Nearly all our grain crops come from annual plants that live and die within one year. A group called the land institute in kansas, um has is developing a whole range of pere neal grain crops where you can harvest the same plant year after year. In nan province in china, they have had six consecutive harvests from the same plants, and the yield is still the same as from annual rice. These perennial plants are almost certain to be far more climate resilient, because they have much bigger roots, deeper roots, and much stronger structures above ground.
George Monbiot is a journalist, campaigner and author, who is telling the world that the time for action on the climate crisis is now. His latest book, Regenesis: Feeding the World without Devouring the Planet, looks at how we can lessen the impact of food consumption and farming on the global environment. Our host for this discussion is Alice Thomson, columnist and interviewer for The Times.
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