Food demand is on track to double by 2050, demand for organic food is growing significantly faster than the acreage to produce it, and yet the world has lost a third of all arable land in the last 40 years due to erosion and pollution damage. Farmers today are struggling to cost-effectively meet these increasing demands, in a world where water, fertilizer and other chemical usage is becoming increasingly expensive and regulated. Learn how one company is working to help farmers meet this demand while saving money at “Plant Probiotics That Grow Strong Crops, from the Ground Up,” a webinar featuring Dr. David Stark, President of Holganix.

Holganix’s plant probiotics increase crop yields while simultaneously reducing the need for water, fertilizer and chemical inputs. With Holganix, farmers can effectively cut their costs while producing more plentiful, natural foods.

The Future of Food and Health

This week’s AgriFood Conversations, The Future of Food and Health, is from the Davos on the Delta conference. Davos on the Delta sits at the crossroads of dramatic change in agriculture, food, and health — where the most innovative entrepreneurs, top industry experts, early adopter customers and smart investors in risk capital come together to map the future of food system innovation.

Featuring:

Carter Williams, iSelect Fund

Nancy Roman, Partnership for a Healthier America

Mani Gopalakrishnan, VP Digital Innovation, Kraft Heinz Evolv Group

Part 1: System C

The year is 2030. Autonomous vehicles are alive and Facebook is dead. The “Peak Food” crisis was averted, but we didn’t just produce more. Food is no longer measured by calories and fat content. Nutritional density and microbiome score have emerged as the standard. What does that mean? Hundreds of Billions have been saved in American healthcare, but not due to any new drugs or devices. Production of corn and sugar are in decline, supplanted by peas and hemp. Food and agriculture are on the cutting edge of human health. Producing the right foods has led to a resurgence in farmer profitability. The industrial revolution has finally hit the farm as technology has reduced labor and inputs while improving the output quality. And Agriculture is being praised for its contributions to the environment. The world has changed, but how did we get here?

Part 2: The Convergence of Food and Health

Diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disorders. What if they all had to do with the food we consume? Today’s research already shows that cancer patients with the correct nutrition can increase their life expectancy by 6-12 months. What if the $500 billion to $1 trillion spent annually to treat chronic disease was spent on healthy food? Is Big Food’s next step to buy a healthcare insurer.

Part 3: The Future of Food

No one cares about organic or non-GMO anymore. All anyone can talk about is personalized nutrition. Swipe left for heatlhy and nutritious. Swipe right for a Type 2 diabetes menus. Want a menu to lower inflammation? Choose your ingredients, your snacks, your meals based on your personal or family goals. No more guesswork associated with which diet to follow. Get the one customized for you as simple as a few clicks.

Is Congress to blame for our health problems? For most Americans, the likely answer is yes, but not for the reasons you may think.  In the late ‘70s, Congress began exploring the links between diet and health, due to significant issues with heart health. It culminated in the publication of the first US Dietary Guidelines in 1980 and every 5 years since. They concluded fat was bad and carbohydrates were good. As a result, they traded heart disease for obesity and diabetes.  We now know too much refined carbs and sugar can make us fat, but it also leads to inflammation which has been linked to numerous chronic diseases that cost us billions to treat. What is less obvious is the impact on the microbiome. A diet too high in sugar can cause the composition of the microbiome to change, overpopulating certain microbes that feed on the sugars. These microbes then signal to the brain that they need more sugar, causing us to consume even more. And these bad bugs play a role in conditions as diverse as depression and diabetes.  The foods being sold in the mass market today are not consistent with the new science. There is a massive infrastructure built around selling cheap calories. How can we go about changing that system?

Panelists:

Mani Gopalakrishnan, VP Digital Innovation, Kraft Heinz Evolv Group
Dr. Bruce German, Professor, University of California Davis
Dr. Lee Chae, CTO, Brightseed
Lucy Stitzer, Founder, Dirt-to-Dinner

Moderator:

Carter Williams, CEO, iSelect Fund