Thin from Thin Ink
@thinink.bsky.social
Food Systems nut who also happens to be a foodie. Writes Thin Ink, Lead Reporter for Lighthouse Reports, co-founder of Kite Tales Myanmar, founder of Myanmar Now, & former correspondent with the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
There, efforts are underway to regulate UPF production, marketing, & consumption despite strong industry resistance. These “offer crucial lessons for scaling action globally”.
The papers are worth devouring (pun intended) in full. But if you don't have time, I've done the leg work for you.
The papers are worth devouring (pun intended) in full. But if you don't have time, I've done the leg work for you.
November 21, 2025 at 11:08 AM
There, efforts are underway to regulate UPF production, marketing, & consumption despite strong industry resistance. These “offer crucial lessons for scaling action globally”.
The papers are worth devouring (pun intended) in full. But if you don't have time, I've done the leg work for you.
The papers are worth devouring (pun intended) in full. But if you don't have time, I've done the leg work for you.
So here's Who Owns The Farmland - Redux, where he explained the differences between land ownership and land use, why Europe's march towards consolidation of farmland is both inevitable and desirable, and how caring for the soil and land is more about practices and less about scale.
November 14, 2025 at 5:32 PM
So here's Who Owns The Farmland - Redux, where he explained the differences between land ownership and land use, why Europe's march towards consolidation of farmland is both inevitable and desirable, and how caring for the soil and land is more about practices and less about scale.
Coming from a country of small farms & now living in 2 where farms are getting larger, I find these global trends deeply personal & political.
So I break down 11 fascinating findings & share my two cents: are bigger, more intensive farms the food future we want or are we heading there by default?
So I break down 11 fascinating findings & share my two cents: are bigger, more intensive farms the food future we want or are we heading there by default?
November 7, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Coming from a country of small farms & now living in 2 where farms are getting larger, I find these global trends deeply personal & political.
So I break down 11 fascinating findings & share my two cents: are bigger, more intensive farms the food future we want or are we heading there by default?
So I break down 11 fascinating findings & share my two cents: are bigger, more intensive farms the food future we want or are we heading there by default?
It comes with striking new data and insights:
➡️ 1.7 billion people now live in areas where crop yields are at least 10% lower because of human-induced land degradation.
But what really caught my eye are the new figures on farm sizes and land distribution.
➡️ 1.7 billion people now live in areas where crop yields are at least 10% lower because of human-induced land degradation.
But what really caught my eye are the new figures on farm sizes and land distribution.
November 7, 2025 at 4:34 PM
It comes with striking new data and insights:
➡️ 1.7 billion people now live in areas where crop yields are at least 10% lower because of human-induced land degradation.
But what really caught my eye are the new figures on farm sizes and land distribution.
➡️ 1.7 billion people now live in areas where crop yields are at least 10% lower because of human-induced land degradation.
But what really caught my eye are the new figures on farm sizes and land distribution.
Thanks to Jose Luis Chicoma, who co-edited and also wrote in the report, for sharing the thought processes behind the project and what they are hoping to achieve.
Here's hoping we see more open discussions and actions on this topic.
news.thin-ink.net/p/how-to-eat...
Here's hoping we see more open discussions and actions on this topic.
news.thin-ink.net/p/how-to-eat...
October 31, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Thanks to Jose Luis Chicoma, who co-edited and also wrote in the report, for sharing the thought processes behind the project and what they are hoping to achieve.
Here's hoping we see more open discussions and actions on this topic.
news.thin-ink.net/p/how-to-eat...
Here's hoping we see more open discussions and actions on this topic.
news.thin-ink.net/p/how-to-eat...
For me, covering food systems is a constant struggle to balance bad with good: to walk that fine line between exposing injustices without becoming defeatist; between showing what we’re up against while reminding ourselves that change is possible. This issue is my attempt to show the possibilities.
October 24, 2025 at 3:36 PM
For me, covering food systems is a constant struggle to balance bad with good: to walk that fine line between exposing injustices without becoming defeatist; between showing what we’re up against while reminding ourselves that change is possible. This issue is my attempt to show the possibilities.
Next, I look at a global analysis on what it will take to help our smallholder farmers - the people who produce at least a third of our food - adapt to the changing climate, and why we should do it.
Huge thanks to @bhavanishankar.bsky.social & Esther Penunia for their insights & time.
Huge thanks to @bhavanishankar.bsky.social & Esther Penunia for their insights & time.
October 24, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Next, I look at a global analysis on what it will take to help our smallholder farmers - the people who produce at least a third of our food - adapt to the changing climate, and why we should do it.
Huge thanks to @bhavanishankar.bsky.social & Esther Penunia for their insights & time.
Huge thanks to @bhavanishankar.bsky.social & Esther Penunia for their insights & time.
First, I go to Bihar where a project is harnessing the advantages of local markets as community hubs and purveyors of fresh food while improving their infrastructure, food safety and management, climate readiness and sensitivity to the needs of women.
October 24, 2025 at 3:36 PM
First, I go to Bihar where a project is harnessing the advantages of local markets as community hubs and purveyors of fresh food while improving their infrastructure, food safety and management, climate readiness and sensitivity to the needs of women.
I'll be in Vienna next week to co-facilitate "Climate journalism in shrinking democratic spaces" workshop on Oct 24. It's an invite-only event, so if you're interested, please contact IPI.
Otherwise, drop me a line if you're in Vienna & want to chat about all things food systems (or Myanmar).
Otherwise, drop me a line if you're in Vienna & want to chat about all things food systems (or Myanmar).
October 15, 2025 at 3:58 PM
I'll be in Vienna next week to co-facilitate "Climate journalism in shrinking democratic spaces" workshop on Oct 24. It's an invite-only event, so if you're interested, please contact IPI.
Otherwise, drop me a line if you're in Vienna & want to chat about all things food systems (or Myanmar).
Otherwise, drop me a line if you're in Vienna & want to chat about all things food systems (or Myanmar).
... and a blatant lack of oversight to ensure good labour practices among its beneficiaries
Full credit to @eoghangilmartin.bsky.social, @simonguichard.bsky.social, @silvialazzaris.bsky.social, @meriemm.bsky.social, Pascale Mueller, @frnzskschwrz.bsky.social, Hélène Servel & @joseuf.bsky.social.
Full credit to @eoghangilmartin.bsky.social, @simonguichard.bsky.social, @silvialazzaris.bsky.social, @meriemm.bsky.social, Pascale Mueller, @frnzskschwrz.bsky.social, Hélène Servel & @joseuf.bsky.social.
October 10, 2025 at 4:45 PM
... and a blatant lack of oversight to ensure good labour practices among its beneficiaries
Full credit to @eoghangilmartin.bsky.social, @simonguichard.bsky.social, @silvialazzaris.bsky.social, @meriemm.bsky.social, Pascale Mueller, @frnzskschwrz.bsky.social, Hélène Servel & @joseuf.bsky.social.
Full credit to @eoghangilmartin.bsky.social, @simonguichard.bsky.social, @silvialazzaris.bsky.social, @meriemm.bsky.social, Pascale Mueller, @frnzskschwrz.bsky.social, Hélène Servel & @joseuf.bsky.social.
- The recommended diet, however, remains largely consistent with the 2019 version.
I've framed the key findings into 3 buckets that I now use when I talk about food systems challenges: how to make them healthier, greener, & fairer. It's all in the newsletter.
news.thin-ink.net/p/the-planet...
I've framed the key findings into 3 buckets that I now use when I talk about food systems challenges: how to make them healthier, greener, & fairer. It's all in the newsletter.
news.thin-ink.net/p/the-planet...
October 3, 2025 at 2:26 PM
- The recommended diet, however, remains largely consistent with the 2019 version.
I've framed the key findings into 3 buckets that I now use when I talk about food systems challenges: how to make them healthier, greener, & fairer. It's all in the newsletter.
news.thin-ink.net/p/the-planet...
I've framed the key findings into 3 buckets that I now use when I talk about food systems challenges: how to make them healthier, greener, & fairer. It's all in the newsletter.
news.thin-ink.net/p/the-planet...
And about whether, and how, they might be revived.
Our conversation reminded me of a phrase that has become a rallying cry in Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, which is waging its own uneven struggle against a brutal military: “They tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds.”
Our conversation reminded me of a phrase that has become a rallying cry in Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, which is waging its own uneven struggle against a brutal military: “They tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds.”
September 26, 2025 at 3:40 PM
And about whether, and how, they might be revived.
Our conversation reminded me of a phrase that has become a rallying cry in Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, which is waging its own uneven struggle against a brutal military: “They tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds.”
Our conversation reminded me of a phrase that has become a rallying cry in Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, which is waging its own uneven struggle against a brutal military: “They tried to bury us, they didn’t know we were seeds.”
So I sat down with Jennifer to discuss how corporate power structures in agriculture were entrenched far earlier than most of us realise, why past critiques went unheeded, & what that means for breaking free of the “lock-ins” shaping our food systems today.
September 12, 2025 at 4:06 PM
So I sat down with Jennifer to discuss how corporate power structures in agriculture were entrenched far earlier than most of us realise, why past critiques went unheeded, & what that means for breaking free of the “lock-ins” shaping our food systems today.
And yes, I do have some quibbles, especially on the invisibility of political economy issues. I wrote about them in the newsletter. Besides, any report that cites both Charles Dickens and Silent Spring gets a bit of a pass in my book.
news.thin-ink.net/p/path-to-a-...
news.thin-ink.net/p/path-to-a-...
September 5, 2025 at 4:20 PM
And yes, I do have some quibbles, especially on the invisibility of political economy issues. I wrote about them in the newsletter. Besides, any report that cites both Charles Dickens and Silent Spring gets a bit of a pass in my book.
news.thin-ink.net/p/path-to-a-...
news.thin-ink.net/p/path-to-a-...
I was born & raised in a country where impunity was rampant & saw how that screw up societies & erode our humanity for each other. I see the same impunity in many places - Gaza, Sudan, U.S., etc. In all of them, indifference has fuelled it. Let’s not feed the impunity monster by looking away.
August 29, 2025 at 3:41 PM
I was born & raised in a country where impunity was rampant & saw how that screw up societies & erode our humanity for each other. I see the same impunity in many places - Gaza, Sudan, U.S., etc. In all of them, indifference has fuelled it. Let’s not feed the impunity monster by looking away.
But it isn't all doom and gloom. Examples: Brazil lifting >40 mln people out of hunger, winners of Equator Prize 2025, federal court ruling against USDA cutting funding to farmer & community orgs, show we *can* & *should* put out the fires & bring the arsonists in our homes to account.
August 22, 2025 at 11:28 AM
But it isn't all doom and gloom. Examples: Brazil lifting >40 mln people out of hunger, winners of Equator Prize 2025, federal court ruling against USDA cutting funding to farmer & community orgs, show we *can* & *should* put out the fires & bring the arsonists in our homes to account.
On a final note, I’m going on a two-week summer break. Back mid-August.
Don’t work too hard. Remember to take a break. And drink lots of water.
Don’t work too hard. Remember to take a break. And drink lots of water.
August 1, 2025 at 3:40 PM
On a final note, I’m going on a two-week summer break. Back mid-August.
Don’t work too hard. Remember to take a break. And drink lots of water.
Don’t work too hard. Remember to take a break. And drink lots of water.
I got the idea for this week’s issue after recent thoughtful conversations that showed me many people aren’t very familiar with the political economy of our food systems. Hence an explainer on the ABCDs. Special thanks to @jennifer-clapp.bsky.social for her work, which I heavily relied on.
July 25, 2025 at 3:32 PM
I got the idea for this week’s issue after recent thoughtful conversations that showed me many people aren’t very familiar with the political economy of our food systems. Hence an explainer on the ABCDs. Special thanks to @jennifer-clapp.bsky.social for her work, which I heavily relied on.
4. Also, quite a few of the challenges are self-inflicted. We got ourselves into this mess. We need to get ourselves out of it. Let's get on with that too.
5. There are also opportunities, especially when it comes to lifting our youth, which will ultimately benefit all of us. So...
5. There are also opportunities, especially when it comes to lifting our youth, which will ultimately benefit all of us. So...
July 11, 2025 at 4:05 PM
4. Also, quite a few of the challenges are self-inflicted. We got ourselves into this mess. We need to get ourselves out of it. Let's get on with that too.
5. There are also opportunities, especially when it comes to lifting our youth, which will ultimately benefit all of us. So...
5. There are also opportunities, especially when it comes to lifting our youth, which will ultimately benefit all of us. So...
I'm looking for similar stories from Eastern Europe, South America, and Asia. Please reach out if you have ideas. Thin Ink is a one-person pet project (me) and it's not behind a paywall, so I don't have oodles of money but I do pay 300 Euros per commissioned piece.
July 7, 2025 at 1:02 PM
I'm looking for similar stories from Eastern Europe, South America, and Asia. Please reach out if you have ideas. Thin Ink is a one-person pet project (me) and it's not behind a paywall, so I don't have oodles of money but I do pay 300 Euros per commissioned piece.
On Wednesday I moderated a thought provoking panel discussion on what it means to have “Just Transition” in building climate-resilient food systems & I wanted to share some key takeaways from the session. Thanks to the wonderful speakers & Joe & team for another stellar @anhacademy.bsky.social
June 27, 2025 at 3:45 PM
On Wednesday I moderated a thought provoking panel discussion on what it means to have “Just Transition” in building climate-resilient food systems & I wanted to share some key takeaways from the session. Thanks to the wonderful speakers & Joe & team for another stellar @anhacademy.bsky.social
Now that Season 2 of The Outlaw Ocean podcast is out, I caught up again with Ian Urbina, who founded the Project, to chat about a key story arc of this season: the scale of China’s involvement in our seafood.
June 20, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Now that Season 2 of The Outlaw Ocean podcast is out, I caught up again with Ian Urbina, who founded the Project, to chat about a key story arc of this season: the scale of China’s involvement in our seafood.
Also, let’s be clear about one thing from the outset. The terrible situation in these countries has very little to do with whether we are producing enough food. It's all about power and committing one of the worst kinds of crimes: the deliberate starvation of a group of people.
June 13, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Also, let’s be clear about one thing from the outset. The terrible situation in these countries has very little to do with whether we are producing enough food. It's all about power and committing one of the worst kinds of crimes: the deliberate starvation of a group of people.
A quintet of statements from the UN over the past few weeks give an idea of how bad the situation has become in a number of countries, including my own.
June 13, 2025 at 3:56 PM
A quintet of statements from the UN over the past few weeks give an idea of how bad the situation has become in a number of countries, including my own.
I’m in Brasilia this week, emceeing a 3-day conference on “Overcoming Barriers to Food Systems Transformation”.
It's been exhausting but also invigorating and I wanted to share five initial reflections and takeaways from the event.
news.thin-ink.net/p/notes-from...
It's been exhausting but also invigorating and I wanted to share five initial reflections and takeaways from the event.
news.thin-ink.net/p/notes-from...
May 30, 2025 at 3:42 PM
I’m in Brasilia this week, emceeing a 3-day conference on “Overcoming Barriers to Food Systems Transformation”.
It's been exhausting but also invigorating and I wanted to share five initial reflections and takeaways from the event.
news.thin-ink.net/p/notes-from...
It's been exhausting but also invigorating and I wanted to share five initial reflections and takeaways from the event.
news.thin-ink.net/p/notes-from...