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7฀ China's฀Changing฀Rice฀Bowl฀ China's las t grea t famin e wa s fro m 195 8 tol961 , th e resul t o f th e faile d campaign o f the Grea t Leap Forward. The next major politica l upheaval, th e Cultural Revolutio n (1966-76 ) di d no t produc e widesprea d starvation , although diet s were terribl y unbalance d an d lacke d importan t nutrients . I n promoting economi c developmen t an d unleashin g th e energie s o f China' s farmers, th e Dengist reforms undoubtedl y improve d th e quantity and variet y of food availabl e t o th e Chines e people . After nearl y tw o decade s o f Deng' s reform , developmen t an d modernization program s — bot h Engel' s an d Bennett' s law s — operat e i n China wit h tw o exceptions : first, governmen t interventio n i n foo d market s (rationing and subsidies ) and , second, th e restrictions o n crop s that farmer s can grow . Engel' s La w an d Bennett' s La w als o ar e violate d i n time s o f prolonged inflation . Suc h condition s begi n t o impac t Bennett' s La w whe n families economiz e b y reducing thei r consumptio n o f expensive foods. After such "fat " i s trimme d fro m th e diet , i f inflatio n persists , th e househol d ha s litde choic e bu t t o increase th e proportio n o f income tha t is spent o n food , so this percentage increase s although income s are rising . The McGee (1989 ; 1991a) spatia l model, based on level s of urbanizatio n with an emerging regional urban hierarchy , posits a hierarchy of city and rura l areas in regions of dense pre-existing agricultural populations in East Asia, as they evolv e i n respons e t o force s o f economi c developmen t an d industrialization. Life-styl e o r genre de vie cultural factors , suc h a s diet , wer e not applie d i n th e creatio n o f McGee' s model . As we hav e seen , clea r an d striking difference s i n nutritiona l level s and foo d choice s ar e eviden t withi n the same province in China, and more between cities and the countryside tha n among rura l regions . Th e Dengis t Openin g t o th e Worl d ha s brough t i n Western supermarkets and fast-food outlets , further differentiatin g urba n an d rural diets. 156฀Changing ฀Rice ฀Bowl:฀Economic ฀Development ฀and ฀Diet ฀in ฀China฀ Nutrition, Economic Development, and Culture in Chin a Long ago, China developed a dietary regime and a farming system — a cultural ecology — that is capable of feeding a large population o n a small amount o f land. I n th e Chines e conceptua l schem e o r conceptua l ma p o f food , th e centerpiece o f a Chinese meal is grain, which is lower on th e food chai n tha n meat tha t Westerners regar d a s th e mai n dish . Th e Chines e stapl e grai n o f choice — rice — require s tremendou s amount s o f labor , bu t i t feeds thos e laborers b y providing hig h level s of nutritio n pe r uni t o f land. I n land s tha t are to o dr y fo r padd y rice , wheat produce s abundan t Calorie s an d protein . Millet, sorghum , an d maize , followin g it s introductio n i n th e Columbia n Exchange, provid e supplements . Grain in a Chinese meal is supplemented and enhanced by vegetables an d small amount s o f meat . Th e mos t commo n mea t i s pork. Pig s contribute t o the Chinese farming syste m by consuming what otherwise would be discarde d as waste, and turning it into food i n the form o f pork and ham. Chickens an d ducks perform a similar function becaus e they produce not only meat but also eggs; however, because they are smaller...

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