What The World Eats (Shocking Photos)

This photographic report exposes the proliferation of processed foods in the western diet and in the diets of many developing countries the world over. Is it any wonder that we are seeing increases in diet & lifestyle related diseases? What are your thoughts?

About the project:

These images are from the book 'Hungry Planet: What the World Eats' by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluision. It's an inspired idea, to better understand the human diet, explore what culturally diverse families eat for a week. Their portraits feature pictures of each family with a week's worth of food purchases. We soon learn that diet is determined by largely uncontrollable forces like poverty, conflict and globalization, which can bring change with startling speed. Thus cultures can move, sometimes in a single jump, from traditional diets to the vexed plenty of global-food production. People have more to eat and, too often, eat more of nutritionally questionable food. And their health suffers.

Mexico



Britain



North Carolina, USA



Australia



Germany



California, USA



Italy


Canada



France


Japan



Texas, USA



China



Luxembourg



Poland



Kuwait



Mongolia



Turkey



Mali



India



Bhutan



Chad



Ecuador



Guatemala



Source: www.time.com/time/photogallery...

Buy the book here: www.menzelphoto.com

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Previous Comments

Anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 08:03 PM5 out of 5 stars
Hey, where is New Zealand?!?
Belinda Pooley commented on 22-Jun-2011 08:39 PM5 out of 5 stars
excess quantities and consumption of processed and packaged foods in first world societies VS smaller quantities and more whole foods/ less packaging the more you move towards third world.... can anyone see the hidden message?!
Danette Jalil commented on 22-Jun-2011 09:49 PM5 out of 5 stars
The more the Western diet invades outher countries the unhealthier they get. Coincidence? I think not.
Anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 09:50 PM5 out of 5 stars
Least fresh foods in America, Britain, Japan & Chad. Most Beer in Germany. Most meats in Australia (Barby). Most soda in Mexico. Most unhealthy North Carolina, California & Britain. Guatemala looks fab.
Pam commented on 22-Jun-2011 10:03 PM5 out of 5 stars
Very interesting, thanks for the insight.
Anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 10:30 PM4 out of 5 stars
Seems like the poorest countries eat the best
Dale Ohlson commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:00 PM5 out of 5 stars
There is the reason why Norh america is so obese we all eat the convenient foods that are out there the prcessed, high sugar and sodium content foods and not enough raw foods and whols foods.
anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:30 PM5 out of 5 stars
no surprise here. all so called "developed" zombie-countries' diet is Malnutrition, based on PROCESSED and packaged food. "3rd world" countries' diet is the best: no processed food, all natural, vegetables, fruits, seeds, grains. Even Turkey being in europe,
the diet there seems to follow the tradition and not American Food-Gangsters Poisons, which has been flooded all over the world
Anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:35 PM5 out of 5 stars
Saw this exhibit at MOAD in SF a few years back. Was really awesome and eye opening!
Dr Joe commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:44 PM5 out of 5 stars
Look at how many photos have soft drinks. The addiction is prevalent.
C commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:46 PM5 out of 5 stars
And all the waste from packaged processed food. Yikes. One family one week. Just in food production alone we are burying the earth in garbage!
Anonymous commented on 22-Jun-2011 11:46 PM5 out of 5 stars
Very eye opening! Thanks for the proof behind the US data for obesity and heart disease.
E.B commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:04 AM5 out of 5 stars
Most fascinating! Coca-cola/pepsi is the winner! :( it appears in most photos. I agree totally, the more advanced the country is the less nutrition they eat. It makes sence though. A family in Chad or Equador will not buy a bottle of Coke instead of rice.
Mary-Kay Perris commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:05 AM5 out of 5 stars
the poorer people do eat much better and seem to smile more!
scott commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:09 AM5 out of 5 stars
makes me hungery.
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:32 AM5 out of 5 stars
Its too late for me as a 50 year old male in Canada and my only option is to detox and stay away from processed foods. What i tell my kids is that if you cannot see what its made from, if you cannot taste the natural texture, don't eat it.
James Macie commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:37 AM5 out of 5 stars
Yes, those pictures are amazing. I feel it truly shows a snapshot of the worlds need for whole food nutrition.
Luis Grolez commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:23 AM5 out of 5 stars
Amazing, quite shocking seeing the quantity of food Mali and Chad has for such a large group.
Anthony Anderson commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:29 AM5 out of 5 stars
bless the people that did this project....so cool. I want to hang out with the folks on the bottom! Good eating!
Gina K commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:45 AM5 out of 5 stars
While this is very fascinating to see, you cannot take a photo of one family and assume this is the same eating pattern for the entire city/country. A photo of the food in my neighbor's pantry will reveal quite a different combination of food than in my
house.
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:54 AM5 out of 5 stars
This is ridiculous, the amount of processed crap we eat.
Lori Robin Wilson commented on 23-Jun-2011 02:15 AM5 out of 5 stars
I love that phrase "nutritionally questionable food". Exactly!!
Mary G. commented on 23-Jun-2011 02:34 AM5 out of 5 stars
Fascinating, but I must point out that most of the homes pictured are clearly of the wealthy, but not the Africans. I don't know how the photographer/journalist selected the families, but I detect a bias. I'm American, and my weekly food intake would look
much more like the Indian or Turkish or Bhutan families. We live mostly in fruits and veggies, with some whole grain breads, eggs, chicken, a little bit of red meat and some cheese. LOTS of water, tea and no sodas. "Treats" would be some ice cream in the summer
months. I dislike being lumped in with other people who choose to feed their families on processed garbage!
kevin young commented on 23-Jun-2011 02:44 AM5 out of 5 stars
no wonder I am a diabetic...i fell into the pre-processed food trap early on and am living to pay the price.
CynDwyer commented on 23-Jun-2011 03:05 AM5 out of 5 stars
Very interesting. I was surprised to see that some healthy sized families had a lot of processed foods & some heavier looking families had a lot of fresh food. Also, the family from Bhutan had a lot of members, yet such a small amount of food compared
to other families.
Mary G. commented on 23-Jun-2011 04:48 AM5 out of 5 stars
Not so much shocking as distorted. I'm American, and I don't eat like that. Most of the homes shown from other parts of the world are clearly for wealthy people, so the African pics of people living in tents are a distorted view. I don't know that "most"
Africans live in tents. Those I've met didn't/don't!
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 04:59 AM5 out of 5 stars
Come the post peak oil age and we'll be eating authentic food again!
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 05:36 AM5 out of 5 stars
Wow! I am shocked! Very interesting to see the different cultures and their week's food rations next to each other for comparison! I like the comment about the packaging! Junk into our bodies and more junk 'outside' that needs to be disposed of at huge
cost...
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 05:45 AM5 out of 5 stars
Except for the Oriental and African countries and Poland, why do so many of the people look Spanish? And yes, so little, mostly grain, in Chad and Mali, yet the people are beautiful.
Larry Frieders commented on 23-Jun-2011 05:46 AM5 out of 5 stars
Just ask a doctor about nutrition and diet. Many of them will tell you it doesn't matter.
Dora commented on 23-Jun-2011 06:23 AM5 out of 5 stars
Where's South Africa?
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 08:07 AM5 out of 5 stars
Interestingly, since we've joined an organic veggie and fruit buying club, and then found a membership in an Amish organic farm club, we no longer go the local grocery store and eat real food at every meal. No boxes, cans, or even nutritional labels anymore
and my husband and I are very healthy eating this way. Back to basics is so much better and we are supporting the farmers who are bucking the system and growing foods without pesticides and avoiding GMOs as well.
Proud Kiwi commented on 23-Jun-2011 08:14 AM5 out of 5 stars
What an effective way to show what many have been saying for some years. Westerners should be ashamed of this! I hope many are shocked are realise just how seriously we are putting our kids at risk. Fast paced busy lives are no excuse for slowly depriving
our children of vital nutrition they need to reach their potential and live healthy lives contributing to society not draining its resources via overloaded health systems that just make the drug companies rich. Its disgusting!!
Diane Sattler commented on 23-Jun-2011 08:41 AM3 out of 5 stars
Interesting but very much a generalisation.
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 10:23 AM5 out of 5 stars
Wow!
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 11:20 AM5 out of 5 stars
Health is not the only thing to suffer from a less traditional diet, but all the excess packaging is a problem for the environment!
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:06 PM5 out of 5 stars
America has such an unhealthy diet because they have to work work work work day and night to provide so little and pay the rich to be richer! They have to eat "something" quickly so they can get back to work... Health care is horrendous in the USA because
the GOVERNMENT (NOT the president!) has their pocket in the Pharmaceuticals pocket and vise versa! Republicans! stop! Being! Money! hungry! and help out the poor people of the USA!
Judith commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:23 PM4 out of 5 stars
Interesting!
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 12:25 PM5 out of 5 stars
It's very sad how little food the family in Chad had in the picture.
Christopher commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:40 PM5 out of 5 stars
It is further proof that what matters is: Quality NOT quantity. Natural NOT processed. Fresh NOT packaged. Eating for nutrition NOT addiction. Eating intelligently NOT to satisfy temptation. Our body is our body NOT just a container. Christopher
Bry commented on 23-Jun-2011 01:54 PM5 out of 5 stars
This right here is why one half of the world is fat and bending over backwards to shed excess weight, and the other half is skinny and bending over backwards to put on weight.
Anonymous commented on 23-Jun-2011 02:51 PM5 out of 5 stars
People in France eat cats?
Nushka commented on 24-Jun-2011 12:43 AM3 out of 5 stars
Organic is the way to go. yep! a bit expensive but extra money that you pay will be augmented by the money you used to spend on fast foods. Yes Dora Where is SOuth Africa
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 03:08 AM4 out of 5 stars
Argentina is missing. But I'd say it's similar to Canada. Or maybe Italy (but w/ more emphasis on protein than on grains)
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 03:23 AM1 out of 5 stars
Nah, this article isn't biased at all! LOL!!!!!!!
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 05:06 AM5 out of 5 stars
Interesting to see which countries are eating whole foods, namely grains/fruits/vegetables/legumes... cross reference that with environmental impacts and cancer rates and I wonder what you would see.
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 08:32 AM5 out of 5 stars
the pictures are meant to capture what most people eat. the next time you go food shopping, just take a look at what the folks ahead of you are buying. i guarantee you will see more unhealthy foods than healthy (in regular supermarkets, not a place like
whole foods.) most of this country's (u.s) diet is disease causing and nutritionally void. we are not eating the way God intended for us to eat and it shows in the amount of disease. and then we wonder how we got so sick in the first place.
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 09:13 AM5 out of 5 stars
Why do we all feel that we have the right to judge others. People are people doing the best with what they have at the time...just love them for who they are not what they eat or look like. I just found it fasinating.
Camille Clifford commented on 24-Jun-2011 09:55 AM5 out of 5 stars
Why is it we continue to be astonished in the U.S at the staggering increases in childhood obesity, diabetes through the life span, increased cancer and auto-immune disorders, etc. It's not rocket science!! Quite frankly it's Monsanto science and all the
others!!!
Anonymous commented on 24-Jun-2011 10:42 PM5 out of 5 stars
This is just one week?!?!? For some it's ALOT! I have a family of 6 and live in Virgina, North America. And we do not eat that much food as the north Carolina or Texas family do! That's amazing to see. I feel sad by the fact that there is so much meat
in some of those pictures. Then the other families have none. If we stopped producing so much meat we could use that grain to feed everyone eles.
Jason K commented on 25-Jun-2011 01:43 AM5 out of 5 stars
Truly Amazing pictures. You would probably get the same pictures from different parts of the same country!
Anonymous commented on 25-Jun-2011 08:16 AM5 out of 5 stars
Diabetes...#1 in the US...now that we got rid of the ciggaretts...let's get rid of Coke, Pepsi, and Kellog!!!
Linda Descoteaux commented on 25-Jun-2011 03:32 PM5 out of 5 stars
This is fascinating! The display of food from the Turkish family is luscious. Add the bread from the Italian family and I'm in heaven.
Terri commented on 26-Jun-2011 06:35 AM5 out of 5 stars
If you are a bible reader...There will be a time coming when the earth will produce an abundant of food..and it will be free, no one will say I am hungry.....Look at (Pslm: 72: 16) (Issiah 25: 6)(Issiah 65:21 to 23)
Anonymous commented on 27-Jun-2011 12:47 PM5 out of 5 stars
Very nice
Anonymous commented on 28-Jun-2011 07:44 AM3 out of 5 stars
The CA family's display doesn't look like my weekly groceries.... ( I live in CA). Over 50% of our food is fresh produce. Looks like propaganda to me!
Anonymous commented on 28-Jun-2011 11:56 PM5 out of 5 stars
The happiest people are the ones from Ecuador! <3
Ash commented on 29-Jun-2011 01:39 PM5 out of 5 stars
'If you are a bible reader...There will be a time coming when the earth will produce an abundant of food..and it will be free, no one will say I am hungry.....Look at (Pslm: 72: 16) (Issiah 25: 6)(Issiah 65:21 to 23)' Sorry Terri, facts trump fiction.
This planet has limited resources and is growing ever more overpopulated by the second, so more and more people are going to starve. Having said that, there is plenty of food which could feed the whole world at the minute, but of course unequal distribution
of it, which due to our greed in the so-called developed nations, seems likely to continue. Also, food will never be free, just further highlights the idiocy of that statement.
Anonymous commented on 29-Jun-2011 02:03 PM4 out of 5 stars
I believe JUST this photo essay by itself is misleading. My daughter has read the book: What the World Eats where these photos come from and there is much more information about each family featured here and more. The details makes it very different. eg:
For the Australian family shown it seems the father is a hunter and that is 1 month or more of meat shown. Also, she said the biggest thing she noticed is that other countries eat much more grains. The book goes into detail on how the family came to put what
they did into the photo. It's not necessarily the typical diet for that country. As a Canadian, my diet is nothing like the one in the photo!
Anonymous commented on 30-Jun-2011 11:36 AM5 out of 5 stars
As a registered holistic nutritionist I believe that better health can be achieved throughout learning, knowledgeable choice making and cultured eating!! Healthiness is not just traditional diet but a healthy diet is attainable through nutritional counselor
It's quite sad how small amount of food the family in Chad had in the image.
Diane Campbell commented on 03-Jul-2011 01:42 AM5 out of 5 stars
I am not surprised by these photos. I live in the UK and we used to joke about the size of Americans. I say "used to" because we are well on the way to becoming like them, size wise. You only have to look at the way we emulate their eating habits - junk
food - too much of it, Coke, Pepsi, etc. There is too much junk food available, too much media pushing it and too few people standing up to the producers and suppliers. Its big business - as are the resultant health issues. It's a health and environmental
time bomb.
Francis commented on 04-Jul-2011 04:34 PM5 out of 5 stars
They forgot the dogs on a certain people's menu..
Anonymous commented on 11-Jul-2011 03:58 PM5 out of 5 stars
That pizza in North Carolina sure looks good!
Marian commented on 12-Jul-2011 08:05 PM5 out of 5 stars
The Chad picture was taken in a refugee camp - see the tent structures. Obviously people in dire circumstances have less to eat. However, it's generally true that African peasants eat less, and healthier (poverty and lifestyle).
pam mccord commented on 07-Aug-2011 05:04 AM5 out of 5 stars
The contrast between NC, USA and Chad was the most shocking. The amount of food as well as the amount of packaging used in NC was unbelievable to me. In Chad, its hard to fathom living on such a small amount of food and variaty.
Jennifer Tome-Berry commented on 17-Aug-2011 04:19 AM5 out of 5 stars
Amazing series of photos showing how the western diet is killing us. People say that it is too expensive to eat healthy, I disagree. Look at the food in the less developed countries: fruits, veggies, whole grains. None of these are expensive. How much
of the weeks worth of food in the western nation is composed of fruits, veggies, and whole grains? Very little and as a result the US has an epidemic of obese and diseased citizens who are dying prematurely. Looking at the photos it is evident that we are
nutritionally starved. Time for families to rethink how they eat and what values they are establishing in their children's lives.
Christian commented on 17-Aug-2011 02:20 PM5 out of 5 stars
I like how Luxembourg is holding a rooster and a dog! LOL classic!! I think food is part of what makes every culture! There is no right and wrong here... just food and family.
Anonymous commented on 17-Aug-2011 08:52 PM5 out of 5 stars
BUT within the United States, those who can afford the healthier non-processed fruits and veggies are much more fit than the people who eat the low-cost crap from Walmart. So to say the wealthier countries are more obese is an oversimplification. I noticed
this once my daughter started attending a very expensive college (we weren't in the same economic standing). I didn't see a single overweight student. The obesity epidemic in our country is because of our system of cheap processed food which the majority of
the people eat simply because its cheap. If people would grow some of their own food or make sacrifices on not having all the gadgets they think they need they would be able to afford to eat healthier.
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