Ali Shapiro

The U.S. industrial food system is the largest contributor to green house gases in our country. And it’s polluting more than just our environment. It’s crippling our health-care system and national security. Yet the term “sustainable,” and what consumers assume are its aliases—natural, local, and organic, is being used in an unsustainable way.

Ali traveled to Sweden this summer with the University of Pennsylvania to study The Natural Step, an internationally recognized scientific framework that helps evaluate what decisions we make as companies and consumers are truly Green, versus a marketing gimmick. She emerged from the experience with a desire to write a quick and easy-to-read book (only 30 pages!) filled with practical suggestions for the everyday concerned consumer. Attesting to its efficacy, the University of Pennsylvania recently adopted the book for use in their curriculum.

Listen to Ali discuss her book on the Cookspeak radio show here.

In Ali’s book, you’ll discover:

• The connection between what you eat and its affect on the U.S. health-care and national security
• Five simple recommendations and strategies to eat more Green
• Which food brands to support
• Resources to support you in this transition
• A scientific yet understandable framework to judge all green claims
• no more companies pulling a PR fast one on you!

Below is an excerpt of the book, currently available in print and e-book format and available for purchase below.

Global warming. National security. A crumbling health-care system. An energy crisis—again. Don’t forget about swine flu! And that’s just the first page of your online newspaper. However, being an optimist, you remind yourself that in times like these, there have always been times like these. So you buy a hybrid or bike to work, invest in a cloth shopping bag to put your organic food in and/or recycle religiously. You feel a bit smug when you see an SUV on the highway or (gasp!) your neighbor still using plastic bags. But as you take out your recycling container, the one with all the cereal boxes and plastic food containers, do you realize you hold something that could not only help the environment more than any other single action you’ve previously taken but also solve the problems of the world that are making your temperature, along with the Earth’s, rise?

It’s time to turn your devilish pitchfork into a peace fork. Every time you eat, whether that is three or six times a day, you are voting for the kind of world that you want to live in. Yes, that’s quite a mouthful. Chewing it isn’t always what you’d expect…

To order your print copy ($14.99), click here.

For the e-version ($9.99), click "Add to Cart" below.