The dilution effect is very real, then.20 And in large part it can be explained by cultivar selection. We’ve chosen higher-yielding plants, not more nutrient-dense plants; more carbohydrate per gram of food produced, less of the other nutrients. Pretty much all plant selection, for food, has been based not on nutrient density, but on yield and looks, and the ability to thrive in a high artificial-fertiliser environment.
