When life was much much simpler…

Currently, I am reading ‘An Edible History of Humanity’ by Tom Standage. As I am very interested in food history, this book was on my reading bucket list for many years

It isn’t an easy book to read but nevertheless very interesting as it starts with hunter-gatherers and explains the start of agriculture. With the beginning of settlements and hence the start of producing food rather than just finding it, human have changed and with it the environment.

Hunter-gatherers seem to have had better teeth and taller bone structures than farmers at the same time. Hunter-gatherers were nomads, moving around with the seasons and following the ‘food trail’ of wild plants and animals.

But evidence found showed that these groups always left enough to give nature a change to replenish quickly. A steady food source of fish at rivers lead to the first semi-permanent settlements with farming following suit rather quickly.

Wheat, maize and rice were the first crops to be domesticated depending on the location - maize in what is today’s Americas, wheat in Europe and rice in Asia.

But looking at maize, the original wild plant has nothing to do with the sweetcorn we see today. It started off as a grass with just a few seeds attached.

As this was too small to feed a group of people efficiently, humans started to experiment and over time maize became what we have today. The same happened with wheat and rice. These three crops have become the most important foods we know today and are traded as a commodity rather than just food.

But what struck me the most was the fact that the first farmers grew food for their immediate community only. The manipulation of the crops to produce larger amounts lead to the first hierarchy in communities.

If you were able to produce a steady supply of food, store and distribute it, you were in a position of power and over the years this lead to kingdoms and then wars.

It seems since humankind started to settle and produce food, we have developed our greed to want more and more.

Hunter-gatherers on the other hand lived in very small groups with only a few possessions as every time the group moved, they had to take everything with them.

Living like that didn’t invite greed but the necessity of sharing hunted and gathered food. There didn’t seem to be a hierarchy in place but tools for hunting etc were shared among the group and possessions were not known.

I doubt very much that it was as peaceful as it sounds but it definitely ensured that every member of the group was fed.

Looking at today’s model of food production, we seem to want more, bigger and better food. The ingredient industry is almost bigger than the food production industry as we demand attractive, colourful and blemish-free food.

I am not suggesting we return to hunter-gatherers times (I wouldn’t have a chance to survive without my fridge) but it is nevertheless very interesting to see that ‘free’ people seem to have been healthier than farmers.

Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t want to live in a time where I can’t have my beloved prosecco, freshly baked bread or delicious farmhouse cheese but I also think we should try to return to more natural food and consider the seasons more.