While flipping through a copy of Satya Magazine, i found an interesting review of the photo book Hungry Planet: What The World Eats. The authors, Peter Menzel and Faith D’Alusio, depict 30 families from 24 countries. They photograph the families with their week’s supply of groceries and accompany the photos with details of food expenditures, storage and cooking methods, and a brief bio of the family. The following photos are from that book and i found them to be very fascinating. Some things to notice: how much more energy is spent on the average American diet (through packaging, shipping, and preparation), how much more we spend, how much more meat we eat, and yet, how much unhealthier many of our food products seem to be.
The Ayme family in their kitchen house in Tingo, Ecuador, a village in the central Andes, with one week’s worth of food. Ermelinda Ayme Sichigalo, 37, and Orlando Ayme, 35, sit flanked by their children (left to right): Livia, 15, Natalie, 8, Moises, 11, Alvarito, 4, Jessica, 10, Orlando hijo (Junior, held by Ermelinda), 9 months, and Mauricio, 30 months. Not in photograph: Lucia, 5, who lives with her grandparents to help them out. Cooking method: wood fire. Food preservation: natural drying. Food expenditure for one week: $31.55 USD. Photo: ©2005 Peter Menzel. From the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, Ten Speed Press
The Aboubakar family of Darfur province, Sudan, in front of their tent in the Breidjing Refugee Camp, in eastern Chad, with a week’s worth of food. D’jimia Ishakh Souleymane, 40, holds her daughter Hawa, 2; the other children are (left to right) Acha, 12, Mariam, 5, Youssouf, 8, and Abdel Kerim, 16. Cooking method: wood fire. Food preservation: natural drying. Food expenditure for one week: $1.23 USD. Photo: ©2005 Peter Menzel. From the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, Ten Speed Press
The Revis family in the kitchen of their home in suburban Raleigh, North Carolina, with a week’s worth of food. Ronald Revis, 39, and Rosemary Revis, 40, stand behind Rosemary’s sons from her first marriage, Brandon Demery, 16 (left), and Tyrone Demery, 14. Cooking methods: electric stove, toaster oven, microwave, outdoor BBQ. Food preservation: refrigerator-freezer. Food expenditure for one week: $341.98 USD. Photo: ©2005 Peter Menzel. From the book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, Ten Speed Press
