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The Last Supper: How to Overcome the Coming Food Crisis
A former senior food policy advisor to President Obama breaks down how changing the way we eat can help fix the climate crisis, from rethinking daily habits to investing in new technology.
As a chef in high-end restaurants, and later, in the home of then Senator Barack and Michelle Obama, Sam Kass read a lot about how eating organic and buying local was the key to remaking a food system otherwise built on climate-change-causing petroleum. But when he followed the Obamas into the White House, he realized While it’s easy to identify the problems in our spoiled food system, fixing it is not as simple as getting your eggs from the farmers’ market. Now investing in startups trying to solve the environmental and human challenges of climate change in food and agriculture.
In The Last Supper, Kass shares everything he’s learned, simplifying it all down to what he calls “The Core Principle”: Maximize nutrient production while minimizing environmental damage. He lays out an accessible, action-based plan to save the environment, and in turn, ourselves, based on four pillars of
shifting the way we think about and approach the environment as individuals is the foundation of broader change
Policy and the limited but important role of policy and how change is made on a governmental level and what we can do about it
How to change the businesses that provide the food we eat as the only path to change our food system
a deep dive into the future with the new and innovative technologies researchers are using to save the environment, from CRISPR and Loam Bio to the magic of mycelium and the secret weapon that is regenerative farming
Through anecdotes, interviews, and an astounding amount of research, The Last Supper gives us the tools we need to make a difference.
As a chef in high-end restaurants, and later, in the home of then Senator Barack and Michelle Obama, Sam Kass read a lot about how eating organic and buying local was the key to remaking a food system otherwise built on climate-change-causing petroleum. But when he followed the Obamas into the White House, he realized While it’s easy to identify the problems in our spoiled food system, fixing it is not as simple as getting your eggs from the farmers’ market. Now investing in startups trying to solve the environmental and human challenges of climate change in food and agriculture.
In The Last Supper, Kass shares everything he’s learned, simplifying it all down to what he calls “The Core Principle”: Maximize nutrient production while minimizing environmental damage. He lays out an accessible, action-based plan to save the environment, and in turn, ourselves, based on four pillars of
shifting the way we think about and approach the environment as individuals is the foundation of broader change
Policy and the limited but important role of policy and how change is made on a governmental level and what we can do about it
How to change the businesses that provide the food we eat as the only path to change our food system
a deep dive into the future with the new and innovative technologies researchers are using to save the environment, from CRISPR and Loam Bio to the magic of mycelium and the secret weapon that is regenerative farming
Through anecdotes, interviews, and an astounding amount of research, The Last Supper gives us the tools we need to make a difference.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published October 7, 2025
18 people are currently reading
1627 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
December 20, 2025
""At my suppers, I would create a memorable menu full of many of the ingredients that have brought joy to our lives and that we eat on a daily basis... I'd announce, 'Welcome to the Last Supper.'..
Then I'd say, 'Experts are increasingly certain that our children and grandchildren will not be able to taste many of the items you enjoyed at this meal.'"-- Sam Kass
This book was phenomenal. I think it deserves to be on the 'Best of 2025' lists. I wish it was more well-known and popularly read.
Sam Kass was personal chef to the Obamas, their nutrition advocate during the Obama administration, and currently an activist who invests in or helps food startups that try to find mitigation for future food crises resulting from climate change, through inventive solutions such as agriculture that does carbon recapture through new microbes, replacement of meat production through meat alternatives, and the study of the use of CRISPR or gene editing to make more resilient agricultural harvests with higher yields.
During his tenure in the Obama administration, he introduced the practice of 'Last Suppers', served to influential diplomats and politicians, that presented the reality of climate change for the guests in a tangible way through a creative menu that only used local ingredients that were vanishing or threatened by changing climate. This included coffee, tea, chocolate, wine grape, crabs and lobsters and other seafood. I was impressed by this because people can doze through slideshow talks of the same climate change topic, but a meal was a powerful, visceral, memorable event that solidifies the effects of climate change as live and now.
Sam Kass is an idealist due to his union activist upbringing, but his focus as shown in this book are actions that pragmatically change the landscape and move the needle, where the food crisis is concerned. His ideas and conclusions, strengthened by experiences in the administration, include:
1. It is easy to just blame or pass the buck to big business or apathetic politics, but the truth is we the people as voters and consumers have our own responsibility. This is because politics and big business respond to our signals and change because of it. Big business won't buy expensive sustainable or healthy meals if consumers' priorities signal that their purchases only depend on convenience, price and taste, and not sustainability or climate change-driven food choices. Politicians won't prioritize food equity or climate change-driven food justice, if voters continue to signal that climate change is low in their roster of priorities, which continues to be dominated by the economy or health care or jobs.
2. To convince people to eat healthier, we need to look at the effective techniques of viral marketing campaigns. Simply put: techniques of the heart, not the mind. People aren't turned by more flat factual messaging about the vitamins in vegetables. Looking at Pepsi ad campaigns, what works are: techniques that elicit positive emotion, or link the food to a core positive memory, or associate the food to positive values (such as warmth, togetherness, childhood, strength, popularity)
3. Use influencers as change makers. People listen to influential people. It's just part of our instincts to follow the pack, or the powerful. In the concern of food, celebrity chefs are the influencers. When people go to an elite restaurant and see meat-free food as luxe, they take that message home to their own dinners
4. Introduce nutrition in school-served meals instead of exposing kids only to junk food in school cafeterias. Healthy food that becomes familiar is food they will eat at home by introducing their parents too. Vegetables with strange names now becomes food they don't avoid in groceries
5. The fact of the matter is, big business has big power in changing consumer and supplier habits. When McDonald's announced that they won't buy eggs from caged hens, countrywide purchase of non-cage-sourced eggs rose from 5% to 70%. Similarly for Walmart, when they buy less industrialized meat, the entire supply chain industry responds, in a single act, in a way that no politician can legislate. As a big buyer, they can singlehandedly dictate to the industry what they want and need and pass those values on to consumers. Big businesses have a powerful leverage that instantly moves the entire industry. They can't be ignored when the fact is, a lot of ordinary people shop their food and groceries from them.
6. Local and state elections and governance matter. This is especially because they are 'democracy labs'-- novel policies can be tried and tested in this level, in ways that federal government may be too cautious to experiment with. Seeing policies work at the local level can lead to adoption on a federal level. Thus, as voters we also need to be involved in municipal elections and municipal actions.
7. Reform food sell-by/best-before date policies. Food is still usually edible after these dates, and this would dramatically reduce food waste or food thrown out
This is a great book to read from a person who's genuinely concerned about the availability and affordability of food for future children due to the agricultural duress due to climate change.
Then I'd say, 'Experts are increasingly certain that our children and grandchildren will not be able to taste many of the items you enjoyed at this meal.'"-- Sam Kass
This book was phenomenal. I think it deserves to be on the 'Best of 2025' lists. I wish it was more well-known and popularly read.
Sam Kass was personal chef to the Obamas, their nutrition advocate during the Obama administration, and currently an activist who invests in or helps food startups that try to find mitigation for future food crises resulting from climate change, through inventive solutions such as agriculture that does carbon recapture through new microbes, replacement of meat production through meat alternatives, and the study of the use of CRISPR or gene editing to make more resilient agricultural harvests with higher yields.
During his tenure in the Obama administration, he introduced the practice of 'Last Suppers', served to influential diplomats and politicians, that presented the reality of climate change for the guests in a tangible way through a creative menu that only used local ingredients that were vanishing or threatened by changing climate. This included coffee, tea, chocolate, wine grape, crabs and lobsters and other seafood. I was impressed by this because people can doze through slideshow talks of the same climate change topic, but a meal was a powerful, visceral, memorable event that solidifies the effects of climate change as live and now.
Sam Kass is an idealist due to his union activist upbringing, but his focus as shown in this book are actions that pragmatically change the landscape and move the needle, where the food crisis is concerned. His ideas and conclusions, strengthened by experiences in the administration, include:
1. It is easy to just blame or pass the buck to big business or apathetic politics, but the truth is we the people as voters and consumers have our own responsibility. This is because politics and big business respond to our signals and change because of it. Big business won't buy expensive sustainable or healthy meals if consumers' priorities signal that their purchases only depend on convenience, price and taste, and not sustainability or climate change-driven food choices. Politicians won't prioritize food equity or climate change-driven food justice, if voters continue to signal that climate change is low in their roster of priorities, which continues to be dominated by the economy or health care or jobs.
2. To convince people to eat healthier, we need to look at the effective techniques of viral marketing campaigns. Simply put: techniques of the heart, not the mind. People aren't turned by more flat factual messaging about the vitamins in vegetables. Looking at Pepsi ad campaigns, what works are: techniques that elicit positive emotion, or link the food to a core positive memory, or associate the food to positive values (such as warmth, togetherness, childhood, strength, popularity)
3. Use influencers as change makers. People listen to influential people. It's just part of our instincts to follow the pack, or the powerful. In the concern of food, celebrity chefs are the influencers. When people go to an elite restaurant and see meat-free food as luxe, they take that message home to their own dinners
4. Introduce nutrition in school-served meals instead of exposing kids only to junk food in school cafeterias. Healthy food that becomes familiar is food they will eat at home by introducing their parents too. Vegetables with strange names now becomes food they don't avoid in groceries
5. The fact of the matter is, big business has big power in changing consumer and supplier habits. When McDonald's announced that they won't buy eggs from caged hens, countrywide purchase of non-cage-sourced eggs rose from 5% to 70%. Similarly for Walmart, when they buy less industrialized meat, the entire supply chain industry responds, in a single act, in a way that no politician can legislate. As a big buyer, they can singlehandedly dictate to the industry what they want and need and pass those values on to consumers. Big businesses have a powerful leverage that instantly moves the entire industry. They can't be ignored when the fact is, a lot of ordinary people shop their food and groceries from them.
6. Local and state elections and governance matter. This is especially because they are 'democracy labs'-- novel policies can be tried and tested in this level, in ways that federal government may be too cautious to experiment with. Seeing policies work at the local level can lead to adoption on a federal level. Thus, as voters we also need to be involved in municipal elections and municipal actions.
7. Reform food sell-by/best-before date policies. Food is still usually edible after these dates, and this would dramatically reduce food waste or food thrown out
This is a great book to read from a person who's genuinely concerned about the availability and affordability of food for future children due to the agricultural duress due to climate change.
October 24, 2025
for anyone who loves cooking and/or eating this is a MUST read. I’d heard almost nothing about how our food will change in the coming decades from climate change. I learned so much and it really justified my decision to eat plant based 7 years ago. my one minor complaint is I think this would’ve benefited from some chapters being moved to help the flow.
“change is not a matter of preference of ideology. it’s a matter of survival. the urgency is real and the opportunity to do so is still in front of us.”
“change is not a matter of preference of ideology. it’s a matter of survival. the urgency is real and the opportunity to do so is still in front of us.”
December 22, 2025
A lot of really good and interesting information, I learned a lot from reading this book. However it felt pretty disorganized to me. I think he should’ve written a memoir about his time working for the Obama administration and then a separate more focused book on food & climate change.
November 23, 2025
This was written as more of a autobiography/memoir but was still a great read. A good book if you are interested in learning more about food systems and regenerative ag!
November 9, 2025
2.5 stars. This book was not totally what I expected it would be, knowing it was written by a professional chef, and maybe my own fault for not looking more into this book before reading it.
The narrative is bookended by two compelling anecdotes and was what I thought the overall book would be more about: at the beginning, he describes curating "The Last Supper," a meal at Davos featuring beloved food that is, even now, harder to come by in an era of increasingly unstable, warm weather and more destructive natural disasters; at the end, he describes another high-profile event he cooks for dubbed "A Fork in the Road" where he served half the guests a plant- and regenerative-ag-forward (and delicious-sounding) meal and the other half a steak, and at the end explained the differences between the two meals in terms of carbon emissions and environmental damage of the latter meal. I thought the book would be a lot more of this - a broader look at how climate change and agriculture go hand in hand, what professional chefs and restaurants and farm-to-table enterprises are doing (or could be doing more of), and also what we may need to adjust going forward that could be painful but necessary (for example, maybe a world in which you don't have every type of fruit available to you every season of the year? Idk).
Instead, the book wide-reaching to the point where I'm not sure exactly how to sum it up. Part one on culture change is an extensive - and I mean, extensive - look back at the author's time as the Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition Policy in the Obama White House, which went on for so long I wondered when we were going to get back to talking about the topic of the book. Some interesting anecdotes and a reminder of where our national politics were circa 2008-2012 (what a different world!) but I almost DNF'ed the book at this point, thinking that if he wanted to write a memoir of his time in the White House and his relationship with the Obamas (Michelle specifically), he could have done that with a different book title.
There is no exploration in the book as to the role agricultural subsidies play in upholding conventional agriculture and enabling mega-corporations to wreak havoc on our food system and farmlands. He waves this off as not really having much of an impact as people might think. I suppose I'll have to go read about this in another place, then.
He also spends a lot of the book talking about the various companies and financial assets that his venture capital firm is investing in. He doesn't tell you to go invest, per se, but it is a weird pivot - again - from a book I thought was going to be written from the perspective of a chef.
My final point: the audiobook production quality leaves a lot to be desired. There was an absurd amount of long, awkward pauses often in the middle of sentences and too much repetition (I can allow one per book but come on, did anyone listen to this before it was published?) for this to be a good listening experience.
Overall the 2.5 stars because there were some points the book made that I will think about: many beloved crops (coffee!) are getting harder to grow, kelp as a food additive the way soy is, promoting positive behavior change, technological developments of really dope seeds that sequester carbon when planted, and others. But the number of times I wanted to stop listening to this book and the overall disappointment about its contents drags the rating down for sure.
The narrative is bookended by two compelling anecdotes and was what I thought the overall book would be more about: at the beginning, he describes curating "The Last Supper," a meal at Davos featuring beloved food that is, even now, harder to come by in an era of increasingly unstable, warm weather and more destructive natural disasters; at the end, he describes another high-profile event he cooks for dubbed "A Fork in the Road" where he served half the guests a plant- and regenerative-ag-forward (and delicious-sounding) meal and the other half a steak, and at the end explained the differences between the two meals in terms of carbon emissions and environmental damage of the latter meal. I thought the book would be a lot more of this - a broader look at how climate change and agriculture go hand in hand, what professional chefs and restaurants and farm-to-table enterprises are doing (or could be doing more of), and also what we may need to adjust going forward that could be painful but necessary (for example, maybe a world in which you don't have every type of fruit available to you every season of the year? Idk).
Instead, the book wide-reaching to the point where I'm not sure exactly how to sum it up. Part one on culture change is an extensive - and I mean, extensive - look back at the author's time as the Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition Policy in the Obama White House, which went on for so long I wondered when we were going to get back to talking about the topic of the book. Some interesting anecdotes and a reminder of where our national politics were circa 2008-2012 (what a different world!) but I almost DNF'ed the book at this point, thinking that if he wanted to write a memoir of his time in the White House and his relationship with the Obamas (Michelle specifically), he could have done that with a different book title.
There is no exploration in the book as to the role agricultural subsidies play in upholding conventional agriculture and enabling mega-corporations to wreak havoc on our food system and farmlands. He waves this off as not really having much of an impact as people might think. I suppose I'll have to go read about this in another place, then.
He also spends a lot of the book talking about the various companies and financial assets that his venture capital firm is investing in. He doesn't tell you to go invest, per se, but it is a weird pivot - again - from a book I thought was going to be written from the perspective of a chef.
My final point: the audiobook production quality leaves a lot to be desired. There was an absurd amount of long, awkward pauses often in the middle of sentences and too much repetition (I can allow one per book but come on, did anyone listen to this before it was published?) for this to be a good listening experience.
Overall the 2.5 stars because there were some points the book made that I will think about: many beloved crops (coffee!) are getting harder to grow, kelp as a food additive the way soy is, promoting positive behavior change, technological developments of really dope seeds that sequester carbon when planted, and others. But the number of times I wanted to stop listening to this book and the overall disappointment about its contents drags the rating down for sure.
December 3, 2025
I’m sure several of us are already feeling some insecurity with food, whether it’s because we live in food deserts and lack high quality grocery stores in our communities, the significant rise in food prices, the shortages on the shelves at various times, the cuts to SNAP benefits, and our local food banks being in high demand.
What I absolutely love about this book is how the author, Sam Kass, chef and expert on food policy, offers suggestions for eating in such a way to impact the climate crisis. It’s about “maximizing nutrient production while minimizing environmental damage.” The book is organized in an actionable, approachable style. Things that anyone can do, and also those that require changes at higher levels as well. It’s well organized, and I’m grateful for all I learned. I could feel the author’s passion for this topic. Highly recommended for all who care about the future of our planet.
I received a gifted copy.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader
What I absolutely love about this book is how the author, Sam Kass, chef and expert on food policy, offers suggestions for eating in such a way to impact the climate crisis. It’s about “maximizing nutrient production while minimizing environmental damage.” The book is organized in an actionable, approachable style. Things that anyone can do, and also those that require changes at higher levels as well. It’s well organized, and I’m grateful for all I learned. I could feel the author’s passion for this topic. Highly recommended for all who care about the future of our planet.
I received a gifted copy.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader
October 30, 2025
The Last Supper: How to Overcome the Coming Food Crisis by Sam Kass is a visionary and timely exploration of how our food choices intersect with the planet’s future. Drawing from his unique journey from the kitchens of high end restaurants to the Obama White House and into the world of sustainable food innovation Kass offers an actionable framework for transforming the global food system. His “Core Principle” of maximizing nutrient production while minimizing environmental damage provides a clear, practical pathway toward climate resilience. Through engaging anecdotes, policy insights, and scientific exploration, The Last Supper inspires both individuals and industries to rethink how we grow, distribute, and consume food. It’s a transformative work that bridges culinary expertise, public policy, and environmental science with clarity and hope.
November 2, 2025
This book is a really fascinating read. Kass does a deep dive into what we can expect with the upcoming food crisis, but also lays out some options for optimism. I especially enjoyed reading about his time working in the White House with Michelle Obama on her healthy-eating campaign. The only downside is that some of the more technical explorations of farming and GMO foods kind of went over my head. However, this book has inspired me to examine my own diet more carefully and to be conscious of my eating habits. Climate change and its effects on food are coming for all of us, and this book does a fantastic job outlining that.
*Free copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
*Free copy provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
January 20, 2026
I wish I could give half stars, or 1/4-3/4 because this probably deserves more than 3. It’s convinced me to keep an open mind re: next-gen GMO’s on the horizon, which are not a Frankenstein splice situation but rather work with the plant’s original genetic material. But I really dislike the final chapter’s suggestion that commoditizing natural resources as one of the ways to financially incentivize investment in saving the planet. Is that how we hot into this mess in the first place, capital being king above all else? Sadly, the author is probably right that it has to be a consideration, but I see it as having the potential to remove the great outdoors as a place that is free to enjoy at all, every breath being measured and valued.
February 1, 2026
The strength of the book is Kass’s exposure to and experience with and access to the first family. It’s a fascinating pulling back of the curtains.
His writing manages to bring the reader in to see workings that we’d never otherwise glimpse. (and he didn’t feel the need to overly dramatize it)
I am undecided if what he says was prematurely obsolesced by the politics of 2026 or if it was made more timely and poignant. Either way, things have shifted so much that the movement, inertia and efforts he describes feel more like ancient history than they should.
Kudos to him for highlighting innovations and ideas working with potential to make a difference. And for including the political / eco / cultural challenges the face.
His writing manages to bring the reader in to see workings that we’d never otherwise glimpse. (and he didn’t feel the need to overly dramatize it)
I am undecided if what he says was prematurely obsolesced by the politics of 2026 or if it was made more timely and poignant. Either way, things have shifted so much that the movement, inertia and efforts he describes feel more like ancient history than they should.
Kudos to him for highlighting innovations and ideas working with potential to make a difference. And for including the political / eco / cultural challenges the face.
November 17, 2025
This is an important subject, written by someone 'in the know' at the highest levels of U.S. government. The impact of warmer temperatures, unpredictable weather, and the intricacies of the U.S. food system spell disaster ahead unless we start planning now to minimize the effects.
I became a vegetarian after I saw the carbon footprint of raising cows, years ago.
The book could have benefited from better editing, with less repetition and better flow through the book. The last section on actions that must be taken is invaluable.
Highly Recommended.
I became a vegetarian after I saw the carbon footprint of raising cows, years ago.
The book could have benefited from better editing, with less repetition and better flow through the book. The last section on actions that must be taken is invaluable.
Highly Recommended.
January 13, 2026
Rounded up from 3.5 stars
More memoir than review in the first half, which was fine. Maybe he was trying to establish his bones fides, but it compressed the policy and detailed review of how to move forward.
Nothing ground breaking. Move away from meat (beef specifically), subsidies aren’t the only problem, regenerative farming practices should be embraced and subsidized. Take care of farmers, work with the food industrial complex (there is no change without them), and support politics who focus on basic nutrition and sustainability.
More memoir than review in the first half, which was fine. Maybe he was trying to establish his bones fides, but it compressed the policy and detailed review of how to move forward.
Nothing ground breaking. Move away from meat (beef specifically), subsidies aren’t the only problem, regenerative farming practices should be embraced and subsidized. Take care of farmers, work with the food industrial complex (there is no change without them), and support politics who focus on basic nutrition and sustainability.
December 9, 2025
An interesting read on big food companies, big farming, how policy works in DC, and climate crisis. Written by the Obama's chef, Sam Kass also helped with Michelle's programs and policies to promote healthier eating. The author clearly explains many of the issues and also offers realistic solutions for solving the impending food crisis.
November 15, 2025
Great entry point into the world of regeneration and what it’ll take to heal our food systems
January 15, 2026
I liked this book. It was interesting and I liked the parts about his time in the White House. I was hoping for more concrete examples about what I can do as an individual to help.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews