Shifting the "consumables" mindset

Wednesday, 13 May 2026

Attending the European Institute of Innovation for Sustainability Summit in Rome last weekend, I had expected to come away with insights and inspiration specifically regarding sustainable innovations in the agrifood sector. Instead, the phrase that really hit me, stuck with me throughout the weekend, and continues to provide a refreshing frame for how I think about everything, came from a surprising source: the Chief Creative Officer at Aston Martin, Marek Reichman. 

In a panel on the future of infrastructure, he mentioned that 96% of the vehicles ever manufactured by Aston Martin over its century-long lifespan are still in existence today. "At Aston Martin," stated Reichman, "we don't create consumables. We create collectibles." 

I was floored. Images of the dystopian trash wastelands depicted in Wall-E contrasted in my mind with the gleaming starlight-silver Aston Martin DB5 from Goldfinger, tucked up safe and snug somewhere, being lovingly polished by its doting caretaker. I jokingly enquired of Marek whether the James Bond franchise was entirely responsible for the 4% which had been destroyed. Apparently not! Even those that are mangled in action take on a particular collectible significance after their appearance on screen. Although, Marek revealed, that particular vehicle from Goldfinger is indeed one of the 4%: it was stolen and can no longer be accounted for. (I, however, think we can safely assume that the thief sits in some high castle upon a swivel chair, fluffy white cat in their lap, marvelling at their priceless DB5 and plotting to take over the world.)

Sean Connery with the DB5 from Goldfinger - image from topgear.nl 

Of course, we cannot all be Aston Martin. Excellence is, by definition, exceptional. We cannot all create collectibles - some things do need to be consumed (especially in the agrifood sector!). That being said, what if we could all bring a little more Aston Martin energy to our endeavours? In some sectors, the application is obvious - for example, construction, furniture, and clothes manufacturing. Imagine if the norm were for things to be built to last, rather than to maximise efficiency and volume of output. This might sound like a socio-economically clumsy statement, but consider the German maxim: "I'm too poor to buy cheap," or its English cousin: "Buy cheap, buy twice." 

What if we also brought this Aston Martin energy to agrifood? In a sense, we are beginning to do so, with the rise of regenerative agriculture: a movement that prioritises design-thinking and long-termism to actually improve the quality of the soil whilst farming it. We cannot continue to view our arable land as a consumable, or in just one generation it will indeed be fully consumed and cease to yield. 

And what about in our daily endeavours, particularly in this surreal new era of generative AI, with machine-made slop posing as music, art, and human thought, dripping from every corner of the internet? What if we pushed back against the narrative that we have to do more, better, everywhere, all the time? What if we only created intellectual products that were intended to genuinely delight or inform; to be revisited and valued by someone, somewhere, rather than simply tick a box, meet a target, or satisfy an algorithm? 

I've always been a romantic and an optimist; perhaps I will be in a minority taking this Aston Martin Energy so deeply to heart while the world keeps churning out consumables of all types at increasingly alarming rates. But, here's hoping it might just catch on.