Stop Calling It Sustainable. Start Building What Works
Let’s stop pretending sustainability is a marketing badge. If we are serious about the future of this planet and our food system, we need to stop tweaking broken models and start redesigning how we grow, eat, and invest in food. Sustainability is not a checklist. It is a shift in mindset, incentives, and who gets a seat at the table.
We have hit the limits of performative progress. While compostable packaging and ESG claims fill up pitch decks, the real work is happening underground in infrastructure, ownership, and access to capital. Innovation is not about making the current system greener. It is about building a system that actually works.
Sustainability Isn’t Enough
As Anna Lappé points out, our food system is built on fossil fuels, from synthetic fertilizers and pesticides to plastic packaging. That is not just bad for the climate. It is profitable for the few and costly for everyone else.
Sustainability has become a placeholder for “slightly less bad.” But real innovation asks harder questions. Who benefits? Who gets left out? And what would it look like to create something better from the ground up?
Infrastructure Is Innovation
David Cooper recently shared the launch of Green Acres Milling, a farmer-owned oat processor in the Midwest. It is a simple, smart solution to a big problem. The loss of local processing has left farmers with fewer options and communities more vulnerable to supply chain breakdowns.
“Investing in ag infrastructure isn’t just about returns,” he wrote. “It’s about building resilience.” And resilience is exactly what our food system lacks.
Where’s the Money
According to the World Economic Forum, we need 1.1 trillion dollars every year to transform global food systems. But only 5 percent of that capital is currently being invested. Food is treated as a consumer category, not a system that underpins climate, health, and equity outcomes.
Cooper calls food an overlooked asset class. It offers real, measurable impact, from carbon drawdown to biodiversity and supply chain security. So why isn’t more capital flowing? Because the system is not flashy. It is foundational. And investors still chase hype over health.
We’ve Optimized the Wrong Things
Rob Trice said it best: “Data doesn’t move food. Collaboration does.” For years, we’ve prioritized digital tools over distribution, brand over production, and novelty over need. We optimized for efficiency while ignoring the relationships that make food systems work.
The future will not be built by one more app. It will be built by returning power to farmers, processors, and communities and funding infrastructure that holds.
The Future Starts Below the Surface
If food is going to play a meaningful role in shaping the future of the planet, we have to move past performative sustainability and invest in systems that nourish, restore, and include.
Sustainability was the entry point. Innovation is the responsibility.
Written by Merril Gilbert for NextGen Purpose
Merril Gilbert helps founders make the right decisions to move their businesses forward. As CEO of Curious Futures and creator of FoundHer Forward, she works with entrepreneurs, especially women who are scaling, securing funding, or navigating key transitions. With 25 years of operational experience in CPG, food systems, health, and wellness, Merril combines strategic insight with a deep understanding of how emerging technology and economic shifts shape business success. She is committed to strengthening the future of food as a foundation for a healthier world.
