Does the current game patch include the current version of the official balance mod that is in the Steam Workshop? 

I don't think so

Hello,

Current public version does not include the balance mod changes! We reset the mod when the changes are merged with the public version, but currently we're still iterating on a few areas in the mod (you're welcome to join the discussion :))

Regards,

Thanks for the responses.  Where is the discussion taking place?  I only bought the game on the weekend, but I'd be happy to chip in.  My current observation after 60 turns is that I don't ever seem to be short of anything, and food in particular seems abundant, which is not something I'm used to in 4x games, but that might be due to the specific circumstances of my current game.

The discussion is taking place in side the game design forum. It is a sticky at the top and to get caught up I'd read the last three or four pages.

solaristics wrote:

Thanks for the responses.  Where is the discussion taking place?  I only bought the game on the weekend, but I'd be happy to chip in.  My current observation after 60 turns is that I don't ever seem to be short of anything, and food in particular seems abundant, which is not something I'm used to in 4x games, but that might be due to the specific circumstances of my current game.

Food abundance has been extensively discussed on the forum.

You can try CyRob's Community Mod Project which focuses on food production and consumption balance, amoung other things : https://www.games2gether.com/endless-space-2/forums/66-game-design/threads/27924-community-mod-project-discussion-thread?page=1

Yeah, Food has been a known factor to many of us for a long time. I helped make the Community Mod Project back when it was just "the food mod;" it changes the formula so each pop consumes a flat amount of Food, and also a percentage of all Food production. It keeps growth way down unless you invest a lot in Food, which is nice if you're a Food faction because it makes your advantages much more significant.