Groups: Agriculture, Soil Health Missing from Agenda of White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, And Health

farm field

Join a coalition of farmers, food companies, and businesses in support of a regenerative approach to healthier food for all Americans 

WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 27, 2022 – Green America’s Soil & Climate Alliance, the Plant Based Foods Association, and the Plant Based Foods Institute along with a diverse coalition of farmers, food companies, and businesses, applaud the Biden-Harris Administration for hosting the first White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in more than 50 years. Consistent, equitable, and culturally appropriate access to healthy and affordable food is a cornerstone of our joint work across the food system and agriculture supply chain, and the inextricable link between soil health and human health cannot be ignored. 

This link has not been listed as a priority for discussion as we begin charting a meaningful path forward. Soil health has a profound influence on the nutrients that make it into our diet and onto our dinner plate. So we call on the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health to address the link between soil health and nutrition as a key part of the solution for healthier food for all Americans.

"Our mission is to inspire people to eat more chickpeas and other beans. Beans are nutrient-dense foods that play a key role in restoring soil health, yet 80% of the U.S isn’t eating enough of them,” said Brian Rudolph, CEO and co-founder, Banza. “Planting more crops like chickpeas will yield only positive outcomes for people and the planet.” 

As a coalition and a country, we must actively support the transition to an agricultural system that is diversified, regenerative, resilient, and adaptive. These agricultural practices have multiple benefits, including climate drawdown and resiliency benefits, soil conservation, water quality and conservation, biodiversity, domestic food security and economic prosperity for farmers and rural communities. 

"Providing high-quality, nutrient-dense plant-based foods for consumers is a top priority for Lupii," said Isabelle Steichen, co-founder and CEO of Lupii. "We know that the health of the ingredients we use starts at a soil level and being able to work on a domestic level with American farmers who prioritize regenerative farming practices allows us to deliver healthy plant-based foods that align with our values and the values of consumers."

New research1 shows regenerative agriculture practices are proven to provide more nutrient dense food improving human health outcomes. The National Strategy must include support for regenerative agriculture practices and outcomes as part of its solutions to the challenges being addressed. Farmers are the backbone of our food system in the US, and they are working to regenerate soil and grow healthy food through regenerative practices like cover cropping, reduced tillage and inputs, and integrating livestock where appropriate. 

In parallel with the White House effort, we commit to: 

  • Leveling up on regenerative practices within our farms and companies to deliver healthier food to consumers at a price they can afford.
  • Working across the food system to enable food brands and companies the ability to improve their domestic sourcing through and encourage regenerative practices that promote biodiversity, nutrient dense food, and healthy soil.
  • Building diversity into the supply chain with the structure necessary for BIPOC and underserved populations to engage with large-scale purchases of raw ingredients.
  • Collaborating with the broader food space to ensure that the way food is being grown in the US contributes to the goals outlined by the White House.

About the Soil & Climate Alliance 

The Soil & Climate Alliance is a supply chain working group housed under Green America, the nation’s leading green economy organization. The mission of the Soil & Climate Alliance is to advance a resilient, equitable, and inclusive agriculture system that regenerates soil health, sequesters carbon, and revitalizes farm and rural economics, while improving water quality, biodiversity, food security, and nutrition. Our members are farmers, seed breeders, ingredient suppliers, traders, transporters, processors, retailers, brands and CPGs, investors, researchers, and farmer support organizations. Our Soil Carbon Initiative provides farmers and food companies with an outcomes-based, independent third-party verification program.

About the Plant Based Foods Association 

The Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) is the only trade association in the U.S. representing over 320 of the nation’s leading plant-based food companies. PBFA’s mission is to champion, strengthen, and elevate our members and the plant-based food industry. PBFA empowers the industry by advocating for government policies that allow fair competition while expanding market opportunities for retail, distribution, and foodservice to support the continued growth of the plant-based foods industry. 

About the Plant Based Foods Institute

The Plant Based Foods Institute (PBFI), PBFA’s sister non-profit organization, is focused on driving plant-based food system transition through policy and business strategies. Driving this transition requires a holistic approach that recognizes the complexity of the challenges we face, builds bridges across sectors, and ensures businesses can thrive—and it requires solutions that work for a diverse coalition of food system participants. That’s why PBFI incubates, implements, and evaluates strategies that empower the broadscale change we need, through the power of plant-based.

This comment is supported by:

MEDIA CONTACT: Max Karlin for Green America, (703) 276-3255, or mkarlin@hastingsgroup.com.

1 Montgomery DR, Biklé A, Archuleta R, Brown P, Jordan J. 2022. Soil health and nutrient density: preliminary comparison of regenerative and conventional farming. PeerJ 10:e12848 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.12848