One of the most persistent and startling news stories of the past year has been the global crisis in the world's food supply. Theories about the roots of the situation are many, diverse and contradictory: from increased production of biofuels, to rising populations, climate change, and environmentally harmful and inefficient farming practices. In Food Politics: What Everyone Needs to Know, Robert Paarlberg, one of the most prominent scholars writing on agricultural issues, parses the range of theories behind the food crisis to map out and demystify the range of phenomena that has come to be known as "food politics."