Farm To Table Talk

50 years ago the White House conducted a conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. It has finally happened again as President Biden announced a national plan for ending hunger in the United States by 2030 with these actions: 1) Improve food access and affordability; 2) Integrate nutrition and health; 3) Empower all consumers to make and have access to healthy choices; 4) Support physical activit...

When most consumers buy pork chops or bacon, it seldom occurs to them to wonder how much space does a pig need?  That question is increasingly coming up to supermarkets, restaurants, curious consumers and their legislators.  The pig space question focuses on the stage between a female hog (sow or gilt) being bred and giving birth to a littler of pigs 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days later.  In that ti...

“Food to live for” could be the theme of Sacramento’s annual harvest celebration of the regions pride in being America’s Farm To Fork Capitol. Talented chefs and local farmers are joined by the whole region including over 300,000 food appreciative consumers at a weekend street festival with music and food for all tastes. One of the most coveted tickets in town gets you dinner with 850 fellow farm...

Some of the most productive farmland in the world has been knocked out of production by an historic drought. And in California alone over a million citizens lack access to clean drinking water and according to the California Dry Well Reporting System, communities have reported that 966 wells have gone dry this year. If this isn’t a crisis what is? When we look for solutions we may need to look for...

1 in 3 people worldwide didn’t have access to adequate food in 2021, up 350 million from pre pandemic levels. How can agriculture address this widening gulf in the global food supply– becoming more sustainable and efficient? Potash is one of the most prominent minerals used in agricultural fertilization and is sourced and transported in great quantities from far off countries like Russia and...

When you’ve had it with the corporate track, why not take a step towards changing the world? Drew Levich took that step because he believes that each of us can make a difference.  He created “Drew’s Cookies” with the underlying purpose to demonstrate that it is simple to be a change maker.  In addition to marketing cookies and popcorn, they are donating a share of profits t...

If pesticide residues are discovered in California, it is more likely from imports than state grown. Controlling pests any where must be a priority to be done safely and sustainably.  That’s a key part of the job for Julie Henderson, the Director of the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. Formerly the Deputy Secretary for Public Policy at the California EPA, her vision is for coll...

Diverse soil biology affects the farm and our evolving food system. It starts with decoding soil biology using a global data base of millions of microorganisms to both analyze which microbes are currently present and exactly what role they are playing. Adrian Ferrero, a co-founder of Biome Makers, joins Farm To Table Talk to explain the logic of a biological future with implications for the whole...

More than just good yields, successful farming increasingly needs to function in a system that connects the farm with customers looking for food that meets their desires, beyond just taste and price. Corwin Heatwole, the founder and CEO of Farmer Focus has created a system for chicken farmers that is an alternative too being large “integrator” dependent or too small to be financially v...

  The road to regenerative resilience will require knowledge gained from research and then implemented by farmers committed to continuous improvement.  That necessary research will have to cost governments and organizations in the short term and pay society in the long term. This was part of the message of Dr. Thelma Velez, the Research and Education Program Manager of the Organic Farming Res...

Mitigating Climate Change will require implementing a data driven approach on every level of the business of agriculture. An agriculture-oriented satellite constellation will provide a critical perspective on the size and condition of nearly everything we grow to eat, nearly every where in the world.  EOS SAT provides eyes in the sky to enable each food sector to introduce smart er sustainable agr...

Effective climate change actions can be on a spectrum from ‘mitigation’ that reduces emissions to ‘adaptation’ — recognition that the the crisis may no longer be avoidable but humans will figure out new ways to live in a hotter world. The necessary adaptations will include new ways and new places to farm, such as shipping containers that allow food to be produced year...

Farmers grow enough food, yet with extreme weather events, war, pandemic, inflation and more, there are hundreds of millions of people in danger of hunger and famine. Sustainable development goals are being pursued to get the world back on track to end hunger and poverty.  Asma Lateef, the Policy Lead for the SDG2 Advocacy Hub is bringing together NGOs, agricultural networks, nutritionists, campai...

For the good of the climate let’s just stop driving cars. That sounds ridiculous when you can obtain more efficient cars or hybrids, plug-ins and EV’s . Why shouldn’t the same logic apply for the critics of beef consumption? It turns out that some cows are the Teslas and others are gas guzzlers. Just like efficient climate friendly cars there are climate friendly cows producing more milk and/or me...

Mother Earth is under the weather, but don’t take her “pulse” just yet.  In the common usage “pulse” is a vital sign, however another us age is a vital food. Food shortages, impacted by soaring gas prices and inflation, are affecting people in need and their ability to access staple foods. Food banks are busier than ever before. In this environment pulses such as bean...

Wendell Berry’s writings favorably compare the ways of Amish farming to the high stress modern conventional farming by “the English”. In surprising ways Amish farms offer regenerative leadership that are a modern contrast in a horse and buggy society. Through his own Modern Frontier Farm and an Amish Cooperative, Adam Rick finds that Amish farms are especially well-suited to these times when consu...

Festivals celebrate our favorite foods and  since bacon is a favorite for many it deserves a delicious festival.  Across the country, chefs, consumers and farmers have come together in celebration of bacon in events known as BaconFests.  In the acclaimed Farm to Fork Capitol, Sacramento California, Farm to Table Talk joins the Bacon Fest festivities in conversation with talented and enthusiastic c...

Food can have a positive impact on the land and our communities. “But our planet is in danger and it’s time for us to think even bigger.” These words of wisdom are surprisingly to be found on a climate smart Kernza Grain cereal by Cascadian Farm. Thanks to the research and development at the Land Institute in Salina Kansas, the deep rooted, soil healthy perennial grain will store more carbon, prev...

The health of land and the health of bodies are connected.  Or as Kate Kavanaugh explains it\’s about mind, body and soil . Kate is a butcher, a farmer, a newly podcast host and more — all existing within the regenerative ag space. As a butcher, she founded Western Daughters Butcher shop in Denver featuring local grass fed beef,  pork and chicken from local regenerative farms. As a far...

  Sheep may be today’s most popular animal for a new breed of sustainable farmers and ranchers with new consumers who are discovering a taste for lamb, raised right. To meet this opportunity lamb processor Superior Farms and sheep producers from six states have launched a state-of-the-art sheep facility, in Nephi, Utah. Superior Farms CEO, Rick Stott explains that the venture will converge th...

Seeds are the source of all food.  Will seeds save us? The FAO reports that only nine crop species now account for the majority of the world’s food supply. There has been a 90% decrease in plant breeding diversity since the early 1900’s. Farmers are not able to save seeds for future planting that are protected by intellectual property laws and 4 corporations control 70% of the current  $90+ billio...

Worthwhile endeavors that are to protect and regenerate the Earth, must be \”Earthwhile\”. Nestled in the heart of California\’s San Benito County among  sweeping oak-studded hillsides,  Paicines Ranch is habitat for a diversity of wildlife including animals, birds, insects, trees, plants, grasses, springs, rivers, and  more. Ranch owner,Sally Callhoun says their mission is to wo...

Regenerative agriculture can significantly curb climate change, but only if it’s coupled with racial and land justice.  UC Santa Barbara professor and writer Liz Carlisle\’s   book, Healing Grounds: Climate, Justice, and the Deep Roots of Regenerative Farming   explores how  we got here and how we heal the earth and the food system. Along the way she shares the stories of female farmers of c...

A food system revolution is under way that begins with farming better. From his Blue Dasher Farm in South Dakota and the non-profit Ecdysis Foundation, Jonathan Lundgren professes that \”we can grow food and conserve biodiversity and environmental health\” by making innovative practices scalable and transferable to as many farms as possible . Nothing less than a paradigm shift is antic...

Caroline and Jesse McDougall work everyday to build abundance, diversity, and resilience on their farm in rural southern Shaftbury Vermont. Studio Hill Farm transitioned from conventional chemical management to organic holistic management in 2012.  To rehabilitate 250+ acres of degraded land, they raise sheep, pigs and poultry on pasture and use regenerative management to foster healthy, biologica...