Food is more than nourishment. It’s culture and commerce, art and history, science and math. It drives writers like Proust to heights of dream-like reverie. Food encompasses the liberal arts.
With that idea in mind we asked 10 alumni—activists, brewers, farmers, scientists, and restaurateurs, whose careers involve food and drink—to share their thoughts about the emerging trends in growing, selling, serving, and eating food. They told us about protein sources you’ve probably never imagined, about what it means to run a restaurant dedicated to local food in Mount Vernon, Iowa, about how to make food appear as beautiful as it is delicious, and about the upcoming struggles for food justice activists. Their experiences span nearly every liberal arts discipline, including politics, economics and business, chemistry, and art. Some of them trained for their current careers, while others found their way through a series of happy coincidences. All of them have one thing in common: They love food.
