What Sake Taught Me About Our Broken Food System

In this episode, I sit down with award-winning writer Nancy Matsumoto, co-author of Exploring the World of Japanese Craft Sake and author of Reaping What She Sows, to explore two conversations that are reshaping how we think about hospitality, agriculture, and value in food systems. We start with Japanese craft sake—what actually makes it different from wine, whether concepts like terroir apply, and how modern brewers are pushing the category forward through innovation, rice cultivation, and technique. From there, we widen the lens to the broader food system: the real cost of “cheap” food, the pressures on sustainable farming, and what restaurants can realistically do to support local producers while operating within tight margins. This is a conversation for anyone working in or around food—whether you're a sommelier trying to understand sake more deeply, or a chef and operator thinking about the future of sourcing and sustainability. Sake Isn't Wine. Cheap Food Isn't Cheap — Nancy Matsumoto 00:00 – Intro + Why Sake Isn't Rice Wine 01:01 – Falling Down the Sake Rabbit Hole 02:50 – Does Sake Have Terroir? 05:20 – How Regional Sake Styles Are Changing 08:07 – Three Bottles to Start Your Sake Journey 09:41 – The Low-Polish Revolution & Sustainability 12:03 – Technology vs. Tradition in Sake Brewing 14:22 – Reviving Heirloom Rice 17:55 – Why Our Food System Is Broken 20:48 – Organic Labels, Greenwashing & What Matters 26:07 – The Hidden Cost of Cheap Food 33:10 – Why Women Are Leading Change 40:03 – How Restaurants Can Support Local Farmers 43:25 – Sustainable Wine, Biodynamics & Farming 47:28 – Nancy's Favourite Sake Bars 48:29 – One Thing Everyone Can Do This Week #Sake #JapaneseFood #Hospitality #FoodSystems #WineAndSake #SakeWine