HON 2265 - Special Topics

Credits: 1.0 - 4.0
Food on the Table: Contemporary Local and Global Food Issues (description for 2015-2016 academic year)

This course will provide students with a sociological and social entrepreneurial understanding of food systems (production, distribution and consumption) of food so as to enable them understand “why we eat the way we do.” The class will explore two broad themes: (1) food markets and agricultural globalization in terms of: the distributive networks through
which food travels from the farm to the table; the relationships between markets, states, and society in their historical and contemporary forms; global labor markets, international
agribusiness, food biotechnology and food global marketing.  (2) food policy through a critical examination of: i) current economic, social, demographic, environmental, and ethical trends that affect the politics of food provisioning; food justice and sustainability; ii) the role of policy and planning in shaping uneven landscapes of contemporary consumption and production, where obesity exists alongside pervasive hunger, “gourmet ghettos” can be found next door to “food deserts,” and where agricultural and food service workers are among the most likely to go hungry.