Illuminates the daily work of exporters, importers and other invisible intermediaries in the global fresh food economy. These intermediaries' accounts provide a perspective on the practical and ethical challenges of globalized food trading. They also show how postcolonial ties shape different societies' geographies of food supply.

1. The Global Green Bean and Other Tales of Madness ; 2. Feeding the Nation: The Making of Modern Food Provisioning ; 3. Burkina Faso: Rural Development and Patronage ; 4. Zambia: Settler Colonialism and Corporate Paternalism ; 5. France: Expertise and Friendship ; 6. England: Brands and Standards ; Conclusion

"This is a fascinating, funny, and very well written multisited ethnography about globalization--in particular, the globalization of fresh vegetables. Through this study, Freidberg makes an important contribution to critical enthography in geography not only through the empirical reach and comparisons of two globalized green bean networks, but also in emphasizing the crucial role of culture in shaping production and consumption decisions and practices. In this way, she extends our knowledge of how to further integrate a Marxian analysis of the political economy of agrarian development and change with a cultural analysis of consumption and commerce, making an excellent contribution to research on the geographies of food and agriculture." --Annals of the Association of American Geographers "On the trail of the (preferably slender) green bean, Susanne Freidberg takes the reader on a fascinating tour of cultural foodways among the French and the British, contract farming in former colonial territories in Africa, the roles of friendship and stereotyping in assuring the flow of foodstuffs to European supermarkets, and the links in the commodity and personal chains linking small farmers and entrepreneurs in Africa with consumers in Europe whose shopping has been made anxious by fears of old and new diseases."--Pauline E. Peters, Kennedy School of Government and Department of Anthropology, Harvard University "Burkina Faso and Zambia are two very poor African countries producing high-value vegetables for European markets. How did this come about? By exploring culture and power within two transnational food trades, French Beans and Food Scares reveals the imperial roots of French and British foodways. It also raises important questions about contemporary movements to purify and relocate food supply. Anyone who cares about the past and future of globalized food should read this compelling book."-Judith Carney, Professor of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles "Freidberg's theoretical insights and vivid narrative make this a fascinating study, a thoughtful and historically sophisticated look into contemporary food systems. This book is essential reading, and sets a new standard for scholars of agriculture, food and globalization."-Deborah Fitzgerald, Professor of History and Technology, MIT Program in Science, Technology and Society, and author of Every Farm in a Factory: The Industrial Ideal in American Agriculture "A genuine contribution to the ever-expanding field of food studies. American readers will be interested in the questions Freidberg raises about the extent to which power can be exercised by consumers over producers, inside particular kinds of state systems. Throughout, she does not forget that cultures can help to shape economies."-Sidney W. Mintz, Research Professor of Anthropology, Johns Hopkins University "French Beans effectively links theory and practice while raising a number of issues of concern to the broader public."-- The Geographical Review "French Beans and Food Scares is the first truly comparative investigation of how food commodity networks operate internationally. Analyzing two culturally specific dyads-France/Burkina Faso and England/Zambia-it reveals the important work culture still does in the global economy. It also demonstrates in detail how social and economic realities in developed countries are translated into particular social and economic outcomes in the developing world through culturally inflected international trade. Written with humor and insight, it provides compelling and surprising reading.""-Erica Schoenberger, Professor of Geography, Johns Hopkins University "This is a fascinating, funny, and very well written multisited ethnography about globalization--in particular, the globalization of fresh vegetables. Through this study, Freidberg makes an important contribution to critical enthography in geography not only through the empirical reach and comparisons of two globalized green bean networks, but also in emphasizing the crucial role of culture in shaping production and consumption decisions and practices. In this way, she extends our knowledge of how to further integrate a Marxian analysis of the political economy of agrarian development and change with a cultural analysis of consumption and commerce, making an excellent contribution to research on the geographies of food and agriculture." --Annals of the Association of American Geographers "On the trail of the (preferably slender) green bean, Susanne Freidberg takes the reader on a fascinating tour of cultural foodways among the French and the British, contract farming in former colonial territories in Africa, the roles of friendship and stereotyping in assuring the flow of foodstuffs to European supermarkets, and the links in the commodity and personal chains linking small farmers and entrepreneurs in Africa with consumers in Europe whose shopping has been made anxious by fears of old and new diseases."--Pauline E. Peters, Kennedy School of Government and Department of Anthropology, Harvard University "Burkina Faso and Zambia are two very poor African countries producing high-value vegetables for European markets. How did this come about? By exploring culture and power within two transnational food trades, French Beans and Food Scares reveals the imperial roots of French and British foodways. It also raises important questions about contemporary movements to purify and relocate food supply. Anyone who cares about the past and future of globalized food should read this compelling book."-Judith Carney, Professor of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles "Freidberg's theoretical insights and vivid narrative make this a fascinating study, a thoughtful and historically sophisticated look into contemporary food systems. This book is essential reading, and sets a new standard for scholars of agriculture, food and globalization."-Deborah Fitzgerald, Professor of History and Technology, MIT Program in Science, Technology and Society, and author of Every Farm in a Factory: The Industrial Ideal in American Agriculture "A genuine contribution to the ever-expanding field of food studies. American readers will be interested in the questions Freidberg raises about the extent to which power can be exercised by consumers over producers, inside particular kinds of state systems. Throughout, she does not forget that culture scan help to shape economies."-Sidney W. Mintz, Research Professor of Anthropology, Johns Hopkins University "French Beans and Food Scares is the first truly comparative investigation of how food commodity networks operate internationally. Analyzing two culturally specific dyads-France/Burkina Faso and England/Zambia-it reveals the important work culture still does in the global economy. It also demonstrates in detail how social and economic realities in developed countries are translated into particular social and economic outcomes in the developing world through culturally inflected international trade. Written with humor and insight, it provides compelling and surprising reading.""-Erica Schoenberger, Professor of Geography, Johns Hopkins University

Shows how powerful food retailers, in the name of protecting consumers' right to safe, high quality and ethical food, are imposing a new form of postcolonial power on some of the world's poorest countries Shows how the mad cow crisis and other European food scares have had dramatic and far-reaching consequences Explores the behind-the-scenes work of the go-betweens in the globalized food economy

Susanne Freidberg has written about food regulation for the Washington Post and numerous journals. She grew up in the Pacific Northwest, attended Yale and Berkeley, and has received fellowships from the Fulbright Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, and the American Council of Learned Societies. She teaches in the Department of Geography at Dartmouth College.

Shows how powerful food retailers, in the name of protecting consumers' right to safe, high quality and ethical food, are imposing a new form of postcolonial power on some of the world's poorest countries Shows how the mad cow crisis and other European food scares have had dramatic and far-reaching consequences Explores the behind-the-scenes work of the go-betweens in the globalized food economy