IPE 331 | Political Economy of Global Food Systems

Everyone eats, and therefore everyone has a relationship to global agriculture. But because less than one percent of the US population earns a living from farming, most Americans rarely think about where our food comes from. This course explores the origins of our current global food system, the political-economic relations that structure it, and emerging alternatives to industrial food. The course begins with an overview of the global food system, including the actors and ideas that have shaped its historical development. Second, students examine the dominant paradigm of industrial agriculture and the politics of its organization primarily in the US context. Finally, students discuss some of the most prescient debates over the future of our food system with a focus on the local context. Note: This course must be taken concurrently with with the 0.5 unit course IPE 332, Experiencing the Food System