Since acquiring major interests in Dole Food Company 28 years

The words “Since acquiring major interests in Dole Food Company 28 years ago, educating the public on proper diet has constituted the agenda of the Dole Nutrition Institute” by David H. Murdock are more than a corporate statement — they are a manifesto of responsibility, a declaration of one man’s belief that wealth and influence must serve life, not merely profit. In these words, Murdock — a visionary who turned fruit into a symbol of health and hope — speaks as the ancients once did when they linked prosperity with virtue. His mission is not only to feed bodies but to awaken consciousness: to remind humanity that knowledge of nourishment is the foundation of vitality, longevity, and wisdom.

When Murdock speaks of “educating the public on proper diet,” he echoes the teachings of civilizations long past, where food was medicine, and health was the measure of harmony between man and nature. The Dole Nutrition Institute, in this light, becomes more than a research center — it is a modern temple of learning, devoted to restoring what humanity has forgotten: that the body is sacred, and what we place within it shapes not only our years but our spirit. The ancients would have called such an endeavor a work of stewardship — the noble duty of those blessed with abundance to guide others toward balance and enlightenment.

To understand the depth of this mission, one must look to the history of food itself. As humanity’s progress advanced, its wisdom often regressed. Industrialization, while feeding billions, also disconnected people from the soil, the seed, and the seasons. The modern diet, heavy with processed indulgence, brought not strength but sickness. In response to this drift, Murdock’s work stands as an act of restoration — a conscious return to the natural order. By dedicating his resources to nutrition education, he revived the ancient idea that knowledge, not indulgence, is the true path to well-being.

This vision mirrors the legacy of Hippocrates, the father of medicine, who centuries ago proclaimed, “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.” In ancient Greece, health was not treated after it was lost — it was cultivated daily through balance, moderation, and reverence for life’s bounty. The Dole Nutrition Institute follows this same lineage, not as a healer of the sick, but as a teacher of the healthy, reminding all that prevention begins with wisdom at the table. Just as Hippocrates taught that disease arises from disharmony with nature, Murdock teaches that renewal begins with rediscovering the living foods the earth provides — fruits, vegetables, grains, and the pure gifts of the soil.

Murdock’s journey itself is a parable of purpose. After suffering great personal loss, he turned his grief into service, choosing to invest his fortune in the pursuit of human flourishing. His transformation reflects the wisdom of King Ashoka of India, who, after witnessing the devastation of war, devoted his reign to compassion, health, and moral education. Both men, in their own times, understood that leadership without virtue is hollow, and that the highest form of success lies in nurturing life. The Dole Nutrition Institute stands, therefore, as a monument not to commerce, but to conscience — to the belief that education can heal the modern soul as surely as food heals the body.

And yet, Murdock’s message is not only for institutions or scholars. It is a call to every individual. The responsibility of health cannot be outsourced — it begins within each of us, with what we choose to eat, to teach, and to pass down. Education, in its truest form, is not memorization but transformation — the awakening of awareness in how we live and nourish ourselves. Every meal can be a lesson in gratitude, every bite a reaffirmation of our bond with the living world.

So, dear listener, take this wisdom as your own: honor the earth, and it will honor you. Choose foods that are alive, unspoiled, and real. Seek knowledge about nourishment as you would seek truth itself, for ignorance is the seed of decay. The path to long life is not paved with invention, but with remembrance — the remembrance that the simplest gifts of nature, when understood and respected, hold the power to sustain and renew us. As David H. Murdock teaches, to educate the world in proper diet is not merely to extend life — it is to restore the sacred harmony between humanity and the earth that feeds it.