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GOURMET NEWS NOVEMBER 2014 www.gourmetnews.com EDITORIAL 8 From Marie Antoinette's mythic 18th century rec- ommendation that the starving French peasantry "eat cake" to the elegant 21st century White House state dinners of today, food and politics have long been deeply intertwined. World history, includ- ing the shapes of countries and the ever- evolving global hierarchy of power have been deeply influenced by food-related events and trends, including the movement of labor for agriculture, the spice trade, famines, explorations, changing dietary preferences and more. Today, food contin- ues to play an important role in shaping modern day political allegiances as food systems have gone global in nature, and people across the map rely on food pro- duced hundreds and even thousands of miles away for their daily sustenance and survival. The modern-day relationship between food and politics was emphasized recently when Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced that his country was banning imports of all meat, seafood, fruit, vegeta- bles, dairy and fresh prepared foods pro- duced in the United States, Canada, EU, Australia and Norway for at least the next year. Although Medvedev stated that he hopes this move will strengthen the posi- tion of Russian producers and offer them new opportunities, most experts cite the import ban as an indirect result of Russia's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in Ukraine and a response to international sanctions that were shortly thereafter placed on the country. Unfortunately, when it comes to most political struggles throughout history, as countries and world leaders spar with one another on the global stage, it is the residents of those countries that suffer the consequences. And with the latest conflict between Russia and the West, this is almost certainly going to be the case. While Medvedev and the Russian government hope to punish the United States and Europe for the sanctions being levied against the country, experts agree that those who are actually being pun- ished are the Russian people, who will no longer have access to many of the im- ported staples that form the basis of their diet. In short, this conflict evidences the very real power of food to shape people's everyday lives, when it is used as a tool in global politics. Food has power. This is perhaps noth- ing new to Americans who grew up learning about the Boston Tea Party, the Whiskey Rebellion and the Delano Grape Strike. American consumers are used to putting their money where their mouth is when supporting the causes in which they believe, and a great deal of American money goes to food purchases. So when we play politics, we often do so by switching to the brands that echo our personal beliefs or perhaps avoiding picking up items produced in places that represent political ideologies with which we do not agree. U.S. retailers specializing in Eastern Eu- ropean-produced goods wait anxiously to see if the conflict with Russia will result in consumers eschewing these foods. How- ever, at least for the moment, it seems that the conflict is not precipitating a wide- spread consumer backlash. Still, for a pop- ulace that recently coined the term "freedom fries" after France refused to sup- port the U.S.-led war in Iraq, it is as yet un- clear precisely what might arise should the United States' political disagreements with Russia further intensify in the months and years ahead. GN — Lucas Witman, Editor 520.721.1300 lucas_w@oser.com WWW.GOURMETNEWS.COM PUBLISHER Lee M. 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