An extreme amount of work, thought and scrutiny goes into the production of food. Yet nearly half of the U.S. food supply — or 80 billion pounds — is wasted each year. A lot of this waste is the result of Mother Nature and production restrictions placed on growers by grocers, vendors and companies to have the picture-perfect tomato or right-size potato. This combined with consumers who overbuy at the grocery store have created a perfect storm of discarded food.    Episode Breakdown:  Why are these standards of perfection placed on farmers in the first place? How are companies a ..read more

In Part 1 of our Alt-Foods series, we learned about the amazing, sometimes fantastical, future of food. Now let’s come back to the present food revolution: The plant-based food movement is booming. Grocery sales of plant-based foods have jumped 29% in the past two years, topping $5 billion in 2020. Meanwhile, the traditional food industry is responding to this revolution and evolving rapidly on its own.    Episode Breakdown What new foods are plant-based pioneers creating? How do you develop a plant-based egg? How is traditional agriculture responding to plant-based alternative ..read more

In Part 1 of our Alt-Foods series, we dive into the amazing science and technology that’s powering the future of food. Meat grown in a lab. Meals 3D-printed at your kitchen table. And a Nobel Prize-winning technology that edits genes — and our perception of food itself. In Part 2, we’ll bring you to the present, on the front lines of the food-science debate, exploring how two very different industry leaders envision alternative foods. Episode Breakdown: What scientific innovations are changing our food? | How do you grow a cell-based hamburger? | How can genetics and CRISPR technology lead t ..read more

We’ve all heard stories of the kid who left the family farm for the comforts of the big city, but the truth is an entirely different story. More and more young people are returning to agriculture after years spent away. Who are these new ag revolutionaries? Moreover, why are they coming back? Are the economic prospects of farming improving? Is there a reignited passion to return and work the land? Or is there a growing sense that, for young minds, new opportunities are just around the corner? Episode Breakdown: Why are young people returning to farming? | What innovations have they brought wi ..read more

Big farms are a force today. They’re a source of food for billions of people, and also a source of controversy. In 2018, only about 3% of U.S. farms were large-scale farms, yet they accounted for 46% of agriculture production. But some consumers are skeptical of large farms — even labeling them as factories. In reality, most farms, including large-scale farms, are family run. So, what’s it like to run a large-scale farm? Where do these consumer perceptions come from? And what does the story of the large-scale farmer, the producer tasked with feeding the world, really look like? Episode Breakd ..read more

“One meat product per customer.” “Eggs: limit one carton.” “2 gallons of milk only.” COVID-19 showed just how fragile and inflexible the US food supply system is. Despite this, some farmers and food suppliers got creative and adapted their businesses while introducing new ideas to our food system. What have we learned since the pandemic began to prepare for the next crisis? What obstacles still remain? Episode Breakdown: What was it like on the front lines when the food system collapsed? | How did farmers adapt? | How did government agencies limit the flexibility of our food supply? | What ne ..read more

Near the North Pole is an underground vault holding over a million seeds in case our food supply is threatened. From dodging Indonesian storms to smuggling seeds out of Syria, how far will scientists go to protect something as small as a seed? Who owns the seeds, and who gets to withdraw them when we need them? With just 30 crops providing 95% of the world’s food, will we need them sooner than we think? From dodging storms in Indonesia to smuggling seeds out of Syria, how far will scientists go to protect something as small as a seed? Episode Breakdown: What is the vault like? | Who has acces ..read more

Grocery prices are predicted to increase approximately 1% in 2020 — the fifth year in a row with lower-than-average price inflation. Episode nine of The Growing Debate explores the many factors that determine grocery prices. Who’s benefiting from more affordable food? More important, who isn’t? Episode breakdown: How much money are farmers investing in inputs yearly? | How is food priced in the United States? | Can farmers choose the price of their product? | What is the consumers’ role in food prices? | Who is suffering at the expense of the food supply chain? | How much more are other, les ..read more

In the U.S., the suicide rate in rural areas is 45% greater than in urban areas. What’s behind this disturbing trend? Is it an indicator of a growing problem in our society? Episode eight of The Growing Debate travels to a dairy farm to uncover all the financial, personal and community pressures experienced by today’s farmers. What is being done to help? Episode Breakdown: What are the many pressures farmers face? | Why do farmers on multigenerational farms suffer more? | How does isolation magnify these mental health problems? | How are these mental health issues reflected in other professio ..read more

The average farmer is white and male, but the 2017 census data shows the number of women and minority farmers are on the rise. The numbers show progress — but is that the reality? Episode seven of The Growing Debate explores what defines equality in agriculture — along with dairy producer Laura Daniels and row crop farmer Christi Bland — and asks if equality is just a set of numbers matching up. Episode breakdown: What advantages do women have in running a dairy operation? | How did Laura end up as a dairy farm owner? | What challenges do minorities face in agriculture? | How do minorities ge ..read more