Episode 79: Fishmeal—The Superfood That Never Was
After World War II, international aid and food agencies were looking for a way to fertilize land and quickly increase the nutritional value of crops around the world that had been devastated by war and climactic conditions. They found an unlikely suspect
15 Minute History · Not Even Past & Hemispheres
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Show Notes
After World War II, international aid and food agencies were looking for a way to fertilize land and quickly increase the nutritional value of crops around the world that had been devastated by war and climactic conditions. They found an unlikely suspect in fishmeal, and with it, lit up the economies of South America along the Humboldt Current. But the fish, as it turned out, had other ideas.
Guest Kristin Wintersteen has worked on the history of industry subject to the temperaments of on-again off-again current cycles in the Pacific, and how the boom and bust of one of the first superfoods has led to new discussions about global nutrition.