Food Leaders of Tomorrow Know How to Communicate

We witness firsthand how food companies are terrible at communication, and how fake food news is communicated all too well and lines the pockets of those websites, TV shows and bloggers. 

Whether it's about GMOs or what "healthy" does and doesn't mean, or shoppers never believing that growth hormones aren't permitted by law in poultry, we seem to have a problem with just how to communicate food science to shoppers. 

Meet Christina Agapakis. In a recent article in Forbes, the synthetic biology Ph.D. from Harvard has researched biofuels and microbial biology at UCLA.  Agapakis also launched an independent science magazine, and said “ask[ing] interesting questions and tell[ing] stories through objects” is key to communicating.

The column shared two of her strategies for making biotech more approachable, which can be translated to the bigger picture of all food:

• Offer Hands-on Experiences.  She said that sometimes the experiential is more powerful than the intellectual: “I’m really interested in how people might be able to engage in different ways with biotechnology -- differently than reading about GMOs or medicine.” She encouraged Ginkgo Bioworks, the company that she works at, to do that through products people can interact with, like citrus-infused beer and orange blossom kombucha, to help people see what biotech can create.    
• Consider Context.  Even for scientists and engineers, biotech might be an unfamiliar field. Agapakis advised that we try to remember, “Everybody is a novice in something.” Presenting a simpler version of a concept can help keep everyone on the same page. 

She also advised, “First, try to understand how the other person makes sense of the world.” Think about how their background and experiences might influence their perception. Then think about the biases you have. Ask, “What do I take for granted that other people don’t?”