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The social cost of cheap food : labour and the political economy of food distribution in Britain, 1830-1914
\"The distribution of food played a considerable yet largely unrecognized role in the economic history of Victorian and Edwardian Britain. In the midst of rapid urbanization and industrialization, retail competition intensified and the channels by which food made it to the market became vital to the country's economic success. Illustrating the pivotal importance of food distribution in Britain between 1830 and 1914, The Social Cost of Cheap Food argues that labour exploitation in the distribution system was the key to cheap food. Through an analysis of labour dynamics and institutional changes in the distributive sector, Sâebastien Rioux demonstrates that economic development and the rising living standards of the working class were premised upon the growing insecurity and chronic poverty of street sellers, shop assistants, and small shopkeepers. Rioux reveals that food distribution, far from being a passive sphere of economic activity, provided a dynamic space for the reduction of food prices. Positing food distribution as a core element of social and economic development under capitalism, The Social Cost of Cheap Food reflects on the transformation of the labour market and its intricate connection to the history of food and society. \"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
The case for taking account of labor in sustainable food systems in the United States
This commentary argues for strengthening research and analysis of food workers' rights as part of a more comprehensive sustainable food systems approach. Starting with a broad definition of sustainability, one which includes social, as well as ecological, and economic elements, the author outlines current critiques of alternative food movement actors. She then looks at existing food labor activism and successes, providing them as examples for how sustainable food movement actors and researchers should move forward.
Journal Article
Rationed life : science, everyday life and working-class politics in the Bohemian lands, 1914-1918
\"Far from the battlefront, hundreds of thousands of workers toiled in Bohemian factories over the course of World War I, and their lives were inescapably shaped by the conflict. In particular, they faced new and dramatic forms of material hardship that strained social ties and placed in sharp relief the most mundane aspects of daily life, such as when, what, and with whom to eat. This study reconstructs the experience of the Bohemian working class during the Great War through explorations of four basic spheres--food, labor, gender, and protest--that comprise a fascinating case study in early twentieth-century social history\"--From publisher's website.
Book
The life of cheese
Cheese is alive, and alive with meaning. Heather Paxson's beautifully written anthropological study of American artisanal cheesemaking tells the story of how craftwork has become a new source of cultural and economic value for producers as well as consumers. Dairy farmers and artisans inhabit a world in which their colleagues and collaborators are a wild cast of characters, including plants, animals, microorganisms, family members, employees, and customers. As \"unfinished\" commodities, living products whose qualities are not fully settled, handmade cheeses embody a mix of new and old ideas about taste and value. By exploring the life of cheese, Paxson helps rethink the politics of food, land, and labor today.
eBook
‘Jostling for right of way’: Hawker discourse, legitimation, and politics in post-independence Malay(si)a, 1957–1969
This article investigates the developments of hawker discourse and movements across the Malay(si)an peninsula in the first decade of independence. Looking at news coverage and municipal records, it examines the contingent, gendered, and egalitarian qualities of hawking as labour which led to its adoption by people experiencing hardship, and influenced the ways in which municipal authorities and the public discussed hawkers. In effect, hawkers, long significant to the historical and cultural systems of Malayan trade, were recharacterized as vulnerable subjects at the urban margins. The article then explores how local administrations understood and regulated hawkers through categories of location, race, and food, shaping the politics and governance of hawkers in public spaces. To engage with such governance, hawkers formed associations that protested against injustice and established dialogue with municipal and town councils, impelling authorities to consider a more significant inclusion of hawking in street planning. Throughout the period, the potential and limits of hawker inclusion in post-colonial public spaces became subject to significant debate between municipal authorities, political representatives, and hawkers. As local administrations eventually deepened their commitment to support hawkers, they also expanded their regulation, signifying a cautious imperative to legitimate hawkers and influencing the logic of post-independence planned spaces.
Journal Article
AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF THE ROLE OF RURAL WOMEN IN IMPROVING FARM INCOME AND LIVING STANDARDS
This study aimed to determine the contribution of women in diversifying sources of farm income, thereby improving the standard of living of the rural family, through their work in various primary and secondary agricultural production activities. Rural women in Iraq constitute a large part of the family's farm work. In addition to her paid work on other farms. Despite the significant role of rural women's contribution to production processes. However, the percentage of their participation in some agricultural operations is less than that of men due to their limited control over production and marketing decisions. This is reflected negatively in their ability to generate income. The research used cross-sectional data for a random sample that included (384) women from separate rural areas in Baghdad governorate to determine the effect of the working hours of women and men in addition to the number of animals owned by women on the size of the total farm income through the use of the OLS model, the ordinary least squares method with the double logarithmic formula. The results showed that increasing the number of working hours for women positively affects the increase in farm income. Moreover, the size of the parameters of women's work in animal production activity (0.16) and industry (0.15) were more influential than men's work (0.08(. As for the plant production side (0.26), its effect was less than that of men due to the existence of some activities that are specific to women rather than to men. Therefore, the research recommends the need for programs related to developing the skills of rural women in all agricultural activities, providing health and educational care for women, and empowering women financially and technically to increase their contribution to income generation and improve the standard of living for the family.
Journal Article
COVID-19 induced economic loss and ensuring food security for vulnerable groups: Policy implications from Bangladesh
At present nearly half of the world's population is under some form of government restriction to curb the spread of COVID-19, an extremely contagious disease. In Bangladesh, in the wake of five deaths and 48 infections from COVID-19, between March 24 and May 30, 2020, the government imposed a nationwide lockdown. While this lockdown restricted the spread of COVID-19, in the absence of effective support, it can generate severe food and nutrition insecurity for daily wage-based workers. Of the 61 million employed labor force in Bangladesh, nearly 35% of them are paid on a daily basis. This study examines the food security and welfare impacts of the COVID-19 induced lockdown on daily wage workers both in the farm and nonfarm sectors in Bangladesh. Using information from more than 50,000 respondents complied with the 2016-17 Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) in Bangladesh, this study estimates daily wage rates as Bangladesh Taka (BDT) 272.2 in the farm sector and BDT 361.5 in the nonfarm sector. Using the estimated daily wage earnings, this study estimates that a one-day complete lockdown generates a US$64.2 million equivalent economic loss only considering the wage loss of the daily wage workers. After estimating the daily per capita food expenditure separately for farm and nonfarm households, this study estimates a minimum compensation package for the daily wage-based farm and nonfarm households around the US $ 1 per day per household to ensure minimum food security for the daily wage-based worker households.
Journal Article
The impact of COVID-19 on household income and participation in the agri-food value chain: Evidence from Ethiopia
The effects of COVID-19 have been highly heterogeneous, crucially depending on household livelihoods. In the context of households reliant on agri-food systems, the extent of these effects significantly depends on their position within the value chain. An assessment of the COVID-19 effects along the agri-food value chain and the identification of pivotal factors influencing these outcomes are key for designing appropriate responses and targeting the population most in need should a crisis akin to COVID-19 emerge in the future. Using a longitudinal dataset from Ethiopia, composed of a pre-COVID baseline and six follow-up phone-based surveys, this paper estimates the COVID-19-induced change in household income and job participation, tracing its evolution throughout seven months after the pandemic onset. Applying both longitudinal and cross-sectional econometric models, we show that the COVID-19 shock reduced both employment and income, with increasingly negative impacts over time. Despite initial resilience in the face of restrictive measures, farming eventually emerged as the most affected segment within the agri-food value chain over the medium term. Access to formal institutions such as insurance and credit services, formal contractual arrangements, and secured land ownership title played a key role in mitigating the likelihood of income loss.
Journal Article
Child Growth, Shocks, and Food Aid in Rural Ethiopia
Child stunting in Ethiopia has persisted at alarming rates, despite enormous amounts of food aid, often procured in response to shocks. Using nationally representative data, the study finds that while harvest failure leads to child growth faltering, food aid affected child growth positively and offset the negative effects of shocks in communities that received food aid. However, many communities that experienced shocks did not receive food aid. In sum, while food aid has helped reduce child malnutrition, inflexible food aid targeting, together with endemic poverty and limited maternal education, has left the prevalence of child stunting at alarming levels.
Journal Article