Today’s agriculture depends on chemically produced nitrogen to increase yields and feed the planet. That concentration of chemicals can have disastrous consequences, as we saw in West, Tex. But the dangers of those chemicals aren’t always what we are led to believe.

Modern monoculture polarizes communities, pitting neighbor against neighbor with a relentless focus on the bottom line. Is that how it has to be?

Nearly two weeks after the deadly blast in West, Texas, we still don't know much about what happened and why. The answers are not likely to come very quickly.

Industrial agriculture erases the identity of our food, filtering its origins as cleanly as removing bee pollen from honey. Just mix, blend, inject it with a brand – and it’s ready for a shelf near you.