The Conquest of Bread: 150 Years of Agribusiness in California

by Richard A. Walker

For over a century, California has been the world's most advanced agricultural zone, an agrarian juggernaut that not only outproduces every state in America, but also most countries. California's success, however, has come at significant costs. Never a family-farm region like the Midwest, California's landscape and Mediterranean climate have been manipulated and exploited to serve modern business interests. Home to gargantuan accomplishments such as the world's largest water storage and transfer network, California also relies on an army of Mexican farm laborers who live and work under dismal conditions. In The Conquest of Bread , acclaimed historian Richard A. Walker offers a wide-angle overview of the agro-industrial system of production in California from farm to table. He lays bare the long evolution of each link in the food chain, showing how a persistent emphasis on productivity and growth allowed California to outpace agriculture elsewhere in the United States. Full of thunder and surprises, The Conquest of Bread allows the reader to weigh the claims of both boosters and critics in the debate over the most extraordinary agricultural profusion in the modern world.

Genres: History, Agriculture, Geography, Nonfiction, Economics, Food

382 pages, Hardcover

First published August 30, 2004

Reviews

[Kate Kuisel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally a digestible but well researched Marxist

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

You might think this is writen by a particular anarchist from Russia, but no, its done by a Marxist geographer/agricultural studies prof out of UCB. The title is coined out of respect for Kropotkins vision though. Recently released, this is the most up to date examination of the history of the CA central valley's agriculture industry (a long line stands behind him in this field-- think Casey McWilliams). CA agricluture is "perhaps one of the wonders of the world" in it output and dramatic reorganization of land, tech and people. Asserts a strong case for the essentially capitalist nature of it (though perhaps holds that kind of 'awe at the power/feats of capital' that classical Marx did). Brings in the use of technology and economic organization, which others leave out. Decent, concise overview of the labor struggles among central valley farm labor. When I took on the topic of agriculture in CA central valley- this became my bible. At least for now.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a top notch primer on agriculture in California, from the nuts and bolts of what it takes to grow food, from farm equipment to labor, to the business models involved, all wrapped in a tidy materialist theory of where all this falls into the greater economic structure of capitalism. You really don't need to know a whole lot about agriculture to read this book, as Dr Walker includes long descriptions of farm operations, although for agriculturalists more interested in the geography of it all you may be left wanting a bit more. Walker presents a sharp analysis of the class structures of agriculture and correctly argues that far from self exploiting semi-proletarians, farming in California has always been thoroughly capitalist. While convincing enough, I do with Walker had dedicated more time to building and defending this argument as he walks us through the various sectors of agribusiness- his grand declarations can feel like asides amidst the sea of details and facts and figures. Certainly those details and facts and figures could be assembled into a strong argument for Walkers claims, but I wished at times he had done more of that assembling on the page, especially as he acknowledges his views are disputatious among popular imaginations of American farming. However, this book presents all the relevant details and a theoretical framework necessary to not just peer inside the real inner working of farms which are so often obscured or romanticized, but also where its true injustices and exploitations lie using a solid material analysis. And to that end, this book is a breath of fresh air and a must read for anyone interested in alternative visions to the maligned Big Ag. While Walker limits his attention to California, he correctly identifies the state as the vanguard of agriculture- where California agribusiness goes, the rest of America and many places beyond will soon follow.

[Lawrence Coates · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good overview of California agriculture, Marxist in outlook, adding valuable perspectives to my readings of Paul Taylor and Carey McWilliams.

[Maddy Barnard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was extraordinarily dense. It was more in the style of a scientific paper than a book. I could have done with more charts and slightly fewer statistics.

[liv]

what a riveting topic and book