What we ate tells us a lot about how we live

Paul Freedman, history professor at Yale University says that how we eat is shaped by our environment, and we, in turn, shape the course of history as our tastes evolve. As we take this journey through the tables of 20th century America, we’re not just learning about popular foods; we’re learning about the landscape of war, wealth and pandemics. We’re gaining understanding supply chains and capitalism, and we’re getting a glimpse into social behaviors and health trends.

What we ate can also guide us into the future

Today most people don’t argue the fact that climate change is impacting our food supply, but this is not a new phenomenon. During the Dust Bowl of the 1930’s, a push to aggressive agriculture in the Great Plains coupled with a monumental mega-drought led to top soil erosion and “black blizzards” of dust that lasted for nearly a decade and put a stranglehold on food production in the region. As we’ll learn, there are many events in the 20th century that were connected to food, and there are impacts that are still with us today.