About FRESHCONOMICS — The Podcast of the Fresh Produce Business
I'm David Del Pino, and this is Freshconomics— Welcome to the Fresh Produce Business— A world where uncertainty is the only constant and volatility shapes every decision. Every day, remarkable people navigate this chaos with skill and courage. Join me as we explore the hidden logic of this industry to decode what others call unpredictable. Help me connect with the community of professionals in the fresh produce industry.
Visit my blog at DavidDelPino.com where you'll find out how to get your copy of the book Freshconomics. And feel free to send any questions to: web@daviddelpino.com.
I guess is about time that we talk about a debate that has been open for centuries and that, in fresh produce, is more alive than ever: what is the ideal size for a farm? As big as a medieval landed estate, or as small as our grandparents’ gardening plot?
I’ll tell you up front that the answer is neither one nor the other. And to explain it, I’m going to reach for a concept I coined in the book Freshconomics: “the fresh produce Mittelstand”. A term I’ve taken from the German industrial model and applied to our world of fruit and vegetables.
But before we get there, we’ll have to take a little trip through the history of economic thought, pay a visit to Adam Smith in Britain and even to Jovellanos in Spain, talk about physics and thermodynamics, and even summon the ghost of “too big to fail”... that phrase we heard applied to the banks over and over during the past financial crisis.
And all of it to understand why the middle way (what other authors call “the rural middle class”) might just be the most sensible path for our sector.
15 Oct 2026
Ep. 32. In Praise of Paranoia
Today we’re going to talk about something that, from outside the sector, can look like a character flaw, a psychological problem, even a lack of business ambition: the extreme conservatism of fresh produce companies.
If you’ve ever worked with growers or with companies in the sector, you’ll have noticed a widespread tendency towards caution. Towards not taking on too much debt. Towards diversifying crops even when it’s inefficient. Towards keeping cash reserves that look excessive. Towards turning down opportunities that, on paper, could carry high market value.
Consultants from other industries — when they pass through the sector — tend to read this as irrational risk aversion. As a lack of strategic vision. As that ancestral rural conservatism that just needs to be overcome through training and modernisation. Basically, they think we’re a bunch of stubborn, pathologically distrustful hillbillies.
And they’re wrong. Deeply wrong. What looks like irrational paranoia is, in fact, the perfectly rational response to an environment where the risk of ruin is always in the room. And today I’m going to explain why, using some ideas from mathematician, trader and writer Nassim Nicholas Taleb. His work has helped me put words to something the sector has grasped intuitively for generations.
8 Oct 2026
Ep. 31. The Butterfly Effect in Plastic
Today we’re going to talk about sustainability. But not in the way you’re used to hearing about it. I’m not going to tell you that plastic is evil and must be wiped out. And I’m not going to tell you that plastic is wonderful and must be kept. I’m going to tell you something rather more uncomfortable: that simple solutions to complex problems tend to create new problems nobody saw coming.
From 2030, a new Regulation comes into force across the entire European Union, banning the use of plastic for retail packs of fresh fruit and vegetables under 1.5 kilos. It’s a well-meaning measure. The environmental damage done by plastic is obvious, documented, undeniable. Nobody in the fresh produce sector disputes that we need to cut plastic use.
What we don’t yet know is whether the final balance of this measure will turn out positive or negative for the environment. Because the second-order consequences — and the third-order ones — are already starting to surface. And they aren’t exactly encouraging.
Host of FRESHCONOMICS — The Podcast of the Fresh Produce Business?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
