Food and farming

For decades, United States food and farming policy, corporate power and agricultural science have been directed toward a narrow goal: producing as many calories as possible as cheaply as possible. The confluence of these forces has created a powerful river of toxic, energy-intensive factory farming. A growing body of scientific data tells us that the banks of the river are crumbling — as a society, we are eroding public health, worker safety, local economies, animal welfare and the resilience of the ecosystems we depend on. It is time to redirect the river. Along with producing food, we must farm in a way that protects the health of people and the planet.

The good news is that solutions are available — if policymakers, people and businesses are willing to make vitally needed changes. Friends of the Earth’s Food & Agriculture Program works to rapidly transition our food system to one that is sustainable, healthy, and just — the food system of the future. We seek three fundamental shifts to our food system: from toxic and chemical intensive to healthy and ecologically regenerative; from corporate controlled to democratically governed; and from a system that embodies the deepest inequities in our society to one that advances justice and fulfills the needs of all eaters now and in the future.

Responsible technology

Responsible technology uses human ingenuity to address pressing public and environmental problems rather than to generate new commercial products that benefit corporate bottom lines at the expense of people and the planet. Friends of the Earth advocates for a responsible approach to innovation that is guided by the public’s best interest, social justice and environmental well-being, and we work to advance precautionary, transparent and democratic regulation of emerging technologies.