You are what you eat… and the soil it’s grown in: Is soil the key to better human health?

Soils For Life

We’ve all heard the saying “You are what you eat”. But, as we'll hear in this episode, it really should go “You are what you eat, and the soil it grows in.”

Over half of our adult population are considered to be malnourished, and this is in part due to a decline in the nutrient density of our food. As the world's population grows and remaining arable land decreases, growing healthier, nutrient dense food might just be a part of the answer to improving human health outcomes.

In this episode we talk with two farmers and two researchers about the question: ‘Is soil the key to better human health?’.

What we find is a complex tangle of connections between soil, plants, animals, and humans that science is only just beginning to understand.

Thank to our wonderful guests

Matthew Evans - Farmer, chef and food writer and the author of ‘Soil: The incredible story of what keeps the earth, and us, healthy”

Courtney Young - Co-owner at Woodstock Flour and project manager at Soils for Life

Robyn Alders - Honorary professor with the Development Policy Centre at the Australian National University.

Dr Stephan van Vliet - Assistant professor of nutrition at the Center for Human Nutrition Studies at Utah State University He holds a PhD in Kinesiology and Community Health. Dr. van Vliet also holds a Masters in Nutrition Science.

Additional research links

• A database of chemical compounds found in foods by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
• Matthew Evans book 'Soil: The incredible story of what keeps the earth, and us, healthy.'
• Dr Stephan van Vliet's presentation on their research

Hosted by Susannah Kable from the @GrowLoveProject and James Diack from Soils for Life. This Podcast has been produced by Grow Love Project in collaboration with @SoilsforLife.

For more episodes of our podcast, head to soilsforlife.org.au/podcast