Former White House Chef Sam Kass: How to Overcome the Coming Food Crisis

Mark Hyman

Oct 29, 2025

Episode description

Our food system is reaching a breaking point—and the warning signs are already on our plates. From disappearing crops to rising health costs, it’s clear that the way we grow and eat food can’t continue as it has. Today on The Dr. Hyman Show, I sit down with Sam Kass, former White House chef and senior policy advisor, to explore his new book The Last Supper: The Politics of the End of Food. We talk about what’s driving the crisis, what’s already being done to repair it, and how each of us can help build a food system that supports both people and the planet. Join us for the full conversation on YouTube, or listen wherever you get your podcasts.

We discuss:

• What if the foods you eat every day are quietly shaping both your health and the planet’s?

• Learn how a healthier food system could mean cleaner air, better soil, and stronger communities.

• See why so many farmers want to do better—and what keeps them stuck.

• How everyday food choices shape the culture that businesses and policymakers follow.

• Simple actions you can take now to help build a food system that serves all of us.

If this really is our “last supper” with the food system as we know it, we have the power to decide what comes next. Let’s make it a meal that feeds both people and the planet.

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Mindsip insights from this episode:

Address food crisis impacting staple crops now

The food crisis isn't a future problem for our grandkids; staple foods like coffee, chocolate, and peaches are already being severely impacted by climate change right now.

#environment

#food

Address core metabolic issues instead of seed oil distractions

Focusing on controversial topics like seed oils and food dyes is a distraction from the core problem of metabolic disease, which is driven by excess sugar and starch.

#metabolism

#nutrition

Reevaluate grass-fed beef's emissions impact

From a pure emissions standpoint, grass-fed beef is not that much different from conventional because the animals live longer to reach slaughter weight.

#environment

#grass-fed

Boost immunity with HDB Immune Energy Chews

HDB Immune Energy Chews from Big Bold Health deliver 1000mg of sprouted Himalayan Tarty Buckwheat, a seed packed with over 100 immune-active polyphenols like quercetin and rutin.

#immune-system

#supplement

Challenge GRAS status of ultra-processed food ingredients for safety

A petition to the FDA argues that many ultra-processed food ingredients no longer meet the 'generally recognized as safe' (GRAS) standard, which could force the industry to prove their safety.

#processed-food

#safety

Challenge food companies to prioritize health over short-term profits

Food company CEOs who try to make their products healthier often get fired because of pressure from Wall Street's focus on short-term quarterly earnings.

#nutrition

Establish carbon market for oil companies to support farmers

A robust carbon market should be created where big emitters like oil and gas companies pay farmers to sequester carbon through regenerative agriculture.