Adam Litle is the Chief Executive Officer at Sound Agriculture, an organization that is unlocking the natural power within plants to help agriculture adapt faster and become more resilient. Sound has partnerships with over a dozen companies to improve flavor, reduce spoilage, and increase yield in a variety of crops. On this episode of “Food Lab Talk,” Michiel speaks with Adam about Sound’s groundbreaking technology that enables rapid innovation in crops like their Summer Swell Tomato, how Adam addresses skeptics of novel technologies, and why he believes sticking to your passion and “putting one foot in front of the other” are key to make a lasting impact on food waste.
Adam Litle: “Nature often does this on its own. You do see sweeter tomatoes, berries, etc. You do see longer shelf life and skin like this, but you have to do that through random change and crossbreeding that takes ten years or more in a lot of cases. Versus, why not, find a natural way to speed that up, in a more targeted way? And most people that resonates with. If you’re showing a consumer how some of this technology can be used to decrease cost, to have less damage from fertilizer, or other traits, or less food waste, or help with their health, I think that changes the conversation drastically. I’ve seen people be a lot more open to that.”
04:15 Background on Sound Agriculture and its products
07:27 How On Demand Breeding helps reduce food loss and waste for retailers and consumers
09:39 Proving the market and setting the price for a premium product
12:41 Addressing skeptics of novel technologies
14:29 Differences between GMO and epigenetics
15:17 Why a “purist” mentality could be detrimental to future proofing our food system
16:44 The role of technology in transforming how we shop for fruits and vegetables
18:45 Sound Agriculture’s mission-driven approach to support a more resilient food system
21:43 Developing data to support proof of concept and win over the doubters
23:51 Adm’s advice for making a lasting impact on food waste
26:32 Balancing consumer education and transparency
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*The views expressed by the guests in this podcast don't necessarily represent the host’s views, nor those of his employer.
What is Food Lab Talk?
A better food system starts with one thing: vision. Food Lab Talk gives global food system changemakers a platform to articulate their vision for the future of food.
The series features interviews with inspiring individuals who are working on the frontlines of many of our most pressing food issues: reducing food loss and waste, enhancing food system transparency, facilitating shifts toward more balanced plant-forward diets, enabling informed individual choices for sustainable lifestyles, and accelerating the transition to a circular food economy.
Join Google’s Michiel Bakker to meet the leaders taking bold action and answering what each of us can do to create a better food system for us all.