Paprika, Foie Gras, and Red Mud
The Politics of Materiality in the European Union

Zsuzsa Gille (Author)

9780253019387

Hardback, published 1 February 2016

182 pages, 6 b&w illus., 2 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.6 cm, 0.408 kg

"I recommend this book to undergraduates as well as graduate students studying various disciplines regarding social, ethical, legal, and economical questions about the (supra)national handling of food-security, animal-welfare, and the storage of toxic waste — topics that should concern everybody of us."—Europe Now
"Gille offers a highly original take on globalization processes in Europe, and in particular, on Eastern Europe's incorporation into the European Union. . . . [V]ery accessibly written and should thus appeal to a wide audience, including those who are interested in globalization, the European Union, Eastern Europe, contemporary social theory, and agrifood studies. . . . [A] very important contribution to scholarship."—Rachel Schurman, author of Fighting for the Future of Food: Activists versus Agribusiness in the Struggle over Biotec

In this original and provocative study, Zsuzsa Gille examines three scandals that have shaken Hungary since it joined the European Union: the 2004 ban on paprika due to contamination, the 2008 boycott of Hungarian foie gras by Austrian animal rights activists, and the "red mud" spill of 2010, Hungary's worst environmental disaster. In each case, Gille analyzes how practices of production and consumption were affected by the proliferation of new standards and regulations that came with entry into the EU. She identifies a new modality of power—the materialization of politics, or achieving political goals with the seemingly apolitical tools of tinkering with technology and infrastructure—and elucidates a new approach to understanding globalization, materiality, and transnational politics.

Introduction: Hungary and the EU in the Political and Scholarly Imagination
1. The 2004 Hungarian Paprika Ban
2. The 2008 Foie Gras Boycott
3. The 2010 Red Mud Spill
4. Neoliberalism, Molecularization, and the Shift to Governance
Conclusion: The Materialization of Politics