The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life and Our World

Global food production in response to dietary choices affect the climate as much as--more than--any other factor. This is a classic must-read.

I was a new vegetarian flirting with veganism when I checked this book out of the library, and it gave me all the facts I needed to make an informed decision to go "all the way." After that, it was never hard for me to not eat animal products, and all the credit goes to this book. I *knew* the consequences and it was never a price I was willing to pay. I never "backslid" or "cheated." I was never even tempted. After reading the book myself, I then passed it off to my husband and told him not to read it if he didn't want to be vegan. He decided that while he didn't want to be vegan, he also didn't think there would be anything in the book to make him change his mind. Upon finishing the book, he went and stood in front of our open fridge for a while and then told me that when we ran out of eggs/ice cream/cheese/etc we didn't have to buy any more. Five years and two kids later, and we still haven't. This book is a must for anyone who, like me, can only get so far with compassion before they need hard facts to back it up. To vegetarians or vegans who are having a hard time staying on the wagon: this book will remind you why you changed your diet in the first place (and make you wonder why you questioned the decision). To omnivores who want more information on how their diets are effecting their health: this book is full of referenced medical studies that you won't be able to ignore. Also included in the book is how the meat/animal product industry effects our world (and why you'll never be a true environmentalist if you eat meat). And of course, no book of this genre would be complete without the true story behind factory farming and the treatment of animals (slaughtering is arguably the kindest part of the farming process when compared to the torture endured while alive). However, this book packs more of a punch than others when it comes to animal welfare because you can't write it off as emotionalism. In short, I'll tell you what I told my husband: "Don't read this book if you don't want to be a vegan."

This is the most important book about food to date. That said, it is not a detailed dietary plan. It is an environmental manifesto, a factory farm expose, and the most up-to-date and scientifically sound presentation of: 1) the health benefits of a plant-based diet; 2) the pitfalls of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in food and the biotech industry in general; 3) the underlying dietary and environmental causes of cancer; 4) the threat of food-borne illness and how it can be avoided; 5) the most humane solution to world hunger; 6) and the billions of dollars worth of PR lies the public is fed to counter the truth that might set us free. This book absolutely blew me away. Critically acclaimed author John Robbins earns full marks in terms of his passion to social justice, his unbridled commitment to quality scientific evidence, and highly-readable, compassionate, and straight-forward writing style. In every sense of the term, he has earned the title of "food prophet". For those of you who read and loved "The Food Revolution" I also recommend Frances Lappe's "Hope's Edge" and Erik Marcus's "Vegan" and "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Polen. Imperative reading. j.w.k.

If you like any of John's books, your sure to love this one. Don't waste any more time, just buy the book!All the other reviews are good, I just wanted to add a few points, and a few very minor nit-picks. First, a critic might want to call the book a "rehash" of Diet for a New America. And there would be some justification to that. It covers essentially the same ground with mostly the same arguments. I think a better title would have been Diet for a New America Revisited. I would have expected the publisher to want to capitialize on the "Diet for a New America" name for marketing reasons as well, as that book clearly has a lot of name recognition.But while it in many ways could be called a "rehash" of Diet for a New America, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The original was a great book, and John has been needing to update the book with current information for some time. So I'm very glad to see that John has done so.Now for a few other minor nits. John recalls a story where he received annonymous transcripts from a dairy vendor's board meetings. Personally, I don't doubt the story is true. But it isn't verifiable. And I think someone reading it might feel that the story smacks of "conspiracy theory," so I think the story should have been left out.John provides plenty of references as usual, but I did notice on occasion, John provided some statistic or information for which he did not provide a footnote. I think John should have made sure that EVERY statistic provided have some reference.Also, in John's overall completely accurate refutation of some of the current fad diets, like Atkins, Sears (Zone Diet) and the Eat Right for Your Type Diet, he provided a probability statistic that is incorrect. Well, actually, the statistic is actually correct, but the calculation is based on already knowing that the Eat Right for Your Type Diet is rubish. Yes, the diet is rubish, but you can't first assume it is rubish, make a calculation, and then claim that the calculation proves your point. That is circular logic. It is a fine point, but it could be used by someone who wants to discredit John to show that John "just doesn't understand math." Remember, I completely agree with EVERYTHING else John said about the fad diets, and I'm only complaining about one tiny little probablilty calculation he did. But you must understand math if you are going to use math to support your thesis.Now I'd like to take exception to something in the Library Journal's review. That review says "Robbins's zealous advocacy of plant-based nutrition and his refusal to consider the need for animal products in human nutrition throws his book off balance." That is a false assertion. While it is true that John does stongly believe vegetarian nutrition is quite healthy, John never says that he believes everyone should turn completely vegetarian. On the contrary, he indicates that animal husbandry of 100 years ago was reasonably ecologically sound and provided more nutritious food. F

Webster's Collegiate Dictionary defines revolution as a fundamental change in the way of thinking about something. The title for John Robbins new book is very aptly named. This book will change not only the way you think about food -- it will change the way you eat. Twenty chapters, with over nine-hundred footnotes, track the studies and statements of top researchers from around the world as they respond to the public relation claims of the meat and dairy industry. When we see the industry claims refuted, time and again by the best minds in the diet and environmental community, we start to see why there is a revolution going on. I cannot count the number of times I have been asked to provide the study that supports the facts I use. The Food Revolution provides a convenient method of proving issues that the majority of Americans have never realized to be true. It is not what we know that is the problem; it is what we know that isn't so, that is the problem. The Food Revolution will shine light on those "facts" that industry hopes you won't believe. Interesting facts such as: half of all the fish caught in the world are fed to livestock or that 2.5 acres of crop land can produce enough vegetables for twenty people, enough grain for fifteen people, enough chicken for two people or enough beef for one. These revelations really make you stop and think about how we are using our resources. Dr. Patricia Griffin, a government official, from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention states, "It is reasonable that if a consumer undercooks a hamburger that their three-year-old dies?" Placing the total responsibility on the shoulders of the consumers for food safety explains why USDA would accept test results indicating that 89% of hamburger tested containing E.coli 0157:H7 to be accepted as normal. This bacterium is known to kill young children. If your main interest is the environment, The Food Revolution has something for you. For instance cattlemen claim that global warming evidence is inconclusive while at the same time forty -nine Nobel Prize winners, in a letter to the President, stated that it is the most serious environmental threat of the 21st century. We must educate ourselves and as the Prizewinners state, " Only by taking action now can we insure that future generations will not be put at risk." John's first book, Diet for A New America, changed the way many folks were eating. The Food Revolution will give those who are still eating the standard American diet documented facts about their junk food addiction while there is time for a change. John Robbins has written a book that can save more people from an early death than were saved by the use of penicillin. Do yourself a favor and read, The Food Revolution and pass it on to someone you love before it's too late.

I read Robbins' Diet For A New America some years ago. Over the years since then, I've wondered what he would have to say about current issues such as genetic engineering, mad cow disease, and the many dietary approaches that have become popular in recent years (Sears, Atkins, D'Adamo, etc.). Well, The Food Revolution certainly answers such questions, and much much more. It really put a lot of things together for me, and without being for a second preachy or fanatical, both informed and inspired me. In my opinion, this is a truly life-giving book. I felt so whole in my heart and soul after I finished it. I believe that this book will be immensely helpful to anyone wanting to live a healthier life. There are a lot of things that make this book special. I can't get over how beautifully Robbins writes, and what a fine human being he is. There is so much human depth and understanding, as well as important information, on every page. His many stories about his life and learnings are marvelous. Reading The Food Revolution is a way of being in the presence of a wonderfully compassionate and loving person. Some people who know a lot transmit their knowledge, and somehow I feel burdened or cluttered by it. Robbins has a way of putting things in context so that he imparts important information in a way that makes you feel uplifted and strengthened. To say The Food Revolution is motivating would be a total understatement. It is incredibly compelling. Once I started reading it, I was completely enthralled. I've read many many books over the years (I'm in my sixties, and I read a lot), and I have enjoyed and benefitted from many of them. But I am delighted to say that The Food Revolution is the best book I've ever read in my entire life. I wish I could tell you how much value I have gotten from the experience that I had reading this book. I wish I had words to express it. Robbins is a national treasure, with extraordinary integrity, who walked away from the Baskin Robbins fortune. With The Food Revolution, he has given us a truly fabulous gift. If you want to do something good for your body, heart and soul, read The Food Revolution. And then share it with as many people as you can.