Ep1: The Food System was Designed to Fail

This episode is a rebroadcast of Food by Design Live. It is a conversation between Magnus, Malena, and Sandeep about supporting equitable and diverse food systems through restaurants, what it means to preserve and evolve traditional foodways, the importance of craft, the challenges of designing for delight in today’s hyper-connected world, and more.Magnus was the head chef of Fäviken in Sweden, one of the world’s most interesting and acclaimed restaurants that he intentionally closed last year. He is currently the director of the MAD Academy, which is a school that aims to make the world better through educating people working in hospitality and food. His new book "Fäviken: 4015 Days, Beginning to End" is available on Phaidon.com. Malena is the research director of Peru's Mater Iniciativa. It’s an interdisciplinary R&D lab for food, and it’s behind the equally acclaimed restaurant Central, and others. It started as an effort to learn more about Peruvian biodiversity, but as you’ll hear, became much more.For invites to future live conversations, visit ideo.com/food and sign up to stay in touch.

We’re digging into the decades of intentional policies that have created today’s inequitable food system. Plus, why language matters when talking about the challenges we face, and how agency is key to creating new food systems that work for BIPOC.Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-8 for full show notes.

From the industry’s painful beginnings when enslaved people worked for no wages—just tips—to the inappropriate behavior and abuses of power, come with us as we explore the history and legacy of the restaurant industry. We then visit one restaurant designing an entirely new, equitable model from scratch. Visit Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-7 for full show notes.

We’re talking about the psychology of decision-making, drinking “Al Gore’s Kool-aid” and “moo-ving away from beef and cheese.” We’re looking at how to help people make subtle shifts toward more climate friendly choices—sometimes without even realizing it. Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-6 for full show notes.

We’re diving headfirst into the future of eating the sea to explore one of the coolest and most climate-enriching food trends you might have never tasted: kelp. Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-5 for full show notes.

Invasive sushi, bread beer, cardboard cocktails—oh my. We’re traveling from Connecticut to the UK, into the ocean and out of the trashcan to find more foods that are available for the taking, but often overlooked by our rigid food systems and tastes. Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-4 for full show notes.   

We’re talking Rusty Butz, Kernza bread, and peas in your mac n’ cheese. This episode is an exploration of Indigenous farming practices, ancient grains, and how regenerative farming might just show up on your plate or in your grocery cart.Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-3 for full show notes

How is a cattle ranch in northern California changing its ways to battle climate change? Plus, why a soil biogeochemist looks at the stuff that’s just under our feet as fertile ground for a new farming future. Also, grape hummus?Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-2 for full show notes

Our food system isn’t broken. It was designed this way—and that means it’s time for a redesign. That’s why we started this podcast: we go where the questions are, looking at the gaps in current systems and talking to the people who are building the food systems we’ll need in the future... right now. Visit https://page.ideo.com/food-podcast-1 for full show notes

Introducing IDEO's first narrative podcast, Food x Design. Help us design better food systems. For more info, visit www.ideo.com/food