That question headlining a 1984 National Geographic article on soils remains as relevant today as it was more than 30 years ago.

We lavish attention on our food, we want to know where it came from, who grew it, and whether it is “conventional” or “organic.” But we give hardly a passing thought to the ground our food grew in.

Soil could use some more attention and respect. After all, soil is the thin skin of our earth where we plant and grow the vital grain crops like wheat, rice, and corn that feed more than seven billion of us.

And while the future rests on the soil beneath our feet, as National Geographic