At a TEDx “Next Generation” event recently, 11-year-old Birke Baehr got up on stage and announced his intention “to talk about what’s wrong with our food system.” He started off decrying “all the marketing and advertising on TV, at public schools and pretty much everywhere else you look,” that attempts “to get parents to buy stuff that isn’t good for us or the planet.”
In his brief talk, he also admits that, “a while back, I wanted to be an NFL football player. I decided I’d rather be an organic farmer instead. That way I could have a greater impact on the world.” Birke also covers the risks of genetically modified foods, CAFOs, synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, and food irradiation. He even addresses concerns over higher prices for organic produce. As he pithily puts it, “It seems to me that we can either pay the farmer or we can pay the hospital.”
” … And that, my friends, is how we can make a difference. One kid at a time.”
Right on, Birke!
Watch the whole thing:
