Modern society is experiencing a rapid rise in chronic disease, despite having more food and medical technology than ever before. Colin Austin argues that the root cause lies in degraded soils, nutrient-poor food, and broken food systems. Drawing on personal experience, traditional cultures, and engineering principles, he explains how gut–brain signalling, soil biology, and true food freshness interact. He then outlines practical solutions through wicking beds, Gbiota growing systems, and a fairer “pick and eat” food model.
Introduction — A Moment of Hope
Colin Austin opens with a moment that restored his faith in humanity. Watching New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern comfort a grieving child after a tragedy, he saw leadership grounded in empathy rather than performance. It felt real, human, and connected.
That moment mattered because, for a long time, Colin had been deeply discouraged by the state of modern health. Across wealthy nations, rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, dementia, and depression continue to rise. Meanwhile, enormous food and pharmaceutical industries profit from managing symptoms rather than preventing disease.
This article is not written in despair. Colin says he now sees a clear path forward — one that starts with food, soil, and biology rather than pills and procedures.
A Personal Crisis That Changed Everything
The motivation behind this work is personal. Colin’s wife, Xiulan, developed diabetes. Over time, she began losing her eyesight. Then she fell down a flight of stairs and shattered bones in her foot.
After surgery, her foot turned black. Doctors began discussing amputation. They explained that diabetes was incurable and progressive. Blindness, limb loss, and early death were described as normal outcomes. The only uncertainty, they said, was how fast it would happen.
Colin rejected this explanation. He states clearly that most people can avoid diabetes if it is caught early, and that many people can reverse it — even after years — by changing what and how they eat.
The Modern Health Epidemic
Colin argues that today’s health crisis is historically new. Fifty years ago, diabetes and extreme obesity were uncommon. In many traditional societies today, they remain rare.
He points out that while traditional societies may face higher risks from accidents or infections, people who survive into older age often remain physically capable. It is not unusual to see people in their eighties or nineties working, walking long distances, or farming.
In contrast, modern societies often see frailty, chronic illness, and dependence decades earlier. According to Colin, the key difference is not genetics or medicine — it is food.
Everything Begins With Soil
Traditional food systems begin with soil rich in organic matter, minerals, and living biology. Compost, animal manures, and plant residues feed microbes and fungi that cycle nutrients naturally.
Modern industrial agriculture, by contrast, often relies on soluble fertilisers and chemical controls. While yields may be high, the soil itself becomes biologically depleted. Trace minerals are removed year after year without being replaced.
Colin cites evidence that some trace elements have declined dramatically over decades of intensive farming. Plants may look healthy, but their nutrient density is reduced. Humans then eat more food but receive fewer essential compounds.
Diversity Has Been Lost
Traditional diets are diverse. People eat many species of leafy greens, herbs, roots, and wild plants. Older generations often recognise dozens of edible species that modern people no longer identify as food.
Modern diets are narrow by comparison. Even when people eat vegetables, they usually consume a small number of commercially favoured crops. This lack of diversity limits the range of minerals, fibres, and phytonutrients entering the body.
Freshness Is Not a Marketing Term
Colin emphasises that traditional societies eat much of their food within hours of harvest. Some foods store well, but many greens are eaten immediately.
Modern food systems involve long supply chains. Produce is often harvested early, transported long distances, stored, and displayed days or weeks later. Labels may say “fresh”, but Colin argues there is a fundamental difference between appearance and biological freshness.
The Gut–Brain Control System
Humans evolved with a sophisticated internal control system that regulates hunger and satiety through the gut–brain axis. When the body receives adequate nutrients, hormones signal satisfaction and eating stops naturally.
Sugars and fats are not inherently harmful, Colin says. In traditional contexts, they were valuable energy sources. The problem arises when food is energy-rich but nutrient-poor.
When essential minerals, fibres, and phytonutrients are missing, the body sends hunger signals without specifying what is lacking. People feel compelled to keep eating, often choosing what is most available — processed, sugary, and fatty foods.
This leads to overeating, insulin resistance, and chronic disease. Supplements may help temporarily, but Colin argues that nutrient-dense food provides balance automatically, without spikes or deficiencies.
Chemical Control vs Biological Balance
Modern agriculture often treats microbes as enemies. Chemical sprays and antibiotics aim to sterilise environments and kill threats.
Colin acknowledges legitimate concerns around food safety, but argues that killing everything creates long-term instability. Microbes adapt, resistance develops, and chemical inputs escalate.
Biological systems work differently. When conditions favour beneficial microbes — through organic matter, minerals, and fibre — they outcompete harmful organisms. This ecological balance has sustained humans and animals for millennia.
The Missing Filter and Rare Breakthroughs
Colin describes himself as lacking the mental filter that stops most people pursuing bad ideas. He jokes that this leads to many failures — but occasionally, a breakthrough.
One such breakthrough was Moldflow, a plastic flow simulation developed in his spare bedroom. It grew into a world-leading technology company and was later sold to a major US firm.
After that success, Colin turned his attention to soil, water, and long-term environmental limits. He became convinced that soil could store vast amounts of carbon while producing healthier food.
Ethiopia and the Birth of Wicking Beds
Invited to Ethiopia to help grow food under drought conditions, Colin developed two connected ideas.
The first was the wicking bed: a growing system built over an underground water reservoir that supplies roots via capillary action.
The second was nutrients. Instead of expensive inputs, he observed that weeds thrive by extracting nutrients from poor soils. By composting weeds inside the system, nutrients could be recycled efficiently.
When Ideas Spread — and Break
Wicking beds spread rapidly online. Colin learned that information travels fast, but accuracy does not always keep up.
Some guides removed organic matter and filled beds with stones to keep them “clean”. This disrupted capillary action and biology, leading to stagnant, smelly systems.
Colin spent years responding to problems caused by these changes, reinforcing that biology, not sterility, makes systems work.
Health Is the Central Goal
Colin repeatedly returns to health outcomes. In Australia alone, he notes that diabetes-related amputations occur roughly every twenty minutes.
His goal is to prevent this suffering by making nutrient-dense food affordable and accessible. Diabetes, he argues, must not become a disease of poverty.
Scaling Beyond the Backyard
While wicking beds work well for home growers, Colin says broader adoption requires solving two problems:
- Applying flood-and-drain and wicking principles at scale without stagnation.
- Making regenerative growing economically viable for farmers.
The Gbiota Approach
Colin formed the Gbiota club to share practical growing systems designed to support gut health. After years of refinement, he developed a simple, reliable flood-and-drain method using biologically active soil.
The Gbiota manual is shared freely within the club under Creative Commons. Gbiota™ is a registered trademark that growers can use when meeting the specification.
Conclusion
“The Food Revolution” is not nostalgia. It is a practical response to modern disease and ecological decline. By restoring soil biology, plant diversity, and direct food relationships, Colin Austin argues we can rebuild health from the ground up.
Colin Austin — 11 April 2019.
