ARLINGTON, VA -- On Episode 51 of The Rice Stuff podcast, author Benjamin Lorr shares a glimpse of the fascinating, complex, and often precarious workings of an everyday institution most consumers take for granted: the grocery store. Lorr’s book, The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket, explores the elaborate journey food must take to arrive, packaged and branded, on store shelves.
Lorr, who was recently a speaker at the 123rd Rice Millers Convention, emphasizes that The Secret Life of Groceries is not intended to be a damning exposé—though some of the book’s revelations are shocking.
“I’ve always been a little bit transfixed by the grocery store experience,” said Lorr. “I really didn’t want this to be the type of food book that told a holier-than-thou set that this was a new food that they couldn’t eat, and that they could feel morally superior for not eating. That was front of mind when I was writing the book.”
As part of his research, Lorr embedded himself in the world of supermarket logistics, from riding along with long-haul truckers and working at actual stores to shadowing CEOs. Lorr and hosts Michael Klein and Lesley Dixon talk about the surprising history of American grocery stores, and their evolution from small neighborhood shops where shopkeepers kept all goods behind a counter to the first Piggly Wiggly that allowed customers to walk through and select their own items.
“This was a fun and illuminating discussion for me, because I’ve always been pretty obsessed with grocery stores, marketing, and new and weird food products,” said Klein. “Talking with Benjamin about what it takes to get these products on shelves and keep them there was eye-opening. We only scratched the surface in the episode though, and I encourage folks to pick up the book for themselves.”
“Trends like online ordering, delivery, and curb pickup are definitely here to stay, but I was especially interested in what Benjamin had to say about the rising demand for curated, in-person shopping experiences that are exciting to consumers,” said Dixon. “I’m definitely going to be thinking about this episode when I go to the store for quite a while.”
New episodes of The Rice Stuff are published on the second and fourth Tuesday of every month and can be found on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and online at www.thericestuffpodcast.com.