Given the ubiquity of UPF, this book fills a vital gap in our knowledge. Thankfully, it is easy to read, combining research and interviews with personal anecdotes and amusing glimpses of van Tulleken family life. For those of us involved in food studies, the book adds an extra layer of urgency: van Tulleken proposes that UPF destroys the meaning of food—it becomes a technical substance without cultural or historical meaning. To avoid this outcome, let alone the millions of early deaths caused by poor diets that are increasingly made up of UPF, we need to better understand ultra-processed food and work to change the food system that allows these substances to flourish.

Considérant l’omniprésence des aliments ultra-transformés (AUF), ce livre comble de manière essentielle une lacune dans nos connaissances. Heureusement, il est facile à lire, combinant recherches et entretiens avec des anecdotes personnelles et des aperçus cocasses de la vie de la famille van Tulleken. Pour ceux et celles qui prennent part aux études sur l’alimentation, le livre ajoute une couche supplémentaire d’urgence : van Tulleken avance que les AUF détruisent le sens des aliments – ceux-ci deviennent des substances techniques sans signification culturelle ou historique. Pour éviter cela, sans parler des millions de décès prématurés causés par des régimes alimentaires médiocres de plus en plus composés d’AUF, nous devons mieux comprendre les aliments ultra-transformés et nous efforcer de modifier le système alimentaire qui fait foisonner ces substances.

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

• Sumner, J., (2025), "Review of Ultra-processed people: Why we can’t stop eating food that isn’t food", HSSCommons: (DOI: 10.15353/cfs-rcea.v11i1.684)

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1. food system change
2. obesity
3. ultra-processed foods

Original publication: Sumner, Jennifer. "Review of Ultra-processed people: Why we can’t stop eating food that isn’t food." Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l'alimentation, vol. 11, no. 1, 2024, pp. 240-242. DOI: 10.15353/cfs-rcea.v11i1.684. This material has been re-published in an unmodified form on the Canadian HSS Commons with the permission of Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l'alimentation. Copyright © the author(s). Work published in CFS/RCÉA prior to and including Vol. 8, No. 3 (2021) is licensed under the Creative Commons CC BY license. Work published in Vol. 8, No. 4 (2021) and after is licensed under the Creative Commons CC BY-SA license. For details, see creativecommons.org/licenses/.