Tomorrow's Table: Organic Farming, Genetics, and the Future of Food | 
 enlarge | Authors: Pamela C. Ronald, R. W. Adamchak
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $19.30
You Save: $10.65 (36%)
New (21) from $19.30
Avg. Customer Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 26314
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 232
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 5.9 x 1
ISBN: 0195301757
Dewey Decimal Number: 664
EAN: 9780195301755
ASIN: 0195301757
Publication Date: April 18, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: 1ST Edition, BRAND NEW, UNTOUCHED, "PERFECT/MINT CONDITION" (e-shipment notification, free tracking with all orders, # available, 100% guarantee/return/refund, enjoy your book and thank you for your business.)(check our inventory on Amazon, combine orders and save on shipping)
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
By the year 2050, Earth's population will double. If we continue with current farming practices, vast amounts of wilderness will be lost, millions of birds and billions of insects will die, and the public will lose billions of dollars as a consequence of environmental degradation. Clearly, there must be a better way to meet the need for increased food production.
Written as part memoir, part instruction, and part contemplation, Tomorrow's Table argues that a judicious blend of two important strands of agriculture--genetic engineering and organic farming--is key to helping feed the world's growing population in an ecologically balanced manner. Pamela Ronald, a geneticist, and her husband, Raoul Adamchak, an organic farmer, take the reader inside their lives for roughly a year, allowing us to look over their shoulders so that we can see what geneticists and organic farmers actually do. The reader sees the problems that farmers face, trying to provide larger yields without resorting to expensive or environmentally hazardous chemicals, a problem that will loom larger and larger as the century progresses. They learn how organic farmers and geneticists address these problems.
This book is for consumers, farmers, and policy decision makers who want to make food choices and policy that will support ecologically responsible farming practices. It is also for anyone who wants accurate information about organic farming, genetic engineering, and their potential impacts on human health and the environment.
|
| Customer Reviews:
An Excellent Introduction To Biotech and A Unique View July 21, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I made it through the book in a day or two. It is not overly technical; it is an excellent introduction to biotech and organic farming. I did not really get into the book until the last chapter; I guess I kept wishing for more technical information, for the authors to drive home their point of view.
However, the point they are trying to make cannot be more important. That is that biotech has a place in organic farming to make it more "sustainable". RoundUp ready crops have made it possible for farmers to stop using much more damaging and toxic herbicides and to go to no-till farming to preserve topsoil. It is the only answer for some problems sometimes, such as virus resistance. It would allow conventional farmers of sweet corn to stop using a slew of really noxious insecticides.
Like Dr. Savage said in his review, I do not think that the organic farming movement is going to "hear" this message and see the wisdom in it, but if they could I think they would have to redefine the way they think of organic vs. sustainable.
 Required reading for foodies June 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As a consumer who shops at grocery stores that specialize in organic food, I have noticed a proliferation of signs and labels stating that this or that product is GE or GMO free. These labels don't do much to inform the public and do much to increase anxiety. This book is a great antidote; informative and detailed, clear and engaging.
Readers of recent books on the politics of food, such as Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver or The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan will be interested in the authors' global perspective and local expertise, and I was especially glad to read about the potential impact of GE food in developing countries.
Reason and humanity....Enough? May 27, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Pam and Raul's very well written book makes the rational and even emotional argument that biotechnology is fully compatible with the core ideals of the organic movement. I completely agree with that position looking back to my grandfather's version of "organic" from the 1960s.
I wish I could believe that Pam and Raul's logical arguments will fly with the core of the "organic consumer" movement. They make excellent rational arguments. I'm not sure this debate is about that. As Mark Twain said, "you can't reason someone out of a position they weren't reasoned into in the first place."
As much as I wish otherwise, I'm not optimistic that this book will succeed in its aim to reconcile "organic" and "biotech". Even so, it does a great job of explaining the societal benefits of biotech crops and it helps to humanize the people that have made this a reality.
This is a book that everyone focused on the environment should read.
Steven Savage, Ph.D.
savage.sd@gmail.com
Great Introduction to the Debate May 14, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
The writing style was clear and not overly technical, and this book would be a good introduction for those without training in farming or biology but interested in the future of agriculture and the true costs and benefits of modern organic farming methods and genetically modified breeds of crops.
The first part of the Tomorrow's Table is an introduction to the ideas behind organic farming and genetic modification. The real substance of the book is in the second half where the authors address some of the frustratingly common arguments used by those who vehemently oppose genetically engineering crops (for example: safety, pollen drift, intellectual property) and go on to talk about the benefits GM crops can and do bring to the environment, consumers, and growers.
The authors do a good job of making the point that GM crops really are compatible with the principles of the organic movement, but what personally won me over about this book was the way Pamela Ronald describes the delicate dance of a plant biologist drawn into a discussion of genetic engineering with friends or family who are firmly convinced of the danger or immortality of the technology.
Readers looking for a sample of Pamela Ronald's writing style can look up a piece she wrote for the Boston Globe called "The New Organic".
|
|
|
