Feeding the World as if People Mattered with Dr. Andrew Flachs

What if the value of a farm were measured not only by what it produces, but also by the communities, skills, and ecosystems it sustains? This week on Foodie Pharmacology, Dr. Cassandra Quave welcomes environmental anthropologist Dr. Andrew Flachs back to the show to discuss his new book, Feeding the World as if People Mattered: How Small Farms Produce Value Beyond Yields.

Drawing on research in India, Bosnia, and the American Midwest, Andrew challenges the assumption that producing more food will solve hunger. Industrial agriculture can generate enormous quantities of inexpensive commodities while obscuring its social and environmental costs. Small and diversified farms offer a different model—one that values skilled labor, ecological resilience, rural livelihoods, cultural knowledge, and the ability of future generations to continue farming.

The conversation explores the hidden labor beneath our food system, the risks of monoculture, and why hunger is often rooted in poverty, land ownership, and distribution rather than a simple shortage of calories. Cassandra and Andrew also examine the legacies of the Green Revolution, agricultural antibiotic use, and what it would mean to build a food system that measures success by more than yield and profit.

Learn more about Andrew’s work at https://www.andrewflachs.com/ and follow him on social media at @DrFlachsophone.

Order Feeding the World as if People Mattered from the University of Arizona Press: https://uapress.arizona.edu/book/feeding-the-world-as-if-people-mattered. Use discount code AZFLR for 30% off.

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