The Prince's Speech: On the Future of Food

Like most people, my exposure to Charles, Prince of Wales, has been limited to the occasional glance at the cover of a tabloid. He seems to fill his life with photo opportunities at official ceremonies with the occasional hunting excursion in a kilt. But recently, my opinion of Prince Charles changed when I found this very short book.

The book is only 35 pages -- and even includes many pictures. Definitely, it can be read in less than half an hour. But the message in this book is one that you will want to discuss and reflect upon long after you finish reading this. In 2011, Prince Charles gave a keynote address at a global food conference in Washington, DC. Apparently, in between those official ceremonies and hunting trips, Charles has been a champion of sustainable food production. His speech addresses many of the issues plaguing our planet regarding food, including soil depletion, water loss, and the use of pesticides. The bottom line is that we are creating a situation that will have a huge impact on the global economy and the everyone's quality of life. One of the points that really stuck with me is that the wealthy will always be able to get access to healthy food and clean water and will be able to live in areas that aren't ruined with chemicals. But it is the world's poor who will be hungry, thirsty and unhealthy from these food practices. Given that Prince Charles is definitely among the ranks of the world's wealthy, I am impressed that he has taken on this noble cause. Definitely a book that everyone should read. ( )