Staple to Superfood - (Columbia Studies in International and Global History) by Q Edward Wang

About the Book

"Food crops from the Americas, such as corn, potatoes, cassava, and peanuts, are widely acknowledged to have significantly improved the world's food supply. But few know that the potatoes Christopher Columbus brought back to Europe weren't white or Irish potatoes, but rather sweet potatoes. Despite being considered a sweet ingredient and even an aphrodisiac on a par with chocolate in early modern Europe, sweet potatoes have been grown as an insurance crop or as "poor person's food" in Asia, Africa, and Oceania for centuries. In Southeast Asia and Africa, where the root is a staple food, it has also been dubbed a "women's crop." As the first global history of this American plant, this book explores and analyzes the sweet potato's diverse receptions and myriad influences in shaping world history. Like their botanically unrelated "cousin," the white potato, which expanded the population in modern Europe, sweet potatoes, an equally fast-growing and high-yielding food plant, significantly supported population growth in revolutionary China and wartime Japan. The root's significance is also reflected in the complex ways in which history and identity have developed in islands as diverse as Taiwan, Okinawa, Papua New Guinea, and Hawai`i. In more recent years, while still a valuable player for global food security, the sweet potato has gained a new reputation as a "superfood" due to its numerous health advantages. The globalization of sweet potatoes as a food provides a fresh perspective on the varied paths that the modern world's development has taken"-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

Sweet potatoes were among the American crops Christopher Columbus brought back to Europe--where they were thought to be an aphrodisiac. In China, this versatile root became a staple that fueled rapid population growth. Introduced to Japan to stave off famine, sweet potatoes later sustained the country's imperial expansion. Because this hardy plant can thrive in almost any soil, it has long been cultivated as a subsistence crop in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Oceania. In recent years, Western health experts have begun touting the humble sweet potato as a "superfood" with numerous nutritional benefits.

Considering these events and many others, Staple to Superfood explores the sweet potato's rich history and remarkable global influence. Q. Edward Wang demonstrates how this resilient root has not only nourished communities but also defined their identities. Tracing its journeys through the intricate networks of global trade and cultural exchange, he shows how the sweet potato transformed agricultural practices, culinary traditions, and social structures worldwide. From the Americas to Europe to Asia and the Pacific, the spread of this crop illuminates the varied paths that global development has taken. Wang also contrasts the sweet potato with its botanically unrelated namesake, the white potato. Blending agricultural, cultural, and historical perspectives, Staple to Superfood offers a fresh look at the power of food to transform societies. It is a compelling exploration of how the sweet potato shaped the modern world and continues to influence global food systems today.

Review Quotes

Wang's book provides a fascinating glimpse at one of the world's most ubiquitous--and understudied--tubers. This study is impressive in its scope--truly global and interdisciplinary in perspective, bringing together recent advances in archaeology and botany with careful analysis of historical sources. The reader journeys from ancient Mesoamerica and Oceania to Asia and Europe. You'll never look at Thanksgiving sweet potatoes in the same light again.--Miranda Brown, Yi-tsi Mei Feuerwerker Collegiate Professor of Chinese Studies, University of Michigan

Wang's Staple to Superfood is well written, insightful, and well researched. While focusing on the sweet potato's origin and dissemination, Wang romps through American, European, Asian, and African food history, telling a fascinating story and challenging many traditional beliefs. What a delight!--Andrew F. Smith, author of Sugar: A Global History

Staple to Superfood is one of the best and most important food histories in recent years. Reminiscent of landmark studies by scholars like Sydney Mintz, it places the global spread of the sweet potato in larger contexts, deepening our understanding of important developments, such as changes and travels of food crops, colonialism, immigration, and socioeconomic transformation at international as well as local levels.--Yong Chen, University of California, Irvine

About the Author

Q. Edward Wang is Eminent Professor of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Rowan University. He is the author of Chopsticks: A Cultural and Culinary History (2015), among other works on global cultural history.