The political economy of food

Andrea Freeman

Chapter 26 in Research Handbook on Law and Political Economy, 2025, pp 445-462 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Modern dominance of food and agricultural corporations over food policy is the direct result of racial capitalism projects unleashed on multiple fronts simultaneously throughout history. From colonization through the industrial revolution, settlers and then the U.S. government used deprivation tactics to exert economic and political control over racialized populations. After the 1930s’ New Deal, corporations hijacked the business of food oppression, employing it as a market strategy. Through the lens of Boots Riley's 2023 television show/“anti-capitalist training program”, I’m A Virgo, this chapter briefly outlines the history of the U.S. political economy of food, from colonization and enslavement to modern food programs. It highlights insidious food marketing tactics that target Black and brown youth and exposes the racialized exploitation of food workers. Then, it explores how the concepts of a nanny state and a desire for abundance provide philosophical foundations for a broken food system.

Keywords: Political economy of food; Food oppression; Food justice; Critical race theory; Popular culture; Food policy; Racial capitalism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781803921181
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