Are Big Companies, Not Locavorism, the Best Hope for American Food?

In 1999, Steve Ells, the founder and former CEO of the fast-food chain Chipotle, came across an article about the merits of humane, mostly pasture-raised pork—not just for the sake of the animals and the environment but for the flavor of the richly marbled and fatty meat. The piece was written by Ed Behr and published in his then-quarterly food journal, The Art of Eating. The following year, Chipotle began sourcing its pork from Paul Willis—founder of the Niman Ranch Pork Company—and one of the...