“Vegetables don’t taste like they used to. If they did, we’d probably eat more of them.” – Anne Biklé and David Montgomery
Our December Regen Reads recommendation is “What Your Food Ate” by David Montgomery and Anne Biklé.
The holidays are quickly approaching, and kitchens all over the world are warming up in preparation for numerous holiday feasts. Grocery aisles are filling up with produce and products, all ready to be prepped and enjoyed in the days to come. But the dozens of grocery aisles always begs the incessant questions: where is our food coming from, and how was it grown?
In “What Your Food Ate”, Montgomery and Biklé share the science behind growing food and how the changes made on-farm directly impact the final product. By discussing old and new theories based on evidence and research, these authors take the readers on a journey through food production and the ways that poorly managing the land can lead to insufficient nutrient density in foods and degraded soil systems.
Montgomery and Biklé break down many shocking research experiments that challenge the efficacy of chemical inputs and conventional farming practices. Some particularly interesting studies that they introduce to the reader focus on the nutritional content of spinach reducing as nitrogen fertilizer concentrations increased, and another study which observed soybeans exuding glyphosate out of their roots for weeks after spraying the plant with the herbicide. Each study highlights unique issues that are occurring in food production systems, and it is further motivation to approach farming with an ecological mindset to reduce chemical pressures on food that affect long-term health.
If you are eager to learn more about “What Your Food Ate” by David Montgomery and Anne Biklé, be sure to add it to your reading list this winter — grab your copy here!
Regen Reads is COG’s monthly regenerative agriculture reading list. 📖