Food production, farmers, rural society, and agroecological practices.
Two summers ago, I graduated with a master’s in sociology and, equal parts eager and apprehensive, joined a top-tier real estate company to work in agriculture. Three seemingly unconnected paths had just converged. Choosing a career against the conventional grain initially left my family and friends utterly baffled. Yet, I…
Over the past four decades, and particularly in the last ten years, China’s food system has undergone a profound transformation. Many have observed and experienced the following: local wet markets are quietly fading from mainstream daily life, while fresh food e-commerce and online grocery shopping have become the primary way…
In this episode of *Food Talk*, we welcome back an old friend, Sun Shan. She previously worked with several charitable organisations, including the Shanshui Conservation Centre. These days, she runs her own farm in Canada. Far from the idyllic notion of spending every waking moment in nature, ecological conservation work…
Did you know that, according to research published in *The Lancet*, two-thirds of the world’s population have some degree of lactose intolerance, developing symptoms such as bloating and diarrhoea after consuming milk? Given this, why has milk become a daily drink enjoyed worldwide? And when did glasses of pure, tempting…
I. Dried produce can continue to be sold The Measures for the Quality and Safety Supervision and Administration of Edible Agricultural Products in Market Sales (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Measures’), long awaited by farmers across the country, have finally been issued. Compared with the consultation draft previously released, the…
Letian Haiwan Farm in Fengxian, Shanghai, is decidedly not your typical eco-farm. When I arrived for my internship this past March, I immediately sensed this place differed from my preconceptions of agriculture: it wasn’t simply about growing crops, but also involved leasing land and hosting events. You couldn’t help but…
Foodthink Says In 1924, Fei Dasheng, along with teachers and students from the Jiangsu Provincial Women’s Sericulture School, travelled to Kaixiangong Village in Wujiang County to establish the Silk Improvement Society, nearly a hundred years ago. Their aim was to reverse the decline of the sericulture industry and the widespread…
You will almost certainly recognise cockleburs: oval fruits tipped with hook-like spines that cling to clothing and animals once ripe. A quick walk through the fields can often leave your trousers covered in them. While the native cocklebur has been established in China for centuries, an invasive relative, the Italian…
Three months at Happiness Fruit Baicaoyuan have blurred the passage of time. All I truly recall is the overcast sky on my arrival, and the cloudless blue as I departed. I. Discovering Baicaoyuan: A New “Peach Blossom Spring” Happiness Fruit Baicaoyuan is a farm situated in Guigang, Guangxi, not far…
Foodthink is a community dedicated to knowledge, information and writing on sustainable food and agriculture, co-founded and managed by a group of long-standing practitioners and researchers in the field. Since our launch in August 2017, we have connected with nearly 200 outstanding researchers and practitioners across China and internationally. Together,…
