Giving Compass' Take:

• Emanuela Pille da Silva and Anabel González Hernández explain how healthy soil supports human health, making it an essential part of hunger and health efforts. 

• How can funders improve soil quality? 

• Learn more about the global food system from the 2018 TEEBAgriFood report. 

Emanuela Pille da Silva and Anabel González Hernández are working at the nexus of land rehabilitation, soil health, and sustainable agriculture. Their project Agricultural Production in Recovered Areas After Coal Mining in Brazil was a finalist in the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition (BCFN) Yes! Competition. The project assesses whether land that has been degraded by coal mining in southern Brazil is suitable for the production of safe and nutritious food. Their ongoing research at the Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil, uses plant microorganisms and soil microbes to monitor and aid the recovery of degraded lands.

Food Tank: How are soil health and public health linked?

EPS & AGH: Soils influence the availability and quality of the food supply, as well as come into contact with several chemical products that can be transferred into food. They can also propitiate exposure to various pathogens, which is something to be taken into account for public health.

A healthy soil should be able to provide both the necessary nutrients for the growth of plants and adequate nutritional value for the food produced in that soil. Healthy soils can have an important influence on human health since undernourishment can be prevented by providing quality, nutrient-dense food to the population.

Healthy soils are also capable of performing a variety of functions related to human health, for example, the detoxification of toxic compounds and heavy metals. Heavy metals can be absorbed by plants and animals and can accumulate in the food chain. These can have beneficial and/or toxic effects on humans, depending on the amount of intake. Public health policies and actors should pay attention to areas that increase the availability of these toxic elements in the environment and the harm they might cause to the health of the soil.

Read the full interview with Emanuela Pille da Silva and Anabel González Hernández about the benefits of healthy soil at Food Tank.