New Food Order

What is the Future of Plant-Based Alternatives in a New Food Order?

Tue, 04 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Plant-based meat and dairy alternatives may have exploded onto the food scene in recent years but the hype is catching up, consumer sales have been lackluster and investors are turning away. Questions have emerged about whether plant-based alternatives are the climate solution they claim to be, or an ethical choice throughout their supply chains. Are they even taking the right approach by aiming for replicas, or do we need new protein formats altogether?

To tackle these questions and more we hosted a very special live show at New Hope Network’s Natural Products Expo West, with a panel including Miyoko’s Creamery founder Miyoko Schinner, Rainfed Foods founder Sujala Balaji, and Danone’s VP of Marketing Plant-Based Beverages Olivia Sanchez. Our first-ever live show features some serious debate about the future of plant-based food.

Today we cover:

Why the success of plant-based products has slowed down in the US
Is it important for those working in the plant-based food industry have a plant-based diet?
Is there room for flexibility in our diets? Should plant-based foods be complemented with animal products?
The potential unintended consequences of plant-based food
What should the role of big conglomerates be in the plant-based sector?
The rising demand for meat around the world and how emerging markets are responding
The role of regenerative agriculture in the plant-based trend.

This episode marks the end of Season 1! We’ve really enjoyed ourselves and hope you have too. Let us know what you’d like to see us cover in future by leaving a comment or contacting us via newfoodorder.org.

Show Notes

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Patrick Carter, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Moving Beyond Carbon Neutrality in Food & Ag

Tue, 21 Mar 2023 11:00:15 +0000

Hardly a month has gone by in the past two years without a large food or agriculture corporate announcing a pledge to go carbon neutral by some future date. Given the food and agriculture industries contribute over a third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, these commitments are certainly welcome. But as we increasingly learn about the industry’s potential to be a solution to reversing climate change through carbon sequestering farming practices, the question quickly became: is carbon neutrality enough? Shouldn’t these corporates have higher goals and be targeting carbon removal from the atmosphere?

Furthermore, is carbon even the right focus when you consider other important measures of sustainable and ecological farming?

To discuss this complex topic, we brought a diverse guest roster onto the podcast in another roundtable format episode, including: Ivo Degn, Climate Farmers CEO; Dani Nierenberg, president of Food Tank; Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director for the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems; Julie Kunen, Director of Sustainability for Oatly North America; and Debbie Reed, Executive Director for Ecosystem Service Market Consortium.

We discuss:

Is carbon neutrality enough, or do we need to look beyond it?
Is it detrimental to have such a strong focus on carbon neutrality? Does the focus detract from other important areas of regeneration and supporting all ecosystem services?
Are carbon credits and overall certification of processes misleading and potentially damaging to the regenerative process?
How corporations and startups might work better in the sector
How are farmers and production workers affected by the carbon neutrality push?
How might we design these systems to ensure farmers benefit
How to ensure we don’t just end up “greenwishing” while searching for a solution

Show Notes

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

How Might We Better Support Farmers in their Transition to Regenerative Agriculture?

Tue, 14 Mar 2023 11:00:11 +0000

There’s enormous potential for agriculture to help reverse climate change through its potential to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. But are we asking farmers too much? Already laden with debt and the pressure to produce more with less, how might we support already cash-strapped and stressed farmers in their transition to regenerative agriculture? Should it be their responsibility alone?

In this episode, we continue our exploration of regenerative agriculture, its potential, and its challenges with Benedikt Bösel, Germany’s first regen ag Farmer of the Year and owner of Gut&Bösel; Jennifer O’Connor, Executive Director of Funders for Regenerative Agriculture; Felipe Villela, founder of reNature; and Kelsey Scott, Director of Programs at the Intertribal Agriculture Council and owner of DX Beef.

We discuss:

What needs to change to support farmers throughout the transition to farming regeneratively
Who should bear responsibility for driving this transition? Farmers, corporates, governments?
What regenerative producers actually need from corporates, governments, and investors
The language of regeneration and how to have productive conversations with producers
What collaboration models and other resources exist or should exist to help them
Funding sources for farmers, where they can access it, and the challenges involved
The mindset shift needed among corporations and policymakers to help producers manage their lands regeneratively and profitably
Indigenous producers and the generational damage that is being done on existing farms

Show Notes:

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Defining and Scaling Regenerative Agriculture

Tue, 07 Mar 2023 11:00:16 +0000

Regenerative agriculture has become a buzzword in the food world, but there is actually no formal definition of it.

Broadly it means a set of practices that aim to improve land while cultivating crops and livestock, instead of depleting it like industrial practices often do. But it means so much more than that to many and is wider-ranging than its potential to sequester carbon from the atmosphere.

In this episode, we explore philosophies of regeneration and ask our guests how they define regenerative agriculture, how we can make sure regenerative farms are actually doing what we need them to, and how do we support farmers while they make the transition?

In today’s roundtable, we sit down with Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, founder of the Regenerative Agriculture Alliance; Dan Kittredge, founder of the Bionutrient Food Association, Elizabeth Whitlow, executive director at the Regenerative Organic Alliance; Koen van Seijen, Toniic manager and host of the Investing in Regenerative Agriculture podcast; and Daniela Ibarra-Howell, CEO of Savory Institute.

We discuss:

Philosophies of regeneration and what is regenerative agriculture
How regenerative ag might help address global challenges like climate change and supply chain issues related to war and covid
What might a new regenerative agriculture system look like
What might we learn from indigenous agricultural practices
How corporations can work with farmers to create a more regenerative system
How might we fund the transition to regenerative agriculture
Do we need regenerative agriculture certification?

Show Notes

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

What is the Role of Biotech in an Ethical Food System?

Tue, 28 Feb 2023 11:00:09 +0000

New frontiers in biotechnology and fermentation are being deployed to reduce the environmental impact of our animal-based food system. But do developments in cellular agriculture, fermentation, and biotech foods – for the creation of meat and dairy analogues – take ethics into account?

In this week’s episode, we speak with four leading thinkers in the industry about how we might use biotechnology to engineer foods in a way where everyone wins.

This week’s episode is the first of our Roundtable formats, featuring a diverse panel of voices, including: Isha Datar, executive director of New Harvest, Varun Deshpande, managing director of Good Food Institute India, Didier Toubia, CEO of Aleph Farms, Errol Schweizer, former VP of Grocery for Wholefoods and host of The Check Out podcast.

We discuss:

How to define biotech and precision fermented foods
What questions we should be asking about cultivated meats
How you communicate with transparency the complexities of bio-foods to eaters
The need for open access scientific research in bio-foods development
Operating models for these technologies and foods in the global south
The ethics of IP and corporate control of research and these technologies
Who is investing in biotech foods - from governments to investors to multinationals

Show Notes:

New Harvest Cellular Agriculture Definition
Good Food Institute cultivated & precision fermentation definitions
US bio-engineered food labeling law
New Harvest OpenCellAg Repository
CRISPR
TALENS
APAC Society for Cellular Agriculture
The Carbon Farming Solution, book by Eric Toensmeier
La Via Campesina
What Questions Should We Be Asking About Cell-Based Meats? - Errol Forbes article
What Consumers Should Ask About Precision Fermentation - Errol Forbes article

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Revitalizing Pre-Colonial Indigenous Food Systems with Chef Sean Sherman

Tue, 21 Feb 2023 11:00:13 +0000

Do we need to design a US food system without European influences? What can we learn from indigenous peoples to ensure food sovereignty and reverse our climate crisis?

This week, we discuss this and more with Oglala Lakota Sioux chef, entrepreneur, author, and speaker Sean Sherman. Sean is the founder of "The Sioux Chef," a catering company and food education business committed to revitalizing and reclaiming Native American cuisine. His main culinary focus has been on bringing indigenous food systems like land stewardship and wild food usage to a modern culinary context. His restaurant Owamni in Minneapolis specializes in dishes containing only ingredients present in North America prior to European colonization. In 2022, Owamni won the James Beard Foundation Award for best new restaurant." In 2017, he co-authored the cookbook The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen. Through his nonprofit NATIFS, he also co-founded the Indigenous Food Lab, a professional Indigenous kitchen and training center dedicated to preserving Indigenous food education. He personally received the James Beard Foundation Leadership Award in 2019 and the James Beard Foundation Award for Best American Cookbook in 2017.

We discuss:

Colonialism's impact on indigenous cultures and foodways
Creating a replicable Indigenous Food Lab model, which includes entrepreneurial support, production and co-packing capacity, media, education, and marketplaces
Using food as a platform to empower and uplift indigenous peoples and preserve indigenous culture and wisdom
How to indigenize and decolonize for profit businesses
Using restaurants, CPG products, marketplaces, and media as a way to educate people about indigenous culture and wisdom
What we can learn from indigenous peoples around the globe who have a blueprint for living sustainably
Why we need to rebuild community-based food systems to ensure food sovereignty and to address the challenges created by our climate crisis
The unique advantage tribal communities in the US have to be able to rewrite some of their laws irrespective of state law, and how to utilize this to improve the local food system

Show Notes

The Sioux Chef: https://sioux-chef.com/
NĀTIFS: https://www.natifs.org/
Owamni: https://owamni.com/
The James Beard Foundation: https://www.jamesbeard.org/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Regenerative Product Design with Ethan Soloviev

Tue, 14 Feb 2023 11:00:20 +0000

Regenerative has become a buzzword, with companies big and small making commitments to launch regenerative products. But what does regenerative product design actually look like? And how do we measure the impacts of product design and ingredient choices on people and our planet?

This week, we discuss this and more with Ethan Soloviev, farmer and chief innovation officer at HowGood, a food sustainability rating company. His work with international retailers and CPG brands combines on-the-ground agricultural expertise in 34 countries with sustainability-driven market insights. Ethan has developed environmental and social impact metrics for analysis of more than 3,000 brands, including Ahold-Delhaize, Walmart and Danone. He regularly presents on Regenerative Agriculture and Regenerative Business at conferences around the world, and is the author of “Regenerative Enterprise: Optimizing for Multi-Capital Abundance” and the monthly “Regeneration Newsroom."

We discuss:

Cultivating a regenerative paradigm
How to provide food producers with the information they need to minimize the negative climate and labor risks of their products
Where regeneration strategy needs to differ when thinking about large vs small producers
Which metrics companies and consumers need to be looking at
The business benefits of regeneration
Ethan’s optimism around ecosystem service marketplaces
Whether it’s worth trying to fix modern capitalism or if we should take inspiration from more traditional local systems
Why Ethan thinks biotech and plant-based innovations are not enough on their own and why they must be used in conjunction with a new mindset

Show Notes

Chipotle and Kraft Heinz use this start-up to track and prove how green they are: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/06/06/chipotle-and-kraft-use-start-up-howgood-to-track-how-green-they-are.html
White Leaf Provisions: https://www.whiteleafprovision.com/
Carol Sanford: https://carolsanford.com/
One Planet Business for Biodiversity Coalition: https://op2b.org/
Ecosystem Services Marketplace: https://www.ecosystemmarketplace.com/ecosystem-services/
Regen Network: https://www.regen.network/
Nori: https://nori.com/
reNature: https://www.renature.co/
Burlap and Barrel: https://www.burlapandbarrel.com/
Yolele Foods: https://yolele.com/
Perennial Agriculture: https://www.perennial.earth/

*Giveaway Details*

We’ve teamed up with our partners at New Hope Network to offer ALL of our listeners an exclusive 25% off discount for an Expo West 2023 badge and ONE lucky listener will have the opportunity to win a free booth at Expo West 2024 ($8k value).

To enter, do the following by February 17th:

Head to New Food Order’s show page on Apple Podcasts
Make sure you are subscribed
Leave us a review - good or bad - but hopefully good! Scroll to the bottom of the page to do so.
Screenshot the review and email it to Meg at meg@savageimpacts.com - if you’re interested in the 25% discount to this year’s Expo, please call it out in the email.
Lastly, head to newfoodorder.org - select newsletter - and register to receive our newsletters. In addition to New Food Order content, AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect publish the leading newsletters for the food and agtech community.
Those who follow New Hope Network, Food + Tech Connect and AgFunder on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn will receive double entry.

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to Foodshot Global & New Hope Network for sponsoring the series.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Designing Better Plant-Based and Alternative Proteins with Sonalie Figueiras

Tue, 07 Feb 2023 11:00:14 +0000

How might we design plant-based, cultivated meat, and precision fermented alternative proteins in the most people and planet friendly ways?

In our second design episode, we speak with Sonalie Figueiras, a Hong Kong-based social entrepreneur and founder and the Editor in Chief of Green Queen, a sustainability and impact media platform that educates millions of readers on the connection between health, sustainability and the environment and showcases future solutions from Asia and across the globe. She is also the co-founder and CEO of organic sourcing platform Ekowarehouse and climate tech SaaS Source Green, which helps consumer brands quit plastic packaging thanks to proprietary plastic reduction software. And she’s an advisor to multiple mission-driven startups and NGOs, and a venture partner to several VC funds.

In this episode, we discuss:

The complexity of designing people and planet friendly products
Sonalie’s 5 product design principles
The good and the bad of plant-based products
Sonalie’s take on slowing plant-based sales
Why plant-based companies need to focus on the human ethics of their supply chain
How biotech companies might think about designing people and planet friendly products
Why governments need to invest in cultivated meat and precision fermentation technology

Show Notes

Green Queen: https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/
Source Green: www.sourcegreen.co
Design Episode with Julia Collins
Natural Fiber Welding: https://www.naturalfiberwelding.com/
Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) Circular Economy & Big Food Redesign: https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/food/overview
UNLIMEAT: https://unlimeat.co/
What Questions Should We Be Asking About Cell-Based Meats? https://www.forbes.com/sites/errolschweizer/2021/05/06/what-questions-should-we-be-asking-about-cell-based-meats/
What Consumers Should Ask About Precision Fermentation: https://www.forbes.com/sites/errolschweizer/2022/03/02/what-should-consumers-be-asking-about-precision-fermentation/
Asia Pacific Cultivated Protein Alliance: https://www.apac-sca.org/

*Giveaway Details*

To enter, do the following by February 17th:

Head to New Food Order’s show page on Apple Podcasts
Make sure you are subscribed
Leave us a review - good or bad - but hopefully good! Scroll to the bottom of the page to do so.
Screenshot the review and email it to Meg at meg@savageimpacts.com - if you’re interested in the 25% discount to this year’s Expo, please call it out in the email.
Lastly, head to newfoodorder.org - select newsletter - and register to receive our newsletters. In addition to New Food Order content, AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect publish the leading newsletters for the food and agtech community.
Those who follow New Hope Network, Food + Tech Connect and AgFunder on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn will receive double entry.

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

New Hope Network

New Hope Network is a media, events and business intelligence company, covering natural products trends, industry insights and marketplace data that educate the industry about key issues, like regenerative agriculture, sustainability, responsible sourcing and more. Visit newhope.com.

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Debating Infinite Growth on a Finite Planet with John Fullerton & Manuel Gonzalez

Tue, 31 Jan 2023 11:00:14 +0000

Is exponential growth possible on a finite planet? How might we balance growth and profit with maximum social and ecological benefit?

This is a huge topic that we’re just beginning to scratch the surface of. In today’s bonus finance episode, we share two differing viewpoints on growth from regenerative economics pioneer John Fullerton and venture capitalist Manuel Gonzalez.

We also include a discussion with Sara Eckhouse, executive director of Foodshot Global, about using Integrated Capital investment models that combine funding from multiple types of financial instruments to fund solutions that address social and environmental issues.

Topics covered in this episode include:

The failures of the current financial system and the business models within it
The potential benefits of restructuring the ownership of large multinational food companies
Whether we need to build a new system from the ground up with alternative principles and priorities to cope with our current crises
What those principles might be
The potential negative impacts of a model that doesn’t center growth
How Integrated Capital works and is able to develop novel ideas that could be missed by other financing structures

John Fullerton is the founder and president of Capital Institute. He is also an active impact investor and co-founder and director of holistic ranch management company Grasslands, LLC; a director of New Day Farms, Savory Institute, and the New Economy Coalition.

Manuel Gonzalez is General Partner at AgFunder, one of the world’s most active foodtech and agtech VC investors. Manuel was formerly the global head of innovation for Rabobank, the world’s leading food and agriculture bank, and founder of its two startup engagement platforms: FoodBytes! and Terra.

Sara Eckhouse is Executive Director at FoodShot Global, whose mission is to empower bold ideas and innovative companies to accelerate the transformation to a healthy, sustainable, and equitable food system.

Show notes:

Herman Daly Interview

Paul Polman

Capital Institute

AgFunder

FoodShot Global - Precision Protein Challenge

Donella Meadows: Limits to Growth

Neo-Confucianism

Karl Popper

Albert Michelson

S2G Ventures and ocean data

David Deutsch: The beginning of Infinity.

Timothy Snyder

*Giveaway Details*

To enter, do the following by February 17th:

Head to New Food Order’s show page on Apple Podcasts
Make sure you are subscribed
Leave us a review - good or bad - but hopefully good! Scroll to the bottom of the page to do so.
Screenshot the review and email it to Meg at meg@savageimpacts.com - if you’re interested in the 25% discount to this year’s Expo, please call it out in the email.
Lastly, head to newfoodorder.org - select newsletter - and register to receive our newsletters. In addition to New Food Order content, AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect publish the leading newsletters for the food and agtech community.
Those who follow New Hope Network, Food + Tech Connect and AgFunder on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn will receive double entry.

This series is sponsored by:

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

Investigating Alternative Business Models in Food & Ag

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 11:00:13 +0000

The food and agriculture industries are major contributors to today’s social and environmental crises.

Companies across all industries are being forced to rethink the way they do business, and food and agriculture are no exception. Businesses big and small want to do better and become more resilient, but how? In this episode, we take you on a journey through a few existing and emerging alternative business models that companies and farmers are exploring today that decentralize power, distribute value more equitably across all stakeholders, and aim to have a better impact on our planet.

This week we explore:

Different ways of doing business, including cooperatives, B Corps, perpetual purpose trusts, stewardship ownership, DAOs, NFTs, and open source
How these models may work better than the norm for the people working within
Why a better deal for food and agriculture employees can benefit all of us
Barriers to entry to these models and how to break them down
The potential failings of emerging business models and the risk of building the wrong thing with good intentions
The challenge of applying models that have been successful on a small scale, to large food corporations
How Western business tactics have impacted emerging market farming communities
Business model inspiration from emerging markets
How sharing knowledge publicly can remove friction for small businesses
The appetite to fund these kinds of businesses

Our guests include: Katherine Miller, author and founder of Table 81, formerly of the James Beard Foundation; author and regenerative business pioneer Carol Sanford; farmer and activist Jon Jandai; Adrian Rodrigues, co-founder and managing director at Provenance Capital group and formerly of Patagonia; Snaxshot founder Andrea Hernandez; and Nigel Teh, founder of Next Billion Burgers.

*Giveaway Details*

To enter, do the following by February 17th:

Head to New Food Order’s show page on Apple Podcasts
Make sure you are subscribed
Leave us a review - good or bad - but hopefully good! Scroll to the bottom of the page to do so.
Screenshot the review and email it to Meg at meg@savageimpacts.com - if you’re interested in the 25% discount to this year’s Expo, please call it out in the email.
Lastly, head to newfoodorder.org - select newsletter - and register to receive our newsletters. In addition to New Food Order content, AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect publish the leading newsletters for the food and agtech community.
Those who follow New Hope Network, Food + Tech Connect and AgFunder on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn will receive double entry.

Show Notes:

Zebras Unite Co-op: https://zebrasunite.coop/

Democracy at Work Institute: https://institute.coop/

ZingTrain: https://www.zingtrain.com/

Purpose (steward ownership & perpetual purpose trusts): https://purpose-economy.org/en/

Billionaire No More: Patagonia Founder Gives Away the Company: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/14/climate/patagonia-climate-philanthropy-chouinard.html

What Co-ops and DAOs Can Learn From Each Other: https://www.fwb.help/editorial/what-co-ops-and-daos-can-learn-from-each-other

Flyfish Club: https://www.flyfishclub.com/

FriesDAO: https://fries.fund/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans

Audio Editing: Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Finding New Ways to Finance Planet and People Friendly Food & Ag

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 11:00:10 +0000

How do we re-design financial instruments to have maximum positive impact for people and our planet?

Whether it’s a large multi-national and publicly listed corporation, startup or small business, or a family farmer, every business needs financing at one point or another. But the range of financing tools on the market today were not designed with the complexities of food and agriculture or social and environmental impact in mind.

In this episode, we speak with some food and ag investing trailblazers who are trying to create financing structures that better suit industry players, that also enable them to de-risk their loans and investments and increase the impact of their capital.

With our guests in this first “deep-dive” episode on New Food Order, we explore:

The challenges with current debt financing, venture capital, and public market models for food and agriculture
Using data and metrics to de-risk investments and ensure they have maximum positive impact for people and our planet
The returns investors can expect from ecologically friendly ventures
The challenges farmers face with the current banking system and how to fund their transition to regenerative agriculture
Making existing investment models more people and planet friendly
New models for investing in food and agriculture
Balancing growth with social and ecological impact
The rise of ESG investing and the manipulation of its standards
How VC and Family funds can better identify forward-thinking businesses to invest in
How one group is creating a whole new asset class focused on the natural world that could potentially revolutionize the financial sector

Our guests include: Mad Capital co-founder Phil Taylor, rePlant Capital MD Robyn O’Brien, New Epoch Capital managing director and chairman of Foodshot Victor Friedberg, co-founder of Supply Change Capital Shayna Harris, Acre Ventures partner Sam Kass, and Intrinsic Exchange Group CEO Douglas Eger.

Links & Resources:

Mad Agriculture: https://madagriculture.org/

rePlant Capital: https://www.replantcapital.com/

Supply Change Capital: https://supplychange.fund/

Acre: https://acre.vc/

Intrinsic Exchange Group: https://www.intrinsicexchange.com/

Grow Well Consulting: https://www.growwellconsulting.com/

New Epoch Capital: https://www.facebook.com/people/New-Epoch-Capital/100064220104144/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cam Gray, Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

New Year: New Food Order.

Tue, 10 Jan 2023 11:00:17 +0000

Happy New Year from New Food Order!

We are so grateful for this community and each and everyone of you who are joining us on this journey.

Here at New Food Order, we are starting the year by reflecting on the season so far and sharing some of the exciting things we’ve got in store for 2023!

Be sure to tune in next week for the first of our “deep-dive” episodes, and here’s to an abundant New Year for all.

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans

Audio Editing: Anna de Wolff Evans

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

A Musical Gift from New Food Order, with Rodrigo Barberá

Tue, 27 Dec 2022 11:00:00 +0000

Happy Holidays from New Food Order!

This week we’re bringing you a holiday gift. So many of you have told us that you love our beautiful podcast theme music, so as a special treat we’re sharing the theme song in full with an added bonus interview with our composer, Rodrigo Barberá.

Rodrigo is a Mexico City-based pianist, musician, and composer, who has been composing music for film, television, and advertising for the past 30 years. We’re so honored to have collaborated with him to create the sound of this podcast.

We hope you enjoy listening to this piece of music as much as we do!

Wishing you and yours a happy and healthy holiday.

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Should Food Delivery be a Public Utility? with Errol Schweizer

Tue, 20 Dec 2022 11:00:12 +0000

This week we have a mini episode featuring snippets from a recent conversation we had with Errol Schweizer, former VP of Grocery at Whole Foods, where we asked him what he sees as the top challenges with the business of food and agriculture. Errol shared many challenges with us, but we are sharing the parts of the conversation we had about short termism, corporate oligopolies, and the concentration of ownership.

Errol has over 25 years of experience in the food industry, from grill cook and stock clerk to V.P. of Grocery at Whole Foods from 2009-2016. He has extensively developed plant-based, organic, non-GMO, and regenerative meat and dairy supply chains and production standards. Supermarket News has recognized Errol with a retail game-changer award and he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Hemp Industries Association. Since 2016, he has been a board member, co-founder and advisor to over two dozen food retail and CPG enterprises. He is active in municipal food policy and healthy food access. Errol is a Forbes contributor and is the host of The Checkout Podcast.

In this primer episode, we’ll be talking about:

Oligopolies in the food and agriculture industry
Short termism and its impact on public and private companies
Errol’s ideas about common and public ownership of food delivery - with some heated debate between Danielle and Louisa!
And be sure to stay tuned to the end of the episode for a little bonus!

Episode Resources:

ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) https://www.esop.org/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno & Tevin Sudi

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Designing a Climate-Friendly Food Company, with Julia Collins

Tue, 13 Dec 2022 11:00:16 +0000

What would it look like if we completely re-designed the food system, product by product?

In this week’s episode, we speak with Julia Collins, Founder and CEO of Planet FWD, a carbon management platform for consumer companies to bring climate-friendly products to market.

Through her work with Planet FWD and more than a decade of experience leading food companies, Julia also founded Moonshot Snacks, a cracker brand that she designed from the ground up with the goal of ensuring a carbon neutral supply chain from farm to fork. In our conversation, she offers amazing insights and advice for large and next-generation food companies about how to adopt a regenerative mindset.

We speak to Julia about:

How businesses can decarbonize
Soil health and regenerative agriculture as a climate mitigation strategy
A regenerative approach to product development, marketing, leadership, and organizational design
Using data and software tools to understand, reduce and neutralize brands’ carbon footprint and get on a path to net zero emissions.
How building a climate-friendly brand can create a deeper relationship with your customers
What messaging resonates most with eaters around climate-friendly food products

Links & Resources:

Planet Forward https://www.planetfwd.com/about
Moonshot Snacks https://moonshotsnacks.com/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Follow up on Instagram: @newfoodorderpod

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter

De-Commodifying Carbon and our Industrial Food Systems, with Tom Goldtooth

Tue, 06 Dec 2022 11:00:12 +0000

Carbon markets are emerging as a leading tool for tackling our climate crisis, but are they actually getting to the root of the crisis?

In this episode, we speak with Tom Goldtooth (Dine’ and Dakota), executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network, an organization of Indigenous Peoples building economically sustainable, environmentally just, healthy communities.

Tom is particularly knowledgeable about the growing use of regenerative agriculture to capture carbon in our soils to sell as carbon credits, but has concerns about how it is progressing as a new form of colonization and corporate ownership of lands, and through that, our food supply. So in this conversation, we speak with him about how businesses and communities might approach the climate and social crises.

We discuss:

Tom’s take on carbon markets
The commodification of nature and how corporations can decolonize themselves
Water rights
Cultivating an indigenous mindset both at an individual level and from a business perspective
The role of technology in food sovereignty
What an ‘Indigenous Just Transition’ should look like

Tom has been recognized for his achievements throughout the past 40 years as a change maker within the environmental, economic, energy and climate justice movement and is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2015 Gandhi Award and in 2016 was presented Sierra Club’s highest recognition, the John Muir award.

He co-produced an award-winning documentary film in 1999, Drumbeat for Mother Earth, addressing the effects of the bio-accumulation and biomagnification of toxic chemicals in the natural food web and bodies of Indigenous Peoples.

Links & Resources:

Indigenous Environmental Network: https://www.ienearth.org/

Drumbeat for Mother Earth (film): http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/dfme.html

Just Transition: https://www.ienearth.org/justtransition/

Vandana Shiva: http://navdanya.org/

Global Alliance on Rights of Nature: https://www.garn.org/

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

This series is sponsored by Foodshot Global & New Hope Network.

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter

We're at the Beginning of a Food Revolution, with Sam Kass

Tue, 29 Nov 2022 11:00:11 +0000

“We're in the beginnings of a total revolution, and I'm excited about it.” This week’s guest is reflecting on the transformation occurring across the food and agriculture industries. Not since the Green Revolution has the industry seen such change.

It hasn’t happened overnight. Over the past decade, entrepreneurs, corporates, activists, investors, and policy makers have been working to transform our food system. But what will it take to actually transform the system to make it way better for all people and our planet? What are the key levers for total transformation?

Louisa and Danielle speak about the food revolution that’s underway with Sam Kass, former Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition in the Obama administration, Executive Director of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! Campaign and the Obama family chef. Today, Sam is a partner at Acre Venture Partners, a venture capital fund investing in the future of food with a mission to improve human and environmental health in the food system.

In this lively and extensive conversation, we cover:

Sam’s personal journey from chef, to nutrition policy advisor for the Obamas, to Venture Capitalist
Carbon markets
The importance of mindset and cultural shift in agriculture
The Inflation Reduction Act

Nothing in this material is (or should be considered to be financial, investment or other advice on which reliance should be placed. No opinion given in the material constitutes a recommendation by the guest or hosts that any particular investment, security, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. Their trading strategies do not guarantee any return and New Food Order shall not be held responsible for any loss that you may incur, either directly or indirectly, arising from any investment based on any information contained herein, or any loss that you may incur, either directly or indirectly, arising from any investment based on any information contained herein. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.

Links & Resources:

Carbon resources

https://medium.com/@pledge_app/a-beginners-guide-to-navigating-carbon-markets-ec290a6d1bdf

https://carboncredits.com/what-are-carbon-credits-in-agriculture/

https://www.ctvc.co/giving-carbon-credit-where-its-due/

https://www.ctvc.co/the-dirt-on-soil-carbon-sequestration/

https://agfundernews.com/carbon-is-not-a-dirty-word-the-case-for-recarbonizing-our-soils

https://agfundernews.com/the-carbon-question-making-global-carbon-markets-work-for-farmers

https://agfundernews.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-government-involvement-in-carbon-credit-markets

https://agfundernews.com/agri-carbon-market-map-companies-helping-harness-benefits-regen-ag

https://agfundernews.com/carbon-credits-in-ag-dishing-the-dirt

Sam’s firm: https://acre.vc/

Startups

https://www.loambio.com/

https://meati.com/

https://inari.com/

Inflation Reduction Act: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/the-inflation-reduction-act-heres-whats-in-it (edited)

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Thank you to our partners New Hope Network & FoodShot Global

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

Looking to our Indigenous Past for a Regenerative Future, with Nathalie Kelley

Tue, 22 Nov 2022 11:00:18 +0000

From food and agriculture to fashion and economics, 'regenerative’ has become a buzzword over the last few years. But regeneration is not a new concept at all. It is a paradigm and set of agricultural practices that indigenous peoples have practiced for millenia.

This week, Danielle and Louisa speak about looking to our indigenous past for a regenerative future with Nathalie Kelley, an actress of Quechua descent, most recently starring in the #1 Netflix series The Baker and the Beauty and the Fast & the Furious movie series. With a background in social science and policy, Nathalie strives to tell stories that educate and inspire. She is on the boards of both Kiss The Ground and the Fungí Foundation, using her platform to elevate Indigenous wisdom and technologies as a means of coming back into justice and harmony with our ecosystems. She is in deep devotion and service to the entire web of life, advocating in particular for the health of our soil, water, the fungí and forests. Her mission is the preservation of biodiversity, including cultural and myco-diversity on the planet.

In this powerful, inspiring, and, at times, heartbreaking conversation, we discuss:

The human and environmental costs of our climate crisis and industrial agriculture
The connection between personal health and planetary health
Why and what we can learn from indigenous peoples to build a regenerative future and feed the world
Indigenous and low tech solutions to combating climate change issues
Nathalie’s regenerative learning journey
Tips for starting your own regenerative learning journey
Practical changes we can make in our everyday lives

Warning: Some of what is shared in this episode may be upsetting or could be triggering, especially for Indigenous listeners.

Links & Resources:

Fungi Foundation: https://www.ffungi.org/

Kiss The Ground (documentary & movement): https://kissthegroundmovie.com/

SEED, the untold story (documentary): https://www.seedthemovie.com/

Ninth Revolution (book by Professor Sayed Azam-Ali): https://sayedazamali.com/?page_id=47

Ernst Gotsch - syntropic farming founder: https://believe.earth/en/ernst-gotsch-the-creator-of-the-real-green-revolution/

Ecosystem Restoration Camps: https://ecosystemrestorationcamps.org/

New Food Order is brought to you by agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com

Subscribe to our newsletters that track all of the business, tech, and investment trends in food: https://tinyurl.com/nfonewsletters

Follow up on Instagram: @newfoodorderpod

This series is sponsored by New Hope Network & Foodshot Global.

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Is the World Better Off with Your Business in it? with Paul Polman

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 11:00:19 +0000

What does it actually mean to build a people and planet-friendly company?

In this episode, Danielle and Louisa speak to Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever from 2009 to 2019 and Co-Author of “Net Positive: how courageous companies thrive by giving more than they take.” Paul Polman works to accelerate action by business to achieve the UN Global Goals, which he helped develop. He has been described by the Financial Times as “a stand-out CEO of the past decade”.

In this conversation they discuss:

What it means to be a net positive business
Specific steps leaders and companies can take to become more people and planet friendly
The business case for net positivity

Links & Resources:

Thank you to our partners:

New Hope Network

FoodShot Global

FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter

Introducing: New Food Order

Mon, 14 Nov 2022 10:55:08 +0000

Our current global food system contributes to one-third of greenhouse gas emissions each year. It is a system that has profited hugely at the expense of people and our planet.

As the need to tackle our climate crisis becomes ever more urgent, is it time to ask ourselves whether we need a New World Order for food; a ‘New Food Order’?

In this brand-new podcast series, journalist Louisa Burwood-Taylor and entrepreneur Danielle Gould embark on a journey of discovery, speaking to farmers, entrepreneurs, executives, investors, celebrities, advocates, and more. Through nuanced conversation with diverse voices, New Food Order explores how we might rethink and redesign our food system to have maximum positive impact for people and our planet.

In this first episode, Louisa and Danielle invite us to leave our egos at the door and to step into the conversation with an open mind and an open heart. They introduce us to some of the key ideas and concepts that they’ll be exploring throughout the series and they experience a sharp reality check with the very first question they ask their guests!

Join us on this journey and subscribe now!

About Our Hosts:

Louisa Burwood-Taylor is Head of Media & Research at AgFunder and chief editor of its news site AFN, with 15 years of financial journalism experience. She has covered a range of financial products and markets during her career, from equities and institutional investment in Asia to structured bonds in Europe, before turning her attention to food and agriculture nearly 10 years ago. She’s been responsible for launching two publications: an institutional investment intelligence service for the Financial Times and the first-ever title focused on agriculture investment, Agri Investor.

Danielle Gould is the Founder and CEO of Food+Tech Connect, the first community for food innovation that is best know for their weekly newsletter that tracks all of the business, tech and investment trends from farm to fork. She is also the co-Founder and co-CEO of Alpha Food Labs, a consultancy where she works with some of the world’s largest companies to create products and innovation strategies that are better for people and our planet. Danielle was named one of Fast Company’s Most Creative People in Business and one of Fortune and Food & Wine Magazines Most Innovative Women in Food.

Thank you to the guests featured in this episode:

Carol Sanford, Executive Producer at The Regenerative Business Summit

Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, Co-Founder at Regenerative Agriculture Solutions

Paul Polman, Business leader, campaigner and co-author of ‘Net Positive: how courageous companies thrive by giving more than they take’.

And a huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this podcast to life:

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff Evans, Pamela Rothenberg
Audio Editing: Mercy Barno
Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera
Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell
Project Management: Patrick Carter

About our Partners:

New Hope Network: New Hope Network is a media, events and business intelligence company, covering natural products trends, industry insights and marketplace data that educate the industry about key issues, like regenerative agriculture, sustainability, responsible sourcing and more. Visit newhope.com

FoodShot Global: FoodShot leverages resources from investors around the world to provide non-dilutive, equity, and post-investment capacities to innovators. Find out more at foodshot.org.

New Food Order is brought to you by AgFunder and Food+Tech Connect. Visit agfunder.com and foodtechconnect.com to find out more.

Trailer: New Food Order

Thu, 27 Oct 2022 15:16:22 +0000

Welcome to New Food Order!

New Food Order is a podcast investigating the business of tackling our climate and social crises through food and agriculture.

Through nuanced conversation and debate, we’re embarking on a learning and unlearning journey to unearth how we might design business and finance to have maximum positive impact for people and our planet.

We speak with leading farmers, entrepreneurs, execs, investors, and other stewards on key topics like:

Will plant-based, lab-grown meat, and regenerative agriculture save the world?
Is carbon neutral enough?
What are the most people and planet friendly business and finance models?
How might we best honor and learn from indigenous communities?
How might we avoid the unintended consequences of new innovation?Join us on this journey and subscribe here and wherever you get your podcasts.

A huge thank you to everyone who helped us bring this to life:

Our Partners: New Hope Network & Foodshot Global

Production: Cofruition, Anna de Wolff, Pamela Rothenberg

Audio Editing: Mercy Barno

Original Music: Rodrigo Barbera

Art: Lola Nankin & Rekai E. Campbell

Project Management: Patrick Carter