Feed: a food systems podcast

Ilva Kronkos-Varmborg, from Future Food at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, takes us on a behind-the-scenes tour of a mealworm factory in Sweden. Jonas House, a researcher at Wageningen University, shares his skepticism about insects overcoming cultural barriers as mainstream food. Meanwhile, Bernice Bovenkirk, an animal and environmental ethicist, raises ethical concerns surrounding insect farming. The discussion highlights the potential of insects as a sustainable protein source while tackling the challenges in acceptance and ethics.

The yield gap refers to the difference between the potential agricultural yield that could be achieved under ideal conditions and the actual yield that farmers harvest. In sub-Saharan Africa, the yield gap is in some cases 80% meaning that farmers have the potential to double, triple or even quadruple their harvests.The causes of the yield gap are debated and so are the solutions to narrow it. In this conversation with Martin van Ittersum, a professor at Wageningen University, and Klara Fischer, an associate professor and senior lecturer at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, we discuss if increasing yield is the right entry point for reducing hunger in the region; if bottom-up or top-down interventions lead to a more resilient food system; and at what time-scale (short- or long-term) should we be focusing food systems solutions?More info, resources and transcript found at: https://tabledebates.org/podcast/episode48

Presenting the Meat: the four futures series final episode.--Over the last few months, we explored what the future of meat and livestock could look like. We’ve talked about how our values, ethics and where we live in the world can impact our desired futures for meat. And we did a deep dive into four potential futures - efficient meat, alternative “meat”, less meat and no meat.To wrap up the series, we hear comments and thoughts from the listeners, and podcast host Matthew Kessler shares some personal reflections on what he learned about the future of meat and livestock after making this series.--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode8Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

We continue featuring the Meat: the four futures series with episode 7.--We've heard four distinct visions for the future of meat and livestock. But realistically, won't they all play a role? As we wrap up the series in the next two episodes, we’re going to review what’s in conflict between the four futures and how parts of them might co-exist.In this episode we ask three experts to consider different arguments presented by the four futures as they relate to health, biodiversity and animal ethics. We ask a professor of diet and population health if it’s better to eat some, a lot, or no meat; we ask a biodiversity expert about how the different futures would help biodiversity to recover; and we ask an animal ethicist about the morality of eating animals and to interrogate the ethical cases put forward by the four futures.--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode7Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

We continue featuring the Meat: the four futures series with our fourth and final exploration of four different futures for meat - Plant based no meat.--Should we remove animals from agriculture and our diets altogether? What if all the land that produces animal feed now could instead produce human food--or be rewilded? Would this be a planet friendly future--or impoverished and unnatural? In this fourth and final scenario: the plant-based no meat future, we explore the motivations, the evidence and the arguments for adopting a diet that centers and celebrates plants. We visit a vegan restaurant in Stockholm, Sweden; a vegan food tech company in Lagos, Nigeria; and an animal free farm outside of Reading in the United Kingdom.But is dietary change at a societal scale unrealistic? Is this the most sustainable, ethical and efficient approach to eating and producing food? We explore all this and more.--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode6Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

We continue featuring the Meat: the four futures series with our third exploration of four different futures for meat - Less meat.--What if we had a more compassionate approach to farming animals, where we raised and ate fewer animals - and so meat cost more? We speak with farmers, researchers and campaigners who don’t see farmed animals only as producers of meat and milk, but instead highlight their ability to manage landscapes and to recycle waste and nutrients. They cannot imagine sustainable cropping systems without livestock.Is this less meat future a win-win-win for animals, people and the planet, or is it an unrealistic and elitist vision?--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode5Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

We continue featuring the Meat: the four futures series with our second exploration of four different futures for meat - Alternative "meat".--What do some entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, animal activists, and environmentalists have in common? They each envision a future where meat alternatives can tackle the environmental impacts and animal suffering caused by global livestock production.But in this futuristic vision of replacing livestock with plant-based substitutes and cultivating meat in labs from animal cells - are we living in a utopia or a dystopia? We speak with scientists, investors, and CEOs from across the world to better understand the motivations, scientific basis, and evidence that either support or raise concerns about the future of alternative "meat".--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode4Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

We continue featuring the Meat: the four futures series with our first exploration of four different futures for meat - Efficient meat 2.0.--Today we farm and eat meat at a scale not matched in human history. We raise 80 billion animals a year for food at a really low cost to the consumer.  Here we look at how technology, research, and innovation have made animal agriculture much more efficient. Do you see efficiency improvements in animal agriculture as essential for feeding a growing population?  Or do you think we should eat less meat, switch to plant-forward diets or create competitive meat alternatives?We speak with agriculture economists, pig farmers, poultry geneticists, and others who make the best case for an efficient meat future.--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode3Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

Today we are presenting the second episode in the Meat: the four futures series.What are your first thoughts when you see a piece of steak on a plate or a big pot of chicken soup - healthy meal? piece of animal flesh? comfort food? In this episode we explore how our values, ethics and where we live impacts our relationship with meat and livestock.We dig into the history of the diet  humans evolved to eat, visit Burkina Faso and India to hear two different solutions to meet the surging demand for meat across the global South, and talk about the ethics of eating animals in the West, where we’re often distant and detached from where meat comes from.---Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode2Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizSubscribe to the newsletter: https://tabledebates.org/meat/newsletterAdd your voice to the podcast: https://tabledebates.org/meat/contributeMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.

Here we present the first episode of a podcast that Feed co-host Matthew Kessler has been creating with TABLE and the SLU Future Food over the last year: Meat the four futuresFood has this incredible ability to bring people together. But it can also divide us. And how can it not? The same foods that some find so nutritious, that give us such a strong sense of who we are - are also believed by others to be at the center of so many existential concerns - global malnutrition, climate change, biodiversity loss, and inequality. Meat sits at the center of this controversy. But is it the problem or the solution? Well, that’s complicated. Meat: The Four Futures aims to bring us together on a journey where we can examine our past and our future, our decisions and the science that informs them.The Meat the four futures podcast will explore four competing visions for meat and livestock: 1) Efficient meat 2.0, 2) Alternative "meat", 3) Less meat, and 4) Plant-based no meat. In this episode we set up the series and unpack the promises and pitfalls with each future.--Visit the episode page with more resources: https://tabledebates.org/meat/episode1Project webpage: https://tabledebates.org/meatTake the values-based quiz: https://tabledebates.org/meat/quizSubscribe to the newsletter: https://tabledebates.org/meat/newsletterAdd your voice to the podcast: https://tabledebates.org/meat/contributeMusic by Blue dot Sessions and Epidemic sound.