Book Review: What Your Food Ate

David R. Montgomery and Anne Bikle, Norton, 2022
Review by Rebekah Rice

Subtitled How to Heal our Land and Reclaim our Health, this engaging and highly readable book takes a deep look at the available research on how the quality of food is affected by soil health, literally exploring how what your food (whether plant or animal) ate affects your health.

How food is grown affects the planet and every living being. This includes you. 

The health of a plant grown in soil is affected by the biological life in the soil as the microbes release exactly what the plant needs. When herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides have been applied, the balance in the soil life changes, and fewer nutrients are bioavailable to the plants. Any unbalance in fertilizer can affect bioavailability as well. If soil has lots of organic matter, it does a better job of hosting the microbiome. 

What Your Food Ate also explores why meat, dairy, and eggs are actually different if an animal is fed grain and seeds (loaded with omega-6 fats) rather than grass and forbs (rich in omega-3 fats). Healthy omega-3 fats are dominant in the milk, eggs, and meat resulting from pasture-raised animals. CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations) feed grain and beans and thus result not only in inhumane conditions but also in fats that you should not wish to eat.

Whether you are a vegan, a vegetarian, or an omnivore, you will find detailed information to help you make the best possible choices for Earth and for your own body.