SUGARLANDS
2014
text by Tereza Rullerova The Rodina Š 2014
SUGARLANDS In this atlas I want to approach the role of the SUGAR consumption in relation to the several aesthetic, social, cultural, economic and ideological aspects. The SUGAR as food is basic source of energy, the essential substance which our body needs to live. There is no consciousness without the sufficient blood sugar level. That physiological importance makes it play major role in society and economy. The cane SUGAR production was invented in India, later popular in Arabic world, was luxury product accessible only for elites. Because of high energy consumption, the rise of SUGAR mass production developed later during industrial revolution and colonization. Over 1,5 million of slaves were imported from Africa to work in colonies on cane SUGAR agriculture. Than during Napoleon wars, the sugar lack caused by Britain’s blockade of overseas trade started the production of beet SUGAR in continental Europe. That was one of the essential impulses for industrialization at least of middle Europe. I would say that SUGAR was the first industrial food product - kind of well designed metabrand - associated with its artificial superior whiteness and definite teste. Consequently in 1840 the form of SUGAR loaf was upgraded by invention of SUGAR cube by Czech born Swiss Jacob Christoph Rad. That can be considered to have same value for history of design as Jonathan Ives´s iPhone for 21st century. In the terms of neoliberal capitalism consume ideology of 20. century were introduced many new forms of SUGAR: sweets, jams, candies and sweet drinks. The feeling of welfare was connected with ubiquitous availability of SUGAR products. But as it is significant for capitalism, the crisis came. SUGAR consumers became obsessive junkies — addicts who repeatedly buy and eat their SUGAR product. Health issue connected with overconsumption opened new market opportunities. So the “healthy” SUGAR was invented, the nutrition quality was removed, only satisfaction remained. Unfortunately consumptionhas never brought a chance for absolute
self-actualization. So now we can sweeten with “double consumerism” fairtrade SUGAR, when consuming it is simultaneously moral act. What’s more we can find our forgotten original nature with using “natural” brown SUGAR. We can dream about pure nature and healthy life, but it´s something, we shouldn´t return to, at least by consuming. As It is nicely described in F. Guattari´s text about The Three Ecologies, where he mentions the story of octopus. Scientists put it from dirty water into the clean one, but octopus died. There is no way back, even when we drink espresso with melasa every morning. And finally it looks now that it´s just a matter of time when SUGAR will be understood as toxic drug under the restrictions of the law. But it is not issue of chemical properties of SUGAR, but the isue of ideology which tend us to overconsume. In European union we are living in SUGERLANDS. We are trapped in 28 SUGAR landscapes. By taking photos of them I tried to demonstrate our situation. As philosopher Judith Butler mentioned That photographies can only AFFECT us, not provide us with UNDERSTANDING of what we see. This is exactly how ideological images work. Our SUGARLANDS are empty dreary landscapes carefully hidden under the oversaturated satisfaction promising image - sky. The very concept of ideology implies a kind of basic, constitutive naïveté: “the difference between socalled social reality and our distorted representation, our false consciousness of it,” as it describes Slavoj Žižek. In SUGERLANDS we are obliged to consume more, to eat more, to ENJOY.
AT
36,400
45.7
AUSTRIA population: 8,451,900 healthy years of life: 58
SUGAR production in year: 444,264 tones consumption/person: 45.7 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 38% population no sport at all: 29% population
444,264
38
58
3,800
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,800 kcal GDP living standard per person: 36,400 euro
three
50 686,595
3,690
62
BELGIUM population: 11,161,600 healthy years of life: 62
SUGAR production in year: 686,595 tones consumption/person: 55.6 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 50% population no sport at all: 28% population
34,300 BE 55.6
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,690 kcal GDP living standard per person: 34,300 euro
five
28
2,760
5,500
BG
BULGARIA population: 7,284,600 healthy years of life: 76
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 31.7 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 13% population no sport at all: 28% population
31.7
13
76
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 2,760 kcal GDP living standard per person: 5,500 euro
seven
46.2
HR
10,200
CROATIA population: 4,262,100 healthy years of life: unknown
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 46.2 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: unknown no sport at all: unknown
4,262,100
R
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: unknown GDP living standard per person: 10,200 euro
nine
CY
41
58
CYPRUS population: 865,900 healthy years of life: 58
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 46.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 41% population no sport at all: 46% population
19,000
46.9
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: unknown GDP living standard per person: 19,000 euro
eleven
14,200 CZ
59
CZECH REPUBLIC population: 10,516,100 healthy years of life: 59
SUGAR production in year: 432,755 tones consumption/person: 36,7 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 28% population no sport at all: 37% population
432,755
36,7
3,280
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,280 kcal GDP living standard per person: 14,200 euro
thirteen
60.
44,400
9
DK
68
DENMARK population: 5,602,600 healthy years of life: 68
SUGAR production in year: 374,000 tones consumption/person: 60.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 64% population no sport at all: 18% population
64 3,410
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,410 kcal GDP living standard per person: 44,400 euro
fifteen
34
41 45.9
ESTONIA population: 1,324,800 healthy years of life: 49
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 45.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 34% population no sport at all: 41% population
EE
1,324,800
13,800
49
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: unknown GDP living standard per person: 13,800 euro
seventeen
80,000
FI
7
53
FINLAND population: 5,426,700 healthy years of life: 53
SUGAR production in year: 80,000 tones consumption/person: 33.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 72% population no sport at all: 7% population
3,220
7
35,600
72
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,220 kcal GDP living standard per person: 35,600 euro
nineteen
FR
27,500
3,530
4,257,418
62
FRANCE population: 65,633,200 healthy years of life: 62
SUGAR production in year: 4,257,418 tones consumption/person: 36.8 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 48% population no sport at all: 34% population
4,257,41 8
36.8
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,530 kcal GDP living standard per person: 27,500 euro
twenty—one
31,300
3,540
50
GERMANY population: 80,523,700 healthy years of life: 57
SUGAR production in year: 3,442,683 tones consumption/person: 50 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 49% population no sport at all: 31% population
49
DE
3,442,683
57
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,540 kcal GDP living standard per person: 31,300 euro
twenty—three
17,200
77,
182
GR
66
GREECE population: 11,062,500 healthy years of life: 66
SUGAR production in year: 77,182 tones consumption/person: 29.5 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 18% population no sport at all: 67% population
18 3,710
29.5
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,710 kcal GDP living standard per person: 17,200 euro
twenty—five
45.9
110
,50
0
54
HUNGARY population: 9,908,800 healthy years of life: 54
SUGAR production in year: 110,500 tones consumption/person: 45.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 32% population no sport at all: 53% population
9,900
3,470
HU
32
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,470 kcal GDP living standard per person: 9,900 euro
twenty—seven
3
3,590
205,160
IE
IRELAND population: 4,591,100 healthy years of life: 62
SUGAR production in year: 205,160 tones consumption/person: 41.3 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 58% population no sport at all: 26% population
35,7
00
41.3
58
62
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,590 kcal GDP living standard per person: 35,700 euro
twenty窶馬ine
25,600
27
IT
ITALY population: 59,685,200 healthy years of life: 64
SUGAR production in year: 554,530 tones consumption/person: 31.3 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 27% population no sport at all: 55% population
3,650
T
554,530
64
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,650 kcal GDP living standard per person: 25,600 euro
thirty—one
LV 29.2
50
LATVIA population: 2,023,800 healthy years of life: 50
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 29.2 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 27% population no sport at all: 44% population
2,990
2,023,800
27
10,600
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 2,990 kcal GDP living standard per person: 10,600 euro
thirty—three
36
46
72,000
52
LITHUANIA population: 2,971,900 healthy years of life: 52
SUGAR production in year: 72,000 tones consumption/person: 46 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 36% population no sport at all: 44% population
3,430
11,700
LT
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,430 kcal GDP living standard per person: 11,700 euro
thirty—five
LU
51
80,700
43.9
LUXEMBOURG population: 537,000 healthy years of life: 61
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 43.9 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 51% population no sport at all: 32% population
32
LU
61
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: unknown GDP living standard per person: 80,700 euro
thirty—seven
MT
17,000
51.6
MALTA population: 421,400 healthy years of life: 69
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 51.6 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 48% population no sport at all: 38% population
48
38
69
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: unknown GDP living standard per person: 17,000 euro
thirty窶馬ine
NL
870,
536
63
NETHERLANDS population: 16,779,600 healthy years of life: 63
SUGAR production in year: 870,536 tones consumption/person: 46.4 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 56% population no sport at all: 28% population
56
3,000
46.4
35,900
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,000 kcal GDP living standard per person: 35,900 euro
forty—one
3,410
43.6
25
POLAND population: 38,533,300 healthy years of life: 59
SUGAR production in year: 1,464,457 tones consumption/person: 43.6 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 25% population no sport at all: 49% population
10,10
0
1,464,457
PL
59
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,410 kcal GDP living standard per person: 10,100 euro
forty—three
33
15,800
PT
PT
58
PORTUGAL population: 10,487,300 healthy years of life: 58
SUGAR production in year: unknown consumption/person: 32.7 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 33% population no sport at all: 55% population
32.7
3,580
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,580 kcal GDP living standard per person: 15,800 euro
forty—five
123,664
28.1
60
ROMANIA population: 20,057,500 healthy years of life: 60
SUGAR production in year: 123,664 tons consumption/person: 28.1 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 21% population no sport at all: 49% population
3,490
21 6,500
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,490 kcal GDP living standard per person: 6,500 euro
forty—seven
40
139,81
2
58
SLOVAKIA population: 5,410,800 healthy years of life: 55
SUGAR production in year: 139,812 tons consumption/person: 40 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 30% population no sport at all: 35% population
2,900
13,
300
SK
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 2,900 kcal GDP living standard per person: 13,300 euro
forty窶馬ine
43,442
3,320
23.2
SLOVENIA population: 2,058,800 healthy years of life: 57
SUGAR production in year: 43,442 tons consumption/person: 23.2 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 52% population no sport at all: 22% population
52
SI
17,100
2
57
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,320 kcal GDP living standard per person: 17,100 euro
fifty—one
ES
22,300
25.1
SPAIN population: 46,704,300 healthy years of life: 62
SUGAR production in year: 528,000 tons consumption/person: 25.1 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 39% population no sport at all: 42% population
528,000 3,260
62
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,260 kcal GDP living standard per person: 22,300 euro
fifty—three
3,110
72
SWEDEN population: 9,555,900 healthy years of life: 65
SUGAR production in year: 315,000 tons consumption/person: 42.1 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 72% population no sport at all: 6% population
42.1
315,000
43,800
SE
65
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,110 kcal GDP living standard per person: 43,800 euro
fifty—five
29,800
3,450
64
UNITED KINGDOM population: 63,730,100 healthy years of life: 64
SUGAR production in year: 994,790 tons consumption/person: 35.6 kg a year
SPORT activity once a week: 46% population no sport at all: 32% population
46
35.6
UK
6
994,790
ECONOMY consumed energy per day/person: 3,450 kcal GDP living standard per person: 29,800 euro
fifty—seven
SUGARLANDS Text and graphic design: Tereza Ruller, www.therodina.com Typeface: Castledown, Akkurat Mono Pro Paper: Arctitc papers, Munken Lynx Print: printer.nl Thanks to: Too Long Drukkerij Lauren Alexander and Niels Shrader for Philosophy, Design and Interactive Media Design at The Royal Academy of Art The Hague, Netherlands 2014 All rights reserved.