 Ripe for Change chronicles the intersection of food and politics in California over the last 30 years. California is at a crossroads in agriculture, fending off overdevelopment and the loss of farming traditions while simultaneously embracing innovative visions of sustainability. Always a fascinating marriage of opposing extremes, California is the state from which Cesar Chavez brought the plight of migrant farm workers and the hazards of industrial farming to the attention of the world. Yet it is also the state that embraced the biotechnology industry and spurred the fast-food movement. Alongside this movement are the leaders in redefining school lunch programs, the marketing system known as community supported agriculture (CSA) and calls for more sustainable farming that considers the impact on environment, community and workers. With diminishing resources and a growing population, how will the state cope with this dilemma? How can consumers participate in these life-affecting decisions? Revealing interviews with some of California s prominent farmers, chefs and food thinkers offer an opportunity to consider these complex questions. These stories are about survival, building communities and reclaiming the aesthetics of food, and how food nurtures our souls while sustaining our bodies.