Edible Economics: A Hungry Economist Explains the World

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If austerity did not lead to a more just society, it also did not lead to a more prosperous economy. Since the 2007-08 crash, the UK economy has expanded at an average annual rate of just 0.9 per cent (compared with 2.7 per cent before the crisis). Of the G7 countries only Italy has fared worse. I have devoted my entire academic career to the study of industrial policy. When I first started doing research on this as a graduate student in the late 1980s, industrial policy for many people was a four letter word—it was something that you didn’t mention in polite company. Today, a lot of countries that used to denounce industrial policy are now very keen to do it. The US is the best example, with the Green New Deal and reindustrialization momentum.

Chang does say upfront that this is what he’s going to do – that this isn’t a book about the economics of food per se, but a restatement of his core arguments, with culinary anecdotes functioning as treats to keep the reader interested. And they are, by and large, excellent anecdotes. Chang was born in Seoul in the 1960s and came to the UK to go to university in the 80s. So his life and career have encompassed not only the explosion of British food culture (he confirms, to an audience that might have forgotten, just how ghastly and bland things used to be), but also the development of South Korea, from a poor semi-industrialised state to the global economic and cultural powerhouse it is today. As enjoyable as the culinary mentions were, their connection to economics didn't always work. The chapters were either a hit or a miss. But that doesn't take away from how engaging the book was. For decades, a single, free-market philosophy has dominated global economics. But this intellectual monoculture is bland and unhealthy. We must all find our own ways to understand (and change) our economy and, with it, the world in which we live and share, in the same way I which we have to figure out our own ways to eat better - for our own individual health and wallets, for those who are producing food, for those who are not eating enough and/or nutritiously, and, increasingly, for the planet.”Being one of the laypeople who thinks of economy only when deciding between a 0.9 kg can or a 300 g can of anchovies in olive oil on a given run to the supermarket, I appreciated how Mr Chang used commonly eaten and popular foodstuff across the world to explain economic theories, political-economic systems, processes, and even an economist's overview of world history from the recent past to the present. Taking the example of the humble anchovy, he tells us how the raw materials based economies were ruined by the surge of synthetic substitutes, as happened to guano, rubber, and dyes, on which economies such as Peru's, Brazil's and Guatemala's were dependent on to prosper, and how this can happen again (and why). That makes it so very understandable, put so simply, than the complex sociological and economical theories most of us would find labyrinthine at best and boring or dry at worst.

For starters, this book is not about the economics of food. It's rather a compilation of personal anecdotes, food history tidbits, and a critique of economic theories to explain the world we live in. In the chapter ‘Strawberry’, Chang explains how this labour-intensive fruit (actually not a berry) has contributed to the rise in low-wage jobs Ha-Joon Chang presents an easily digestible and occasionally mouthwatering introduction to some of the more challenging, and misunderstood, economic ideas Would I recommend this book? Yes, if you're an adventurous eater like me, who also likes micro-history books and the mixing of topics in an amenable way. This book reminded me why Southeast Asian cuisine is the one ethnic food group I most want to try, and reassured me in my obstinately experimental tastes. There's no ethnic food I won't try, to the point those that know me ask me half-teasingly and half-seriously, "Just what don't you like?" Well, perhaps okra, but now that Mr Chang mentioned gumbo was what convinced his palate to welcome okra, I'm going to try it one day. P111: “[re education] In other words, equality of opportunity is not enough; we need a relatively high degree of outcome.” Each bite-sized chapter takes the name of a food that, somewhere in the world, is a store-cupboard staple –okra, noodles, anchovies, Coca-Cola – using their histories, recipes and cultural importance to explore a variety of different economic theories. For example, in ‘Strawberry’, Chang explains how this labour-intensive fruit (actually not a berry) has contributed to the rise in low-wage jobs and, later, the automation that is seen as ‘the destroyer’ of those jobs (actually, Chang writes, it isn’t).Economics affects all aspects of our lives – but who is writing the basic recipe we're cooking from, and how much do we really know about the ingredients? For decades, a single free-market philosophy has dominated global economics. But this is bland and unhealthy—like British food in the 1980s, when best-selling author and economist Ha-Joon Chang first arrived in the UK from South Korea. Just as eating a wide range of cuisines contributes to a more interesting and balanced diet, so, too, is it essential we listen to a variety of economic perspectives. An insider’s account of the rampant misconduct within the Trump administration, including the tumult surrounding the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021. For decades, a single free market philosophy has dominated global economics. But this is bland and unhealthy - like British food in the 1980s, when bestselling author and economist Ha-Joon Chang first arrived in the UK from South Korea. Just as eating a wide range of cuisines contributes to a more interesting and balanced diet, so too is it essential we listen to a variety of economic perspectives. P130: “[more re climate change] “…we need to drive less in personal vehicles….” And government has to determine better living arrangements for us- so we can walk to stores or use public transportation. This is the same egomania that underlined Stalin and Mao’s collectivization drives that killed millions.