Feed: a food systems podcast What is food solutionism? And why does it limit us
Jun 12, 2025
Colin Sage, a former researcher at University College Cork, critiques high-tech solutionism in food systems. Garrett Broad, an Associate Professor at Rowan University, examines agroecological narratives. Together, they discuss the allure of simple solutions to complex food challenges and the risks of oversimplifying pathways to sustainability. They advocate for recognizing trade-offs, embracing local contexts, and rejecting universal solutions, emphasizing the need for nuanced storytelling in food discussions.
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Solutionism Simplifies Complex Food Problems
- Solutionism frames single fixes as universal answers and flattens context-specific complexity.
- Garrett Broad and Colin Sage urge complicating narratives early to reveal trade-offs and limits.
Monbiot's Precision Fermentation Claim
- Colin Sage recounts George Monbiot praising precision fermentation as possibly the most important environmental tech ever.
- He used that example to show how singular tech claims can reach existential stakes without acknowledging limits.
Why Tech Solutionism Appeals
- Evgeny Morozov's 'solutionism' highlights reducing complexity, ignoring context, and selling frictionless narratives.
- Garrett links that to investor-friendly pitches and the cultural appetite for simple, world-changing fixes.
