A check in conversation with Cindie Christiansen, founder of Foodprint Nordic and Top 50 Farmers (no, it’s not a ranking, so nobody “won”). We spoke just six months ago, but this time we met in person to talk about the progress of turning farmers into the next superheroes of climate, water, health, and more.
We unpack her vision for systems change in food and agriculture. Directly from one of the world’s leading culinary scenes, Copenhagen, we ask: why hasn’t a strong farm-to-table, local cuisine movement led to real change in the agrifood system yet? And more importantly, what can we do about it?
We dive into her work with Foodprint Nordic and how they’re about to expand it to the rest of Europe. Very simply, but of course, it’s not that simple, the idea is to access a whole new pool of money not yet active in this space: the money of us eaters, and funnel it as quickly and with as few strings attached as possible to farmers ready to expand regenerative practices, planting trees, buying compost equipment, and more.
And even more importantly, how this approach could serve as a blueprint for real regional, and potentially national, action, helping shape government policy that truly supports regenerative farmers on the ground.
TOP 50 FARMERS UPDATE SINCE LAUNCH
Cindie shares the journey of the Top 50 Farmers since applications opened, highlighting the challenges and successes of selecting and recognising regenerative farmers across Europe with the unexpected effort required to tell their stories authentically.
“Hectic and real. A lot of fun too… It was really important for us to do it well too… And to be honest, I think it worked well. I think it was fun. I think people were very engaged… But what came to our mind learning from the PR situation is very few journalists are writing farmer stories these days… So, we actually took a step back and said, okay, then we are going to do not profiles but stories.” Cindie Christiansen
LESSONS FROM FOODPRINT NORDIC AND SCALING BEYOND THE NORDICS
After 4 years of Foodprint Nordic, Cindie highlights practical challenges with the 1% model and the need to simplify backend systems for restaurants. She shares plans to scale the approach across Europe using learnings from the Nordics.
“Adding 1% is actually not very easy on a backend system in a restaurant, and that’s what people don’t think about… That’s what we will take these learnings and scale that out to Europe next year, based on that now… We have to learn a lot the first four years… We have tried a lot of things… It takes time, I think [it has] huge potential.” Cindie Christiansen
HOW HOSPITALITY CAN LEAD THE REGENERATIVE AGRIFOOD TRANSITION
Chefs and restaurants are undervalued catalysts for systemic change as their influence extends beyond sourcing to reshaping narratives and funding models, leveraging their cultural authority.
“Don’t underestimate hospitality and food; shift what they can do right now for changing agriculture… Chefs, they are proud of local produce. They are proud to be where they are and using that local produce; they’re so proud of their craft. So, they are like the best ambassadors for this. While they also have a really important voice from the last many years, I think it’s such a missed opportunity not to engage more with hospitality and food. I mean, they care. They have a craft. They’re very similar to their farmers.” Cindie Christiansen
GETTING MONEY INTO FARMERS’ HANDS TO SCALE REGENERATIVE PRACTICES
There is a urgent need for flexible, low-bureaucracy funding to support small-scale farmers, it is crucial to redirect capital to fill gaps left by traditional systems and policy delays.
“There is this need, and while this doesn’t work a hundred per cent right now, we need to push to see how we can get it to work because the need is out there and there is so much money in this world overall. Let’s figure out how to do this…. It’s really money that is not yet found in the system […] It’s really for the smaller-scale farms that need to scale what they’re doing.” Cindie Christiansen
OTHER POINTS DISCUSSED
Koen and Cindie also talked about:
- Farmers’ generational crisis
- How the approach of Foodprint Nordic can lead to much more significant change on a local and national level
LINKS:
LINKED INTERVIEWS:
- Cindie Christiansen and Analisa Winther – How a first-time non-profit raised almost €1 million to put 50 top regen farmers in the spotlight
- Anthony Myint – Sourcing better isn’t going to change the food system, award-winning chef might have the silver bullet for system change
- Thomas Hogenhaven – The €22M regen fund that said no to €7M
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The above references an opinion and is for information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.