Climate Change

At one time, small family farms provided most of the food eaten in the United States — and many of the livelihoods in communities across the nation. People knew where their food came from and how it was produced, and the profits mostly remained and circulated locally. These days, small family farms are in trouble. In this first article on family farms, we’ll take a look at the forces that threaten their existence and why their increasing loss is such a calamity for the food system.

There’s a food shortage going on that’s unlike anything we’ve seen in the last 40 years. Billions of people around the world are now chronically hungry, and tens of millions may face imminent famine and starvation. So what’s going on that’s different from years past? And what, if anything, can we do as individuals to begin to make a difference?

Lentils are unassuming culinary heroes, featured in dishes from a wide variety of culinary traditions. Not only are they delicious, versatile, easy to cook, and nutrient-rich powerhouses, lentils also feature prominently in efforts to mitigate climate change and engage in sustainable food production. So what can lentils do for you and how can you get more of them into your life?

When we discover the benefits of plant-based eating, it’s natural for us to evangelize those benefits, especially to our own families. But being too gung-ho and insistent can backfire. So what are the most effective ways to get veggie-averse family members to embrace a healthy, plant-based way of eating without turning the dinner table into a civil war?

Food and climate change: Which foods are the most damaging to the planet? And which foods could help save it? Check out the current state of climate change and see what research says about the impact of certain foods.

For hundreds of years, Indigenous peoples in the Americas (and across the world) have faced genocide, land theft, and in many cases, forced relocation, all of which have deprived them of their ancestral foodways. Today, many Native peoples are grappling with the devastating health consequences of these ancestral traumas, along with grinding poverty and a diet of highly processed foods. But despite this grim reality, a growing number of Indigenous Nations are working towards an Indigenous foods movement as a means of cultural renewal, environmental sustainability, and a way to reclaim food sovereignty and personal health. Find out what’s being done — and what you can do to help.

Ocean sits down with Peggy Liu, chairperson of the Joint US-China Collaboration on Clean Energy, for a conversation about the global impacts of our food choices — and how what we eat impacts our health and our climate. They also look at how we can reclaim our relationship with food to make it a source of beauty and meaning in our lives.

Nobody likes wasting food. But nearly all of us do it. A lot. And this isn’t just about a few spears of broccoli left on your plate after supper. Food waste is a massive problem that threatens our climate, our air and water and soil, and our ability to grow enough food to feed humanity for future generations. And the good news? There’s a lot you can do about it.

Industrial animal agriculture is a total environmental disaster, polluting local ecosystems and contributing to climate change. While one obvious response is simply to stop eating animals, there’s a growing movement known as “regenerative agriculture” that claims that raising cows can be part of the solution to climate change and other environmental problems. We asked Dr Doug Gurian-Sherman, a leading agricultural scientist, to share the real science with our readers.

The Annals of Internal Medicine has published what many are calling the “red meat papers”, advising Americans that there’s no need to cut down on consumption of red and processed meats. But in reality, the red-meat papers are not a breakthrough study. In fact, they didn’t study anything at all. They merely re-examined the data using a tool that was designed for measuring the efficacy of pharmaceutical drugs, not lifestyle interventions. Then they declared that decades of research, regulations by international bodies, and common sense were wrong. If you want the facts, here’s what you need to know.

Sustainable travel is a popular buzzword in the tourism industry, but what does it actually mean? And how can you take steps to travel and eat more sustainably?

Beyond their beauty, are acai berries really worth eating?