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Together At the Table: Sustainability and Sustenance in the American Agrifood System. By Patricia Allen 2004. Penn State Press, University Park, PA. 260 p. $45.00, ISBN 0-271-02473-9, hardcover.

The central role played by government in agriculture sets it apart from most other sectors in advanced economies. In recent years this system of government involvement has come under attack from both the left and right sides of the political spectrum. Accusations leveled at the US agrifood system, include concerns about surplus production, food quality and safety, and the degradation of the natural environment resulting from intensive agriculture. In her book Together at the Table, Patricia Allen argues that a recent crisis of the modern US agrifood system, which for years has been governed by an iron triangle of traditional commodity interests, has resulted in the emergence of alternative agrifood movements such as the sustainable agriculture movement and the community food security movement. Allen argues that these movements have made enormous strides over the past decade or so, but have received limited attention from social scientists who have been more interested in the vagaries of agribusiness. Allen seeks to redress this neglect in Together at the Table by investigating the core assumptions and positions of these movements, their success, in moving towards a more sustainable food system and their influence on mainstream agrifood institutions. The book begins with a discussion of the deficiencies of the modern US agrifood system, followed by a discussion of the alternative agrifood movement response to these challenges. Then Allen considers how these responses have been institutionalized. Subsequently, she explores the emergent and residual discourses of the movements and how some movement discourses reflect the ideologies of the mainstream food system. The final chapters of the book focus on the deficiencies of the movements in terms of their power relations and inclusiveness, and how these movements can overcome some of their internal contradictions. This study represents a unique contribution to the study of the US agrifood system, having a dual emphasis on movements concernedwith the production (sustainable agriculture movements) and consumption (community food security movements) of food. Another innovative feature of this study is the focus on the discursive rather than the material politics of the agrifood system. The author examines a discursive shift in the mainstream institutions of the agrifood system toward a sustainable agricultural model, even though commodity agriculture continues to receivematerial support. The author presents a critical analysis of the movements behind this discursive shift, arguing that they have largely neglected some crucial features of a truly sustainable agrifood system, such as social justice, while continuing to adhere to regressive agrarian and liberal economic ideologies. Thus, while she recognizes the potential for alternative agrifood movements to radically alter the US food system, she also draws the reader’s attention to the structural and ideological barriers these movements have to overcome before this potential can be realized. The author draws on multiple sources of evidence in order to capture how the constituents of these movements construct their worldview and position themselves in relation to the contemporary agrifood system. She successfully integrates secondary, survey, interview and textual data. Most of the evidence marshaled by the author relates to the Californian agrifood system. The alternative agrifood movement in California is among the most advanced and progressive in the country. However, the use of California as a case study also presents problems when the author wishes to speak on developments in the wider US agrifood system. It may be the case that California is too unique a case to allow the author to speak confidently about changes occurring at the national level or in other parts of the US. Thus, additional case study material from alternative agrifood movements in the Mid-West or North-East might have strengthened the author’s argument. Together at the Table has significant potential to enhance the understanding of agrifood governance for government officials and other policymakers. The book also provides critical direction for activists in agrifood movement organizations. However, as is the case with many volumes that attempt to cross the line between scholarly and applied social science, there is a risk that the non-specialist reader could get lost in the academic language. Throughout the publication, Allen introduces a multitude of social science concepts, ranging from discourse, ideology, social ecology, organic and traditional intellectuals, etc. This can at times be overwhelming. That said, there is no doubt that Together at the Table is a unique and important contribution to the study of agrifood system governance in the US and how it is influenced by alternative agrifood movements. In this volume, Allen has presented a detailed analysis, a critical reflection and a call to action on the contemporary agrifood system that should interest scholars, activists and decision makers alike.