PositiveThe Guardian (UK)Monbiot thinks globally, looking beyond these shores to poorer nations that feel the impact of climate changes and the economic pressures most keenly ... His well-researched arguments are frequently eye-opening ... Monbiot is not a farmer, which frees him to have an outsider’s perspective. At the same time, he gives little consideration to the cultural side of farming, the realities of rewilding and its impact on rural populations. He criticises \'conventional organic farming\' and \'foodies\', which do not feel like the most important enemies ... The book ends with a call for farm abolition, which, after a lot of meticulously evidenced thinking, feels like a risky leap ... Despite it being hard to stomach for many of us from the countryside, Monbiot makes a convincing case. In desperate times, a shift to plant-based and even lab-grown food makes simple mathematical sense. Monbiot’s arguments take account of the needs of everyone in society, not just those who can afford premium meat, and not just those of us in the UK. Regenesis aims to be a gamechanger, and indeed it already makes ideas once thought radical seem tame ... But although the statistics in Regenesis are persuasive, the experiences described in Rooted counsel caution ... At this time of crisis and change in farming, when government subsidies are shifting and agricultural colleges are fuller than ever, we are lucky to have Langford and Monbiot leading the conversation, thinking seriously about answers and exploring both old ways and new.
