Enthusiasm, because what’s not to love about a way of working with the land that claims to lock carbon in the soil, and work with people and planet in mind? Confusion, because in reality, ‘regenerative’ is subject to wide-ranging interpretations. It’s a term that could equally mean tokenistic changes to business as usual, or a wholesale shift in farming practices that will result in restored ecosystems and sustainable livelihoods.
For those of us within the organic movement, it’s equally a moment of celebration and trepidation. Celebration, because the word regenerative is reaching new ears, and if taken seriously and executed properly, it could result in the very same principles and practices that underpin the organic movement, being brought to life. If regenerative helps to move our food system in a positive direction for climate and nature, then that’s clearly an excellent result. To that point, there is also trepidation, because if regenerative fails to live up to its most ambitious and progressive claims, it risks distracting the world from the real solutions at a moment in history when we have no time to waste.
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