Ep. 172 – Are We Eating From A Toxic Food System? Tackling Issues within the American Food Industry with Robyn O’Brien
I am honored to be interviewing Robyn O’Brien today! Robyn is a globally recognized voice in the food industry and has been called “food’s Erin Brockovich” by The New York Times. Her TEDx talk (based on her book, The Unhealthy Truth) exposes the shortcomings of our food system and has been viewed millions of times. It has influenced policy, legislation, and product formulation. For the last fifteen years, Robyn has advised CEOs and executives at multinational CPG companies, startups, and farm organizations. Robyn is the co-founder and managing director at rePlant Capital, a financial services firm ambitiously determined to reverse climate change through the deployment of a series of proprietary funds focused on U.S. farmers and their transition to regenerative and organic agriculture.
It can be hard for those who want to make real change in our broken systems to initiate change or know where to begin. Robyn O’Brien doesn’t just make noise about problems. She builds solutions and encourages her audiences to participate by identifying their skills and experiences to leverage them as entry points for systems change.
In Robyn’s story, capital is an entry point for catalytic change. If biodiversity is resiliency on the farm, Robyn deeply believes that diversity is resiliency in governance.
In this episode, Robyn explains how rePlant Capital is pioneering climate solutions by tackling soil health through a model of agricultural financing that no one else is providing. She also speaks to the importance of diverse governance and leadership in addressing these existential food, health, and climate issues.
I am very grateful to Robyn for writing her book because it has profoundly impacted the trajectory of everything I am doing right now! Stay tuned for more!