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Pork Ribs
episode • The Cook Up with Adam Liaw • cooking • 25m
G
episode • The Cook Up with Adam Liaw • cooking • 25m
G
has been losing sleep. And the thing that’s been keeping him up at night isn’t what we expected. It’s , and our race against time to save it.
“What worries me most is how we treat soil, we are in a desperate situation globally when it comes to soil,” says the former chef and food critic turned farmer, author and TV show host.
If you're wondering what is Matthew Evans doing now, the multi-hyphenate – host of SBS Food’s popular series owner of the in Tasmania, and a familiar guest on – has literally written the book on soil.
So if he is concerned, we should be listening.
“The exact numbers vary, but there are a few estimates that say for every breakfast, for every lunch, for every dinner that humans eat, for every meal that every human on earth consumes, we lose nine kilos of topsoil,” Evans says, speaking to SBS at in Singapore.
What is topsoil?
“The only reason we have life on Earth is topsoil,” he continues. “That is the difference between our planet and the others. That's the dark bit, the magic bit on top; the fertile bit that does all the growing.”
Top soil is crucial for the health of the planet and our ability to grow food. Source: Moment RF / boonchai wedmakawand/Getty Images
While soil degradation is multi-factorial, intensive farming is one of the most important causes. In fact, agricultural land use and ploughing contributes significantly to carbon emissions too.
“The way we grow food now is so different,” Evans says. “It takes about 10 calories worth of fossil fuels to [produce and transport] one calorie of food.
“We’ve been burning through these fossil fuels to grow food. We've gotten away with it for a long time. But, there's a point at which we won't be able to get away with it anymore. And that point is is already here to a large extent. We've kind of got into this farming or growing system where it's very extractive.”
While soil health is closely connected with climate change, it is not part of the mainstream conversation yet.
Matthew Evans, The Gourmet Farmer Credit: The Gourmet Farmer S5
According to him, we are now spending a lot less on food than we used to in the past. However, we are spending a lot more on other things – housing, for example – which has put unprecedented price pressures on food production. So, when a farmer is faced with a cost imperative to lower prices – to keep their own wheels turning – the land inevitably suffers.
“Most farmers aren't trying to stuff up the land they farm, you know,” he says. “So you've got a mix of price pressures, traditional ways of doing things, and to some extent a lack of understanding and knowledge.”
Learning from ancient practices in different cultures
There are many ancient farming practices in communities around the world – including – that support soil health which have been lost, in the race to produce more food for less, for a growing global population.
“For example, there are people who've been farming in rice paddies in Korea and Japan for thousands of years, without losing fertility, in fact, increasing soil fertility,” Evans says. “Or, take the Amazon – there are only patches of the region which are super fertile. These are called Terra Prata [Black Earth] and it is believed they're black because in ancient times, humans would make charcoal and they would bury the charcoal, which made that land infinitely times more fertile than it would be naturally.
"But we have lost a lot of this ancient knowledge.”
There are many ancient farming practices in communities around the world – including Indigenous Australians – that support soil health.
What this proves though is that it is possible to take soil that’s not very good, and actually build topsoil.
But, just as we are running out of space, we are running out of time as well. Because, when it comes to soil, we have to think in geological time-frames – which is hundreds and thousands of years.
“Australia is far less fertile than it was 200 years ago.
"And here, it might take 1000 years to grow a centimetre of topsoil. But, using modern knowledge, modern machines and modern techniques and human cleverness, we can grow it at crazy rates. We could double the amount of topsoil in five years, if we farm better and farm more cleverly,” he says optimistically.
“Soil likes diversity of plants. That's what nature loves – diversity. But if we only eat wheat, then that's what the farmer has to grow. The farmer might think: 'I need to grow some barley, or buckwheat or whatever, some different things for my soil'. But then no one wants them. These grains get fed to horses, so they get paid a lot less for it. So there’s no incentive.
“Then, the fact that everyone wants carrots, potatoes and broccoli and cabbage… What about kohlrabi, or chicory, or whatever? There are other things. Especially indigenous species – we should be .
"When you – that can make your diet more interesting. And it's really good for health, especially .”
What people can do to support sustainable farming
So, as a consumer, is eating a wide variety the key to doing our bit towards food sustainability?
Evans’ answer is surprising.
“If you only do one thing to support food security, change your super fund,” he says.
“There are trillions of dollars going into superfunds that are bankrolling fossil fuels - insane amounts of money that's going into the pockets of people who don't actually care about the future of the planet. So, if you opt for an ethical super fund, that sucks money out of the things that are doing the planet harm.”
If you only do one thing to support food security, change your super fund.Matthew Evans
The rest of it is mostly common sense-based advice – using reusable cups and water bottles, reducing waste, and yes, eating a wide variety of food.
“Buy food when you need it and try not to waste it. It sounds really boring, it's not sexy. But they're the everyday things that will make a big difference,” he says. “Those are really powerful tools, even if you can’t see the repercussions or an immediate reward.”
That we can do. And undoubtedly, it will help us all sleep a bit better at night.
The writer travelled to Singapore as a guest of where Matthew Evans was a speaker.
