Food is an issue I've been working on for decades. From an early age, I volunteered at food cooperatives. Early in my career, I worked on the front lines of post-war relief in Asia and Eastern Europe, helping to restore sustainable food systems. In 2008, during the global food crisis, I worked with African farmers and corporations to increase food production, and have since led two global organizations tackling these same challenges.
Others are weighing in this harvest season — including the recent release of the EAT-Lancet 2025 report, a scientific milestone and a "report card" on a planetary health diet: one rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains. Such a shift could prevent up to 15 million premature deaths each year and help keep the global food system within environmental limits.
There's no other report quite like it. Written by scientists in nutrition, agriculture, public health, and ecology from 24 countries, it models how diets, land use, and emissions connect. Crucially, the authors emphasize that local solutions can align health, affordability, and sustainability anywhere. The call is clear: we must accelerate progress and reverse the current trends in health, ecology, and affordability.
"We've built a food system that rewards shelf life and transport ease, while nutrition and ecology suffer."
Isn't this just a matter of consumer choice? If we all fill our plates with better food, won't the market follow? There's some truth in that — but the power of policy and subsidies in determining what we grow, and what we eat, is undeniable.
My local grocery store has more than a thousand SKUs, with over 200 in cereals alone. The boxes and bags throughout the store look abundant, yet most foods here are commodities: corn, and then wheat, sugar, oils, and soy in dizzying formulas. We've built a food system that rewards shelf life and transport ease, while nutrition and ecology suffer.
Elsewhere, in much of the Global South, diets are often dominated by unprocessed staples. Corn in the Americas, rice in Asia, and cassava in Africa. In many countries, supply is vulnerable to price shocks or drought. By contrast, "Blue Zones" offer the healthiest diets and greatest longevity, where less than 1% of the global population live. Mostly, people eat commodities.
The Committee on World Food Security held its 53rd session in Rome as experts once again discussed our collective diet. The timely EAT-Lancet report shaped conversations not only in Rome but also in Des Moines, New York, and Brazil. Proposals for crop diversification, agroecology, and nutrition-sensitive agriculture, along with shifting subsidies toward healthier and more sustainable crops, could make all the difference. If we change what we grow, we change what we eat.
The accountability theme at CFS this year adds another layer. Governments are being urged to track not only yields and exports but also nutrition, environmental impact, and dietary outcomes. That's progress. Ten years ago, food and agriculture discussions were overly concerned with producing more calories. Today, there's a growing recognition that health and the environment are also critical.
Perhaps most influential, the incentives are changing. The Food System Economics Commission estimates that transforming global food systems could generate up to $5 trillion in annual benefits through better health, restored ecosystems, and greater climate resilience — for an investment of roughly $200–500 billion a year. Few areas of the global economy offer such powerful leverage for good.
Investors and philanthropists are signing up. I spoke recently with an investor in African agriculture asking where and how to invest — in productivity, regenerative farming, cold storage, or organics? There's never been a better time. Food systems are rapidly expanding in many African countries, often in double digits, while shifting toward commercial and industrial systems. Investors and entrepreneurs usually focus on a single piece of the puzzle. Growing more vegetables, for example, also requires cold-chain storage and reliable transport to prevent spoilage before reaching markets. Real impact means connecting the entire system, from field to fork — a challenge beyond most single investors.
There are signs of momentum. Farmers are experimenting with regenerative practices, and consumers are demanding more plant-based foods. Policy, too, is catching up.
We eat what we grow. And if we grow with more diversity, care, and imagination, we can feed the planet more justly and sustainably. The dialogue among scientists, philanthropists, and food leaders is hopeful. The test is whether human health and the environment will rise on the policy agenda.