(one of four food scenarios on the topic of food futures)

The myth of anthropocentrism is alive and well in the majority of the population. The detrimental effects of climate change on productive food environments are being constantly mitigated through large scale geo-engineering projects. Oil remains the dominant fuel, coming mainly from would have once been called non-conventional sources. Pricing of eco-system services (such as RED or TEEB) thrives in a market dominated world. Food production and distribution are largely automated. Food is grown, monitored and transported through artificial systems within and in between large cities. An increasingly disconnected supply chain is driven by its financialisation (e.g. high-frequency comodity trading, JIT delivery hijacking and farmville subsidies). Through advanced track-and-trace technologies, supply chain information has become relatively available and transparent (for those who make an effort and know where to look). With a proliferation of home delivery and disposal services the supply chain has extended into the kitchen. Although there is an illusion of choice, the majority of food on offer is rather homogeneous, which prompts food conscious consumers to search for more authenticity in their diet. This comes at a price. For the majority of the population, food is more about quantity than quality, functional or entertainment rather than wholesome nourishment. Cooking shows are the order of the day, where cooking competitions and celebrity chefs’ take-aways turn food preparation into an instantly gratifying game. The intensive agriculture, including creation and spread of GMOs has proven fragile to propagation of diseases (in animals, plants and humans), hence extensive disease (propagation) controls are in place. In humans, chronic diet-related illnesses are rampant from allergies to obesity, cancers and heart failures.

As a response to chemically enhanced monocultures, ther are ongoing attmepts to 'scale up' and 'industrialise' organic agriculture, whereas urban agriculture is optimised using technological solutions. Urban dwellers enjoy the benefits of densely populated cities by using services such as collective purchasing of food, leftovers-sharing networks, a wide variety of supper-clubs and pop-up restaurants. On the other hand, pocket communities focused on small, slow and local food chains continue to exist, but appear rather isolated and fragmented in their attempts to change the status quo. Their impact isn’t apparent to people outside of the communities themselves. After decades of trying to connect to each other and the world at large (and failing in most cases to scale up or in other ways create a larger impact), these communities become increasingly entrenched, risk averse, xenophobic and even (militantly) conservative.