From long-term field experiments to future food
What can nearly a century of agricultural experiments teach us about farming in a changing climate? The exhibition Ancient Soil / Future Food begins beneath our feet, with the soil itself, and looks ahead to what we may grow and eat in the future.
A soil sampler, a Rhizobox displaying the living roots of a plant, and ears and grains of the perennial crop Kernza are among the objects on display in the entrance hall of Biocentrum at Campus Ultuna, where the exhibition Ancient Soil / Future Food will be shown for three weeks.
Photographs, models of experimental farms, and texts that move between poetry and popular science tell the story of research spanning from historical field experiments to today’s questions about climate change and food preparedness.
Following the same fields for decades
The exhibition is based on SLU’s long-term agricultural experiments, in which researchers study what happens when different crops, crop rotations, and cultivation practices are tested on the same plots of land over extended periods of time. Because these experiments continue for decades, they make it possible to observe changes that would be difficult to detect during a single growing season.
Their results are also used in research on how agriculture can adapt to new conditions. In the exhibition, this opens up broader questions about which crops we will be able to grow in a changing climate, how we can secure access to food during times of crisis, and what may end up on our plates in the future.
Almost a century of research
The exhibition opened on 9 November and has been produced by the SLU Library in collaboration with SLU researchers and SLU Future Food. Kee Lundqvist of the SLU Library served as project manager and initiated the project. The idea grew out of a fascination with the long-term field experiments, some of which were established long before SLU itself was founded:
– The oldest experiment is almost one hundred years old now. What I find so remarkable is that these experiments are still there, continuing to provide us with new knowledge. And yet, they remain relatively unknown, even among people at SLU.”
Touring SLU campuses
Ancient Soil / Future Food will be on display in the entrance hall of Biocentrum at Campus Ultuna from 9 to 29 November 2026. During 2027, the exhibition will travel first to Alnarp and then to Umeå, although dates are still to be decided.
– We are also exploring the possibility of displaying parts of the exhibition at public libraries located near the experimental farms, says Kee Lundqvist.
Experience the exhibition online
If you can’t visit in person or would like to read the exhibition texts again, you can explore the digital version of Ancient Soil / Future Food. The website also includes links to further information about the research and the experimental farms, as well as a short film made for the exhibition: Why can’t we keep eating the way we do today?
Experience the exhibition online