In January they find a restaurant that specializes in local cuisine and, previously vegetarians, they cook and eat beef for the first time in years. Working in Malawi, MacKinnon is struck by the contrast between their western diet and that of the poor country's: there is ample food supplies in Malawi but most is exported to Canada and the United States who buy the food they do not require. The couple learn about Mexican and Maya cuisine while in Merida, Mexico for a wedding. The book ends with an epilogue, written by both Smith and MacKinnon six months after their one-year diet. They make a symbolic journey to Bamfield, within their 100-mile radius, to collect sea water for its salt and prove they could obtain their own salt supply.