Why regenerative agriculture is at the heart of our health

Why regenerative agriculture is at the heart of our health. Mainstream opinions have argued for decades that the ‘organic’ movement is little more than an expensive middle-class privilege with no ’science’ behind it, can’t feed the world and unprofitable for farmers.

“The argument that is often made against organic farming is that it can’t feed the world. Opponents say it can’t be scaled to the level we need to feed our current and growing population, but the real data actually says otherwise.”

– Dr Mark Hyman

In this podcast interview Regenerative Agriculture Really Heal Humans and The Planet?, Mark talks to Jeff Tkach about the amazing work the Rodale Institute has done over further the cause of organic and now, regenerative organic agriculture.

“Soil health affects everything from plant health to human wellbeing and the future of our planet.

Regenerative prioritizes soil health while simultaneously encompassing high standards for animal welfare and worker fairness. The idea is to create farm systems that work in harmony with nature to improve quality of life for every creature involved.”

– The Rodale Institute

Over the last 40 years, the Rodale Institute has shown that organic agriculture leads to equal or up to 30% better yields than conventional, using less energy use and returning three to six times more profits for the farmer. Their data sets have been repeated in five different studies from various universities and the USDA.

The Institute have recently published a white paper “The Power of the Plate: The Case for Regenerative Organic Agriculture in Improving Human Health.”

The Real Food SolutionI’m excited that their discussion so clearly supports the central theme of regenerating our health that runs throughout The Real Food Solution, which I wrote to help everyone understand that:

• our food is medicine
• the nutrition in our food depends upon the health of our soils
• our health – especially the health of our microbiome – is dependent on the health of our soils
• why and how we must become more conscious consumers
• how to put our health back on our plates

The Real Food Solution – A Treasury of Wisdom for more Energy, Vitality and Better Health for You and Your Planet supports the work of The Real Food Campaign UK – a health-led collaboration of doctors, health practitioners, nutritionists, health and wellness coaches, farmers, growers and food producers join the dots between our health, our food and our planet

I highly recommend investing an hour of your time to sit down with your favourite cuppa and discover why regenerative agriculture is at the very heart of human health – and why we need to care where our food comes from and how it was produced.

• How the Rodale Institute came to look at the linkages between healthcare and health (9:18)
• The meaning of regenerative healthcare (13:18)
• Our societal and governmental disconnect between agriculture and human health (17:41)
• Rodale’s research on regenerative organic farming practices (21:49)
• The Farming Systems Trial, a 40-year side by side comparison of organic vs conventional grain production methods, and the creation of the USDA’s organic standard (24:22)
• The benefits of feeding the world using organic farming methods (29:22)
• Is organic food more nutritious? (30:51)
• Are the chemicals and pesticides in conventional foods harmful or harmless? (40:36)
• Evolving beyond the current organic standard with the launch of the Regenerative Organic Certification (44:20)
• Are animals needed in regenerative agriculture? (55:49)

I hope this 60-minutes will The Real Food Solution to learn more about how you can put real food back on your table and support the work of The Real Food Campaign UK.