Looking Outside The big food problem no one wants to talk about - journalist Michael Grunwald
The food system isn’t broken. But it has a big problem. That is land – and how little of it we have. Journalist and author Michael Grunwald joins us on the show today to talk openly about the elephant in the food ecosystem. Regenerative agriculture, precision fermentation, vertical farming, meat alternatives … we have no shortage of innovative ideas in the food system. But very quickly, a ‘quick fix’ turns out to be just a dumb idea.
Despite a growing population, climate change challenges, and a human hypocrisy problem, Mike says we can feed everyone with the land we have, we just can’t keep taking more of it for agriculture. Perhaps, then, the biggest consideration facing food businesses today is not to chase the ‘next big thing’, but as we scale nascent ideas, to consider land in that equation - and not as a ‘free’ asset. Because as Mike says, with the land we have, the math sucks.
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More:
- Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.com
- Connect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.com
- Learn more about Michael Grunwald
- Follow Mike on LinkedIn & X
- Grab a copy of Mike's book 'We are eating the earth'
- Speaking opportunities with Mike
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Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.
All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2025. Theme songs by Azteca X.