It is only cheap at the till

The modern food industry is contradictory in relation to time, energy and resources.

On the one hand, time is measured economically, compressed into minimum expenditure for maximum profit. ‘Time is money’. We spend, save, waste or even master time (Hoffman 2009) in relation to food production. On the other, we do not take into account or invest in the time it takes to produce food of quality, the underpinning philosophy of Carlo Petrini’s Slow Food movement.

We are torn between the desire to move things forward and giving the necessary time for a process to mature. We also add or ‘fortify’ to make machine production easier, cheaper, longer-lasting and at a larger scale, to make the result ‘appear’ to be healthy. The enormous effort to make food cheaper and to sell more costs both the earth and public health. In addition, these outdated strategies even fail to produce their intended results. For example, UK produces some of the least expensive bread in Europe, but bread consumption is also one of the lowest and most wasted commodities.

The environment is our client

Food production is culturally constructed and frequently defies the metaphor of industry that contemporary economics favours. Its production is complex. Food is a living entity that is grown, nurtured and harvested in cyclical time. It is also infinitely variable. It cannot be thought as separate from the soil, from the environment. It plays an important role in sustaining rich forms of biodiversity. Our current forms of production place such diversity under threat.

Our actions have the potential to strengthen as well as weaken diversity. Our agricultural systems can help mitigate climate change and feed us, or they can accelerate change and contribute to hunger. Our current approaches to food production and farming are creating more and more dead ends in which the energy of natural systems is dissipated, exhausted.

Following the example of the Harrisons, ecology artists, what if we approach the environment as our client? How can we serve this client? How would this concept challenge, transform and even revolutionize the way we think about food production systems? How would this lead to radically new ideas and forms of action?

De-contaminating our appetites

Consumers are helplessly looking for what they deem to be healthier fresh, natural products. Conventional packaged food companies have seen their sales drop significantly in the last few years. As a result, the top 25 U.S. food and beverage companies have lost $18 million since 2009. This trend suggests that we are moving away from a diet base in artificial ingredients, genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and pesticides that drastically reduce biodiversity towards natural ingredients and sustainable farming.

However, these trends are interpreted rather simplistically and superficially. How far do we need to probe to recreate quality practices? How long do we have in the light of the pace of climate change and a deteriorating public health? How can we de-contaminate our palette/body from sugar/unhealthy habits?

Global authenticity: local sources and global business ideas

Consumers are asking for honesty and authenticity. The time for faux (Jamie’s) Italian is over, the time of local foraging and local food related knowledge and traditions is emerging. The anti sensory, ‘quick as you can’ chains fail to produce the aesthetics, rituals and rhythms of authentic food. How do we understand the crucial relationship between expansion and development in sustaining complex systems of interdependence for food production, including the relationship of local, grass roots production to global distribution that respects quality?

Innovation rarely comes from large multi nationals who have powerful networks and channels of distribution. Bringing to market new products that align with emerging consumer trends in a timely manner is challenging for many large food and beverage companies. They aim to follow emerging trends but by the time they come up with new products and services, trends might be abating. These ideas are often not radical, innovative or even interesting.

This makes food industry a fruitful area for small businesses and entrepreneurs to bring their ideas into market and allow their product to stand out. It is within the small scale that new innovative ideas emerge.