplus. In the second, people from the area spread outward into new regions with smaller populations. In the third, the cultures and practices of the people merge.

This theory is named after Thomas Malthus, an 18th-century economist. Malthus explained a theoretical scenario in which the population growth would always outpace food resources, creating increasingly higher demand. Malthus argued that, eventually, the ability of the agriculture industry to support the population would wane, leading to disease and starvation.

Nixtamalization refers to an early way of processing maize for consumption. Dried kernels are soaked in an alkaline solution, such as lime and ash, making it easier to grind and more nutritious.

This term, referenced by Standage, was first coined in the 18th century by philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau used the now offensive term to describe what he believed was a simpler and purer way of life before agriculture. Standage clarifies that his argument that agriculture is a destructive force should not be viewed as support for Rousseau’s outdated assertion nor does it indicate that he believes all hunter-gatherer societies were peaceful.

For people, the progenitor refers to the founder of a family or tribe. In plants, the progenitor refers to the original plant from which new species descend. A cultivated carrot has a progenitor of wild carrot, sometimes called Queen Anne’s Lace.

A “proto-farmer” refers to early humans who engaged in the earliest agricultural processes. These rudimentary efforts would have involved planting seeds or plants without the systemic methods employed by more advanced agricultural societies. Proto-farmers are the bridge between a hunter-gather society and an agrarian one.

Rachis are the central axis or stem of the wheat spike. Standage explains that the wheat that is produced today is a result of selective breeding of stalks that had tougher rachis—that is, stalks that held on to the grains rather than dispersing them across the field. Farmers would have collected seeds from stalks with tough rachis and used some of these for seeding fields later.

Seed dormancy is the period when a seed does not germinate due to unfavorable conditions. All modern food plants come from ancestors with built-in systems of seed dormancy. Through selective breeding and genetic modification, the agriculture industry has rebuilt seed dormancy structures to ensure that crops begin growing as soon as they are planted.

Selective breeding, or artificial selection, is the process in which humans choose plants or animals based on specific traits. Early forms of selective breeding were informal, but soon farmers began to make intentional choices about which seeds they saved to grow later.

Shatterproof is another term used to describe tough rachis on wheat or rice stalks. A shatterproof stalk has tough rachis that hold firmly to the seeds.