How a New 
Food System Can Heal Us and The Planet

I nearly choked on my cornflakes when I read that our food system is responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions (I’m joking, I don’t eat cornflakes – I’m an egg man, myself, cue The Beatles – but I’m not joking about the climate impact). I’ve always seen food as nourishment, comfort, connection, culture and joy – not a planetary crisis disguised as a breakfast or a bun. But here we are: the way we grow, process and eat food is a leading cause of climate change and biodiversity loss, as well as poor metabolic health. The good news? That same plates of food could become our best tools for healing – both the planet and us.

I’ve spent years working in sustainability, with growers and processors, walking farms, working with brands, talking to the soil-obsessed, and reading everything from government strategies to food system manifestos. And I’ve come to believe this: if we fix food, we fix a lot of other things too.

What's gone wrong?

Let’s start with the soil beneath our feet. The UK loses an estimated 3million tonnes of topsoil every year. Then globally, we’re losing 75 billion tonnes of soil annually, which in turn causes financial losses of around $400 billion. This isn’t just dirt – it’s the foundation of our food system. Overworked, chemically-treated soil loses its ability to grow crops, hold water or absorb carbon. As actor Woody Harrelson puts it in the great documentary Kiss the Ground, “Save the soil, and the soil might just save us”.

Modern agriculture has become an extractive industry. Monocropping, heavy tillage, artificial fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides have pushed yields up but at the cost of long-term fertility. I always say that the best way to guarantee a bigger harvest next year is to throw more chemicals on the soil now – but the surest way to guarantee a collapsed harvest in 20 years is also to throw more chemicals on the soil now. We need to start rebuilding slowly and with patience, changing the way we farm to align with nature. Our rivers are polluted by run-off, our fields are barren between harvests, and even the nutritional value of our food is declining.

And while the land is hurting, so are we. According to the UK’s National Food Strategy, poor diet contributes to 64,000 deaths a year. Professor Tim Spector of King’s College London points out that 57 per cent of the average UK diet now comes from ultra-processed food. It’s calorie-rich, nutrient-poor and cheap; ideal fuel for a health crisis.

A better way to farm?

But change is happening. A new wave of growers is embracing regenerative agriculture – a method that builds soil health, locks carbon underground, reduces runoff and boosts biodiversity.

Take Wildfarmed, a UK-based collective led by Groove Armada musician turned-farmer Andy Cato and TV presenter George Lamb (also son of acting national treasure, Larry). They grow wheat among diverse pastures, using cover crops, no ploughing and minimal chemicals. “Food and farming are our greatest points of agency to deal with the multiple crises we face,” says Cato. Their flour is now stocked in supermarkets and used by artisan bakers – proof that better farming doesn’t have to mean niche markets.

Similarly, businesses like Natoora are rebuilding supply chains that prioritise seasonal, nutrient-dense produce from small-scale, soil-focused growers. They’re not just delivering groceries – they’re redesigning how food reaches our plates. Add to that the myriad of Incredible Edibles – a network of guerilla food growers in cities around the world – community growing projects, permaculture clubs and allotment associations and there is a movement taking root.

But it's not just your soil - it's your gut

Here’s where it gets personal. Soil health and human health are more connected than you might think. A growing body of research links the microbiome in our guts with the microbiome in the soil. When soil is rich in microbial life, the food it grows is more nutrient-dense – and that feeds a diverse gut microbiome in us.  This diversity matters. It impacts everything from immune response to mental health. Tim Spector, again: “Eat 30 different plants a week, and your gut will thrive.” That’s harder to do if your diet revolves around ultra-processed, commercially grown food. And flavour? Food grown in healthy soil often just tastes better. As I often say: soil is the best seasoning. 

Let's bust some myths

1. “Food miles are the biggest issue.” Not always. How your food is grown often matters more than how far it travels. A tomato from Spain grown in open sun may have a lower footprint than a local one from a heated UK greenhouse in winter.
2. “Seasonal eating is boring.” Not so. Seasonal food is often tastier and more nutritious. A strawberry in June beats a bland January berry any day. And with good storage crops and clever importing, you won’t be stuck eating only turnips in winter. Although turnips are rather lovely.
3. “Plastic is the greatest threat to the oceans”. This isn’t true, its climate change and acidification. But even in terms of ocean debris and pollution there is a hidden threat, animal agriculture run-off. Chicken farming, for example, generates massive amounts of waste packed with nitrogen and phosphorus. This waste enters waterways as agricultural run-off, fuelling harmful algae blooms. These blooms create oxygen-starved "dead zones" that devastate marine life. The Gulf of Mexico’s massive dead zone, spanning more than 8,000 square miles, primarily results from livestock run-off. Since the 1950s, global dead zones have quadrupled alongside intensive animal farming.

What Can You Do?  

You don’t need to become a regenerative farmer to help solve these problems. Small, consistent choices add up: 

1. Eat more plants and a greater variety. Diversity is great for your body and the planet.  
2. Support “better” food producers. Look for co-ops, farmers’ markets or brands using regenerative practices. Your money shapes the market.  
3. Cook more, waste less. Cooking from scratch reduces reliance on ultra-processed food and helps reduce waste. Plan meals, use your leftovers, compost scraps.  
4. Grow something. Even a pot of herbs on your windowsill can reconnect you to food. Bonus: gardening improves mental health and introduces you to some surprisingly lovely bacteria.

A Land Use Revolution  

As Henry Dimbleby – cookery writer, co-founder of Leon restaurants and the Sustainable Restaurant Association and lead non-executive board member of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – sets out in his National Food Strategy: we also need to rethink how we use land. More than 70 per cent of the UK is farmed – but not always well. Dimbleby suggests a smarter use of land: intensify the best farmland sustainably, regeneratively, while freeing up marginal land for nature, water storage and carbon sinks.

Farmers must be supported not just for growing food, but for delivering public goods, like clean water and healthy ecosystems. This isn’t just about ethics – it’s strategy. Dimbleby wrote, “We must build a food system that restores nature and stops making us sick.” It’s common sense wrapped in policy. 

Final Bite

Our forks are mighty tools. What we choose to eat has impact far beyond our kitchens. Yes, the food system is in crisis – but it’s also packed with possibility. When we support better farming, eat more mindfully and waste less, we become part of a transformation. Healthier soil, healthier bodies, healthier planet – it’s all connected.  As Wildfarmed’s Andy Cato puts it, “If we can fix food, we can fix the planet.” You, reading that, thinking about his words and then making a few diet changes – that there is the spark of a revolution starting, one mouthful at a time.

Mark Shayler is an environmental expert, author and consultant. He has worked in sustainability for 35 years saving his clients over $200 million annually and a shed-load of carbon. His books include 'You Can’t Make Money From a Dead Planet' (Kogan Page), 'Do Present: How to give a talk and be heard' and 'Do Disrupt: Change the status quo or become it' (both Do Book Co.). He runs the environmental and innovation consultancy Ape (thisisape.co.uk) and reasonstobecheerful.co.uk

Now check out our interview with Imogen Royall, co-founder of Northern Pasta Co. on her mission to share the joy of food and the power of our food systems