This is the first of a series of posts on the food system.
Shifting from the current industrial food system to a regenerative food system will provide multiple benefits. In this post I attempt to provide an overview of the massive value proposition of regenerative food systems and set the scene for future posts.
What is regeneration?
Paul McHanon defines regenerative agriculture as “the growing of nutritious food and other products in a way that enhances soil health, climate stability, and ecosystem functionality while being economically sustainable for the farmer”. Regeneration also has a much wider application than the growing of food. For example, regenerating food also links strongly to regenerating a failing health system.
This Jimi Sol video explains regenerative agriculture.
And here is a wider exploration of regeneration.
This video asks the question:
What are the wider systems you’re part of that you can contribute to?
What is a food system?
When many of us sit down to a meal, we have very little idea about where that food was produced and what has happened to it along the way. The chocolate you eat may have been produced using child slaves. The bananas were probably imported and had been grown with the use of polluting fertilisers and biocides. And the heavily-processed products might come from a whole lot of different places and have been processed with chemicals you probably wouldn’t choose to eat if you knew what they were.
A food system includes the production, processing, distribution, and consumption of food. This will be elaborated further in future posts. Note that at all stages of the system, there is waste.
The value proposition
The value proposition of moving to a regenertive food system is way beyond the benefits generated for the food producers. They flow through the four stages identified above. Here are six realms where value is created.
- Human, animal, and biosphere health – Increased consumption of nutrient-dense local food, and the reduced consumption of highly processed food is our best option to improve the nation’s physical and mental health. Farmers using regenerative practices find their animal health costs reduce significantly.
- Biodiversity – Increasing biodiversity on and beyond the farm by reducing the use of biocides and synthetic fertilisers, and enhancing soil health.
- Social dividend – Farmer mental health improves when farming methods work with nature. Farming becomes a climate change champion. Rural communities are revitalised as the production base diversifies away from corporate style farming.
- Climate – Regenerative practices heal the climate by sequestering soil carbon, increasing biomass, reducing nitrate production, enhancing the hydrological cycle, and through photosynthesis (transpirational cooling).
- Economic dividend – From reduced input costs and imports, enhanced market access and product premiums. Also reduced health costs and improved climate resilience.
- Flood, fire and drought – By soil carbon improving soil structure and the intelligent harvesting of water, flood, fire and drought resilience is enhanced.
These will be expanded on in future posts.
