Feed: a food systems podcast

In sixty years China moved from catastrophic famine to feeding 1.4 billion people. This episode asks how that transformation happened - and what it set in motion.
For more info, transcript and resources, visit: https://tabledebates.org/podcast/
episode99
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Guests
Michelle King, Prof in Chinese History at UNC
Zhang Hongzhou, Prof in International Political Economy at RSIS
Fengwei Ina Liu, Director of FOLU China
Episode written, hosted, produced and edited by Matthew Kessler. Sound mixing by Martin Palmqvist. Music by Blue dot sessions.

In sixty years, China has moved from catastrophic famine to now feeding one in six people on the planet. Following three foods - pork, rice, and fish - this series traces a transformation that has emptied the Chinese countryside, reshaped ecosystems from Brazil to the South China Sea, and produced the high-rise hog farm model that is being exported across the world. We examine the competing priorities driving this transformation, the distributed costs and benefits, and what it means for the rest of the world.
"Feeding 1 in 6: China and the future of food" arrives in this feed on 21 May 2026.
More info here

Soy looks different depending on where you sit. For Ryan Britt, who's farming soy, corn, wheat and cattle on over 2,000 hectares in North Central Missouri, it's the crop that reliably pays the bills. In 2025, Ryan found himself squarely in the middle of a global trade story he had very little control over. We talk about what he can control on the farm — cover cropping, no-till, rotations — and why he still advocates for farmers even when he'd rather be on a tractor.
Register for the Bolivia soy webinar here
For more info, transcript and resources, visit: https://tabledebates.org/podcast/
episode97
Want to share your reflections on the episode? Send us an email or voice memo to [email protected]
Episode edited and hosted by Matthew Kessler. Music by Blue dot sessions.

After several hype years, plant-based and cultivated meat have faced growing skepticism. Lately, the media has written obituaries. And the market value is declining. Bruce Friedrich, founder and president of the Good Food Institute, offers a different view: the long view.
Friedrich joined clean energy reporter David Roberts on the Volts podcast to discuss his new book, Meat: How the Next Agricultural Revolution Will Transform Humanity’s Favorite Food—and Our Future. It’s an honest conversation about a difficult topic, that's well worth listening to. Shared here on Feed with permission.
For more info, transcript and resources, visit: https://tabledebates.org/podcast/
episode96
Want to share your reflections on the episode? Send us an email or voice memo to [email protected]
Subscribe to the Volts podcast
Read Bruce Friedrich's new book: Meat

Why can reasonable people look at the same evidence on meat—and still eat very differently? Matthew Kessler shares a personal essay reflecting on his time working on livestock farms, conversations with experts across all sides of the issue, and on his own on-and-off relationship with eating animals.
For more info, transcript and resources, visit: https://tabledebates.org/podcast/
episode95
Want to share your reflections on the episode? Send us an email or voice memo to [email protected]
Episode edited and hosted by Matthew Kessler. Music by Blue dot sessions.
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