The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket
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The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Benjamin Lorr (Author, Narrator), Blackstone Publishing (Publisher)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 1,292 ratings
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In the tradition of Fast Food Nation and The Omnivore’s Dilemma, an extraordinary investigation into the human lives at the heart of the American grocery store.

The American supermarket is an everyday miracle. But what does it take to run one? What are the inner workings of product delivery and distribution? Who sets the price? And who suffers for the convenience and efficiency we’ve come to expect? In this rollicking exposé, author Benjamin Lorr pulls back the curtain on this highly secretive industry. Combining deep sourcing, immersive reporting, and compulsively listenable prose, Lorr leads a wild investigation to:

  • Learn the secrets of Trader Joe’s success from Trader Joe himself
  • Drive with truckers caught in a job they call “sharecropping on wheels”;
  • Break into industrial farms with activists to learn what it takes for a product to earn certification labels like “rain forest friendly” and “fair trade”;
  • Follow entrepreneurs as they fight for shelf space, learning essential tips, tricks, and traps for any new food business;
  • Journey with migrants to examine shocking forced labor practices through their eyes.

The result is a compelling portrait of an industry in flux, filled with the passion, ingenuity, and inequity required to make this piece of the American dream run. The product of five years of research and hundreds of interviews across every level of the industry, The Secret Life of Groceries is essential listening for those who want to understand our food system - delivering powerful social commentary on the inherently American quest for more and compassionate insight into the lives that provide it.

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  1. Listening Length
    8 hours and 57 minutes
  2. Author
    Benjamin Lorr
  3. Narrator
    Benjamin Lorr
  4. Audible release date
    September 8, 2020
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Blackstone Publishing
  7. ASIN
    B085YFZ619
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 8 hours and 57 minutes
Author Benjamin Lorr
Narrator Benjamin Lorr
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date September 08, 2020
Publisher Blackstone Publishing
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B085YFZ619
Best Sellers Rank #93,045 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#90 in Retailing Industry (Books)
#96 in Restaurant & Food Industry (Books)
#326 in Hospitality, Travel & Tourism (Books)

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
1,292 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

laureldumont
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun to read, fascinating and illuminating exposé that should be required reading
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2024
Verified Purchase
Ever wonder why the food we buy is so much cheaper than its true cost of growing or making or butchering?

This book explores that question, first how the industry works (with a fascinating history of Trader Joe’s) and then looks into on whose backs we eat for cheap. Who’s cutting corners and, more importantly, who’s getting exploited? The truckers? The Thai shrimp farmers? The independent food entrepreneurs? The low wage grocery store workers?

This book is incredibly researched and amazingly written. The writing is clear, succinct, funny, insightful. And the content completely illuminating. Not all horrifying (although some certainly is), all fascinating.

2024 update: I still think and talk about this book ALL THE TIME.
2 people found this helpful
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Airmurph
4.0 out of 5 stars A WELL BALANCED PRIMER, UNBIASED & INFORMATIVE
Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2020
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I write from the perspecitive of a forty year experience in the consumer / grocery industry from sweeping floors in supermarkets to CEO of brand manufacturers. This book is an honest, unbiased and well reported primer on the agri business industry. If you are looking for a "hit job" it's not here, just well constructed opinions and facts. Nothing new to me in this work yet I found the book to be a very interesting read.

I enjoyed the personal character vignetes. They add character, substance and verification. They are overdrawn at times but are a fine substitution from the typical, dry, academic tropes on this subject.

One important missing part, the real story, is financial structure and motivation. This global industry is highly and redundantly over levereged. This is not a domestic industry in any way. This is not a "food" business. This is and has been for decades a cash & financial yield mangement machine. Actually management of the Whole Foods seafood case is an apt metaphor; well merchandised and entertaining in the morning, by the end of the day it requires a thorough cleaning out.

All said Lorr does a great job. The chapter on aqua culture in SE Asia is overdrawn relative to the subject of the book. He obviously worked hard and long to give this topic exposure. I'd like to see him leverage the knowledge he has gained and take on the $$$ side. Well done!
44 people found this helpful
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Factation
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific read!
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2024
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Terrific book that is well written and well researched. Should be required reading for anyone interested in pursuing a career in retail.
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Plennie Wingo
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best investigative books I've ever read
Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2023
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Amazing detail, great writing style and fearlessness. Hard to put this one down. You will never walk into a supermarket the same way again. Bravo!
4 people found this helpful
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Paul E. Hill
3.0 out of 5 stars Too wordy
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2024
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I got less than half way thru the book and I stopped reading it. I can’t recall ever doing this before. A good editor would have made this book WAY less wordy and to the point. Maybe I will go back to it someday…after skipping a few hundred pages.
3 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and educational story of the food that you might no longer wish to eat
Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2022
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Lorr is an entertaining writer and a fine muckraking journalist who must have spent a ton of time investigating many important but hidden aspects of our grocery supply chain. You may never want to eat again after you read some parts of this book and it truly is an eye opener. From my own business experience, I found some parts to be more accurate than others but you can judge for yourself.
6 people found this helpful
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Sean
4.0 out of 5 stars Good read, bad binding
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2023
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The book itself was an enjoyable read.
I actually read most of it while working as a cashier in a small-town grocery store.
Folks got a real kick out of seeing me read this at the register.
Many of it's "lessons" are more applicable to larger chains, but it was still excellent context for my work.
There's something in here for everyone although you might need to sift through some bits to get there.

I personally enjoyed the first section the most.
Learning about the history of the grocery industry really gives an appreciation for where we are now.
There was a surprising amount about Trader Joe's which I also enjoyed.
Will be looking for more reads on those subjects.

Purchased the hardcover soon after it came out, and the glue separated after a few months.
Bit of a bummer, but I always planned to give the book away anyway.
7 people found this helpful
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FLuid Dynamix
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read and learned a ton
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2020
Verified Purchase
Very much deserving of five stars!! I really enjoyed Benjamin Lorr's first book, Hell-Bent, so I was excited to pick this up. He brings the same warm, funny, insightful voice to the world of groceries. But for me, this book hit home even more, because, like most people, I buy most of the food I eat at a grocery story... And like most people, I never stopped to think how the "miracle" of endless shelves stacked with food comes to be. I found this to be an incredibly eye-opening read. Lorr finds amazing human stories from literally all over the world to tell the grocery store story. This is a great piece of research AND a great piece of writing.
22 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Cliente de Amazon
4.0 out of 5 stars El camino de nuestros alimentos desde el campo a la mesa
Reviewed in Mexico on June 3, 2021
Verified Purchase
Si te interesa o algún vez te has preguntando sobre el mundo del retail actual este libro es muy interesante. Sobre todo lo que vivió el autor para escribirlo. Habla de todo el proceso de crear un alimento hasta el consumidor final.
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Mp
5.0 out of 5 stars You’ll never shop quite the same way again
Reviewed in Canada on March 7, 2021
Verified Purchase
From the history of 7-11 to Amazon buying Whole Foods, this book is an in-depth look at how grocery works and the issues surrounding what we eat. The author speaks with a trucker going broke, a woman trying to break into the condiment business, many people managing companies and stores, people involved in Thai slave fishing and many others, and gives us some idea of the real truth without talking down to the reader or his sources. Well worth your time.
One person found this helpful
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Royal Newfoundland Regiment.
5.0 out of 5 stars An almost perfect book.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 28, 2020
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An exceptional little book.

Written with dedication, rigour and deep caring for humanity.

It is such a great pleasure to read something, written by someone with intense curiosity and intelligence, who then manages to weave the results of those traits into a cohesive narrative.

Bravo.
One person found this helpful
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stephanie
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Read
Reviewed in Australia on March 7, 2023
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Learned a lot from this book. Also very well written and formatted perfectly.
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Crazycatlady
2.0 out of 5 stars Dull and a bit self-indulgent
Reviewed in Canada on December 7, 2020
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Not what I expected after hearing an interesting interview with the author. More about big brands that aren't of much relevance here in Canada than about the inside story of how the grocery business works.
One person found this helpful
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