Chris Smaje, a farmer and social scientist, argues that the push toward lab-grown and manufactured foods—championed by billionaires like Bill Gates—is energy-intensive, ecologically unsound, and risks corporate monopoly over the food supply. In contrast, he advocates for small-scale, local, agroecological farming as a more sustainable, democratic, and culturally grounded alternative in a post-fossil-fuel world.
A conversation with Chris Smaje on why lab-grown food won't solve our problems—and why local, ecological farming is the real path forward.
👤 Guest Bio: Chris Smaje
Chris Smaje is a UK-based social scientist, writer, and small-scale farmer with two decades of hands-on agricultural experience. He’s a leading advocate for agroecology and local food systems, and author of A Small Farm Future and Saying No to a Farm-Free Future.
🧠 Topics Discussed
💬 Top Quotes
“We're being told food is software—but sunlight is still free. Manufactured food isn't.”
“If you move people off the land and into cities, you're not solving ecological problems—you're centralizing control.”
“The problem isn't farming—it's how we farm and who controls it.”
“Progress isn’t spending more time on your phone. It’s being part of a thriving community and growing your own food.”