EFR 623: Conscious Consumerism, At-Home Farming, and Putting the Wonder Back in Food with Jacob Pechenik

Imagine a world where growing your own food is as nutritious and cost-effective as grocery shopping at your favorite store. Jacob Pechenik, the Founder and CEO of Lettuce Grow, is on a mission to make this happen now. Referring to the company as the answer to industrialized big agriculture, Jacob’s mission through Lettuce Grow (and its parent company The Farm Project) is to “democratize the growing of food for all” by “providing families access to clean, unprocessed food, [...] decreasing transportation emissions, drastically reducing water usage, and recycling ocean-bound plastics from places that lack recycling initiatives.”

Having always had a passion for sustainable farming, Jacob began with a dream to transform the wasteful industrial food system. He started with the question, “How do I get more people to the farm?”, but later on began to ask, “How do I get the farm to more people?”

That question led to his mission to create a million farmers throughout the country and by extension empower consumers to choose healthier, locally-produced alternatives. In the process, he hopes more people can reclaim that age-old sense of pride that comes with preparing one’s own meal.

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Key Highlights

• People have become so disconnected from how their food is sourced, grown, and prepared. The fact that ever-changing fad diets exist makes this obvious. Jacob explains how conscious consumerism aims to help us rediscover our food heritage.
• Industrial food distribution typically wastes 52% of the plant before it gets to the consumer. Jacob breaks down The Farm Project’s innovative “distributed farming” model, which ensures maximum freshness throughout the whole process.
• Jacob shares his journey to becoming empowered in choosing the healthiest food he could for his children.
• How much of an impact does Jacob hope Lettuce Grow and The Farm Project will have on the food distribution industry?

Episode resources:

• Save 80% on the 100% grass-fed beef sticks from Paleovalley
• Save 15% on all natural CBD products with code EVERFORWARD from Cured Nutrition
• Watch this interview on YouTube https://youtu.be/Y2LQvzufq38