The Dr. Hyman Show - How Hedonism Can Change Our Food System

Episode Date: October 25, 2019

You might be surprised to learn that there is a major monopoly when it comes to seeds. Globally, 68% of seeds are in the hands of just three companies. This has major implications for our food system at every level. In this mini-episode Dr. Hyman talks with Dan Barber about how seeds are the blueprint for better food, better soil, and a better food system. Dan explains why seeds are the foundation for a new food system and why making food taste great opens the doorway for healthier people and a healthier planet. Dan Barber is the chef and co-owner of Blue Hill and Blue Hill at Stone Barns and the author of The Third Plate. He also co-founded Row 7 Seed Company, a seed company bringing together chefs and plant breeders in the development of new varieties of vegetables and grains. Dan has received multiple James Beard awards including Best Chef: New York City (2006) and the country’s Outstanding Chef (2009). Listen to Dr. Hyman’s full-length conversation with Dan Barber here https://drmarkhyman.lnk.to/DanBarber

Coming up on this week's episode of The Doctor's Pharmacy. What you just said is a front page New York Times story. Hi, I'm Kea Perot at one of the producers of The Doctor's Pharmacy podcast. You might be surprised to learn that there is a major monopoly when it comes to seeds. Globally, over a third of all seeds are in the hands of just three companies. In this mini episode, Dr. Hyman sits down with mastermind chef and regenerative agriculture advocate Dan Barber. Together, they discuss the importance of seeds and why Dan supports a hedonistic approach to changing the way we grow food. Some of the biggest problems we have are solvable by

actually rethinking how we grow food. And that's really what you've come to as a chef is solving the problem of hedonism. You have to go back to the farm and the seed and the soil and the way we grow food. It's a very empowering message. Now, I have to go back to the farm and the seed and the soil and the way you grow food. It's a very empowering message. Now, I want to go into the seed company thing for a minute because most people don't understand that there's a seed monopoly out there, that the centralization of seed creation and production and the selling of seeds is happening at scale globally and is undermining local farmers and food producers all over the world. And most of them around the world are women and small landholders or farmholders.

What you just said is a front page New York Times story. And I don't know why this is more... I mean, the seed industry is now consolidated to the point that any new variety of seed that is developed, 68%, 68% is in the hands of three companies. Monsanto. So nearly 70% of the future of our food is in the hands of three companies. Which is Monsanto and- Well, Monsanto has just been bought by Bayer. Yeah, and there's DuPont and then there's ChemChina.

So there's three big players now. I mean, next time we talk, there might be two. But that is a frightening reality because if you do, and I think you should look at seeds as the blueprint for the whole system, then you're talking about these companies controlling the system.

It's not just a seed that doesn't taste good or lacks nutrition or whatever. It's a blueprint for how you're supposed to farm. And that's what scares me is that you roll out everything from the amount of acreage that it should go on, where it should be grown. Forget rotations. It's not in that. But that whole baked all the way to the processor is what we're talking about.

That's how baked in it is. That's a monopoly. What I find most interesting is that the three companies we just mentioned are not seed companies. They're chemical companies. Yeah. They're creating seeds to sell their chemicals, right? Like the roundup ready seeds they cause. Yeah. And what incentive do you have in that scenario to create a strong seed that doesn't need the chemical intervention? And there's none. And that's where it's the David and Goliath story. It's like, that's crazy. And people don't understand that because there's so much mixed messaging and because people don't think of food as seed driven. You know, we think too much of it actually as farm and soil driven, even though, God, we should be thinking more about smaller farms and diversified

farms and biodiverse farms and soil and regenerative farms. They're all important, but the seed is the blueprint for how that stuff gets into play. And that's why I went to the seeds because you can have the best farmer, like this guy Klaus Martens, I was mentioning in the beginning, I went to visit, the best rotations, the most regenerative and biologically diverse soil.

If you have a seed that doesn't have the genetics to be expressed, then what are we talking about? You cannot have a seed that doesn't have the genetics to be expressed, then what are we talking about? You cannot have a delicious oat or a delicious carrot that has a bad seed, grown in bad soil, probably wasn't grown locally, probably wasn't picked at the right moment. None of those things can happen and have a delicious jaw-dropping experience. It's impossible. And so what's beautiful is that when you focus on hedonism, it solves the world's problem. It gets people healthier. It fixes the soil.

That's the ticket to this movement. I think it's hopeful because while it may seem fringy or esoteric or on the margin, it actually is putting a crack in the whole agricultural system and a crack in our thinking about food. And when you combine that with these other huge trends we're seeing, which is the decline of our health as a species and the obesity and diabetes epidemics and the decline of our environment and the climate change we're experiencing and all the economic burden that comes from that. I mean, this is a global problem that has solutions, but they start at the farm and we have to rethink that.

Yeah. No, that's very well said. It's true. We have to create a culture that appreciates that and really appreciating it through truly great food, truly great flavor is one way to upend the paradigm that we have now. We are now going out to eat more and more, and this isn't just white tablecloth restaurants on down for an experience that is unique to the region. And that's where the power of the culture comes into play. We have to breed for that. And that's what we're trying to do. Because that's also where the healthiest seeds

are going to come from. The culture, but the environment. What is specific about the region's soil and microclimate that will make this seed thrive? And can we breed for it? I don't know how to make money doing that. That's the question. Because no seed company does this. Seed companies don't. They're not interested. They're actually in one size fits all. I want the seed to work the exact same in New York, California, Michigan, Texas, Canada, Mexico, India, China. And that boy, you have to dumb down the genetics to do that. That much I know. And flavor is just tamped down. Everything is tamped down. But my point is, if you eat the diversity that's required in the organic system, you

not only have this incredible array of flavors and nutrition at your disposal, but you also have the regeneration of the soil, which is true sustainability. So I just think the ticket is this deliciousness and this celebratory, hedonistic look at food, which is so interesting because that's what cuisines and cultures have taught us over time. For thousands of years, seeds were saved and exchanged as part of community self-preservation. Sadly, between 1903 and 1983, we lost an astonishing 93% of our unique seed varieties. This resulted in more than just a lack of selection at the market. Seed diversity complements soil diversity, and unique seed varieties allow farmers a better chance at a productive harvest. This doubles as a form of insurance. If one crop doesn't grow as

hoped, there are others to fall back on. Conventional agriculture embraces monoculture, meaning one crop may be grown over thousands of acres, and then the same thing is grown again after harvest. This depletes the nutrients in the soil and puts the farmer at risk should something threaten that particular crop. It also perpetuates a farmer's reliance on government subsidies. By cultivating seeds based on flavor and variety and supporting growers who are passionate about regenerative agriculture, not only will our food taste better, but we will begin to shift the food system in exciting and positive new directions. Thank you for tuning into this

mini episode of The Doctor's Pharmacy. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend. Until next time.