Mark Bittman, food writer and journalist, to discuss his new book on food, diet and politics October 22, 2015

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Food writer Mark Bittman, author of "A Bone to Pick" (2015) Photo credit: Fred Conrad

ALBANY, NY (10/08/2015)(readMedia)-- Mark Bittman, food writer and former New York Times columnist, will discuss his new book, A Bone to Pick: The good and bad news about food, with wisdom and advice on diets, food safety, GMOs, farming, and more (2015), a thought-provoking look at food, diet, health, and politics, on Thursday, October 22, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. in Page Hall, 135 Western Avenue, on the University at Albany's downtown campus. Earlier that same day at 4:15 p.m., the author will offer an informal seminar in the Recital Hall of the Performing Arts Center on the University at Albany's uptown campus. Free and open to the public, the events are sponsored by the New York State Writers Institute, and cosponsored by the Albany Times Union and the University at Albany's School of Public Health.

Mark Bittman is one of America's best-known food writers. He is the author of the 1998 bestseller How to Cook Everything, which launched a series of bestselling sequels, and was a long-time writer and columnist for the New York Times. He is also the author of the new book, A Bone to Pick: The good and bad news about food, with wisdom and advice on diets, food safety, GMOs, farming, and more (2015), an unabashedly-opinionated and thought-provoking look at subjects from fad diets and food movements to agricultural policy, school-lunch programs, and "healthy fast food."

Bittman has written or co-written 16 books and cookbooks, including VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 to Lose Weight and Restore Your Health for Good, Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating with More Than 75 Recipes, and Kitchen Matrix. For 13 years, he authored the widely-read New York Times food column, "The Minimalist." He is a regular guest on NBC's The Today Show and NPR's All Things Considered and has appeared as a guest judge on the Food Network cooking competition series Chopped.

A Bone to Pick compiles Bittman's most memorable and entertaining New York Times columns into a single volume for the first time. Bittman's columns help readers decipher arcane policy, unpack scientific studies, and scrutinize corporate greed when it comes to defining what "eating well" truly means. A Bone to Pick is an essential resource for every reader eager to understand both the complexities of the American food system and the many opportunities that exist to improve it.

Lindsay Abrams, writing for Salon, calls Bittman, "a leading voice in what you might call our current food movement, helping a generation of eaters and writers understand the at-times wonky, at-times inscrutable state of American food. If How to Cook Everything is the go-to source for the intrepid home chef, then A Bone to Pick is destined to become a staple for those who want to consider, more deeply, what's on their plate." Likewise, Kirkus Reviews called A Bone to Pick "an intelligent rallying cry for anyone seeking a safe and healthy food supply, and all that entails."

Publishers Weekly said, "[Bittman's] complaints about what he calls a "broken" food system are consistently balanced with viable solutions; his resounding message ("eat real food") is simple enough, and supports his overall goal of human health and agricultural sustainability. Bittman's compelling essays are a call to action and a reminder to readers that the future of food – and of the planet – is in their own hands."

In addition to his work as a writer, cookbook author, and journalist, Bittman has hosted four TV series, including Showtime's Emmy Award-winning climate change documentary, Years of Living Dangerously. In 2005, he hosted the Public Television series, Bittman Takes on America's Chefs, which won the James Beard Award for best cooking show.

Bittman recently announced that he will be leaving the New York Times to take a central role in a year-old food company in California to put the philosophy he was been writing about into action. For additional information, contact the Writers Institute at 518-442-5620 or online at http://www.albany.edu/writers-inst.

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