Steve Ettlinger

Writer, editor, book producer, and author of TWINKIE, DECONSTRUCTED

Photo of Steve Ettlinger

Biography

Steve Ettlinger has been an author, editor, and book producer since 1985, and has helped create over forty books. Just a dozen of those titles account for over a million copies sold. Six books relate directly to food. His most recent and seventh book is TWINKIE, DECONSTRUCTED: My Journey to Discover …

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Steve Ettlinger has been an author, editor, and book producer since 1985, and has helped create over forty books. Just a dozen of those titles account for over a million copies sold. Six books relate directly to food. His most recent and seventh book is TWINKIE, DECONSTRUCTED: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated Into What America Eats. Ettlinger has written or edited books on ethnic cuisines, beer, and kitchenware, contributed to websites, and helped create the bestselling series WINE FOR DUMMIES. Ettlinger is an occasional contributor to The Huffington Post, and has written op-ed pieces for The Los Angeles Times and The New York Sun, among other newspapers. He is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) and a former president of the American Book Producers Association (ABPA).

Ettlinger has appeared on The Today Show (twice), CBS This Morning, Nightline, Good Morning America, FOX News, Montel, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, The Food Network (many times), and dozens of other national, syndicated, and local television and radio shows.

Prior to becoming a book producer and writer, Ettlinger was associate picture editor at GEO magazine, and worked on two of the “Day in the Life” photo projects. During this time he taught at the New School, the School of Visual Arts, and Fordham University’s graduate program in public communication. Ettlinger lived in Paris for six years, where he was assistant bureau chief for Magnum Photos and also managed to eat at many of the world’s finest restaurants. He has previously worked as an assistant chef, and enjoys old home renovation, cooking, sailing, and African drumming. A graduate of Tufts University, he lives in New York City with his wife, Gusty Lange, and their two children.

Check out Ettlinger’s website at www.twinkiedeconstructed.com.

 
Speaking Topics
  • If you are what you eat, it behooves you to know where your food ingredients come from. And it is not what you might have expected.


    “Where does polysorbate 60 come from, Daddy?” This was an inspiring question from Steve Ettlinger’s young daughter, coming after he had read the label of an ice cream bar to her one summer day at the beach. Unable to answer, and having already investigated beer, wine, and ethnic foods, Ettlinger determined to find out where common artificial ingredients come from and how they are made, using the Twinkie ingredient list as his table of contents. He decided to trace even the sub-ingredients of complex chemicals back to their earthen sources. The route was full of surprises, fun, and adventure, including a trip down a mine 1,600 feet deep and a visit to a plant where they break 7,000,000 eggs a day. Recalling his discovery that we use five kinds of rock to make cakes still makes Ettlinger laugh. Not so fun was being turned away from a major plant after having flown across the country to visit it, or running up against secrecy when it concerns the food we eat. Ettlinger appreciates good food and has a consumer’s perspective on this modern alchemy that turns corn and petroleum into chips, drinks, cakes, and ice cream. He also took pictures at many of the locations he visited.


    Ettlinger shows an amazing slide show as part of an insightful presentation that entertains while it demystifies complex chemical names and illuminates the problems created when our food is made from Chinese petroleum or from rock-like ores. As Newsweek magazine said, after Ettlinger, you will never read a food label the same way again.

Ettlinger’s presentation is of interest to audiences concerned with:

  • relating science to the everyday experience
  • consumer or environmental issues
  • eating healthily
  • promoting locally grown, sustainably farmed, or whole foods
  • how narrative nonfiction is written

Academic audiences that would enjoy Ettlinger’s presentation include those of:

  • Food studies, food politics
  • Nutrition, nutritional science, dietetics
  • Public health
  • Ecology
  • Food science, food technology, food safety technology
  • Chemistry
  • Environmental and biological sciences
  • Anthropology
  • Agriculture
  • Culinary arts
  • Political science
  • Journalism (science or general nonfiction writing)

Hosts may want to encourage homemade Twinkie tastings (featuring attempts at organic, vegan, or all natural Twinkie-like cakes) during Ettlinger’s presentations.

Featured Book

Featured book's cover TWINKIE, DECONSTRUCTED “[A] delightful romp through the food processing industry....”—Publishers Weekly Buy Books now!
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