Food First

Part III of The Economic Impact of COVID-19 with our very own Dr. Dawn Opel, Director of Research and Strategic Initiatives. She puts the cookies on the lower shelf by applying the research from the University of Michigan to estimate how long this current period of inflated need will last as the long tail of the pandemic begins to unfurl. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for emergency fo...

June 28, 2020

Over the next 3 weeks, Food First Michigan will be focusing on Michigan's economy and its impact on food security across the state. Tune in tonight at 9 p.m. to hear from Phil, Gerry and the brilliant Don Grimes. Don is the Senior Research Area Specialist with the University of Michigan Research Seminar on Quantitative Economics. Don provides both a state and national perspective and what we shoul...

Do you know that Americans waste 133 billion lbs? of food? That has a retail value of over $161 billion! Over 40% of food waste comes from our own refrigerator and the other 60% gets lost between the fields and our plates. Hear from Dr. Lisa Johnson - her knowledge of food hierarchy is astounding! Phil, Gerry, and Lisa delve into her most recent publication, "Farmer harvest decisions and vegetable...

We've said it before and we'll say it again - everything rises and falls on leadership. Tune in to hear how Andrew Zupancic is using his one handful of life to own and influence the future. Andrew is a sophomore at Bloomfield Hills High School and saw a need in his community amid the pandemic and chose to do something about it. He created Project Porch Pantry - a contact-less food drive. He is a t...

Tonight we are choosing to spread the woosah. Woosah is a meditative term that helps you relax - we could all use a bit of that amid the pandemic. Tune in to hear from Erica Lang and Kelly McPhee, founders and owners of Woosah and Outside Coffee Co. Erica and Kelly are choosing to live and lead during the pandemic with grace and class. They are getting creative, per usual, and determined to make t...

While COVID-19 has taken so much from us in the past two months it has also given us the opportunity to learn, evaluate and see life from a unique perspective. Work is the biggest tool in the anti-hunger toolbox before the pandemic, and will be after. If we want people to not need us, or the programs we use any longer than necessary - we must change the policy to SUPPORT work, REWARD work and HELP...

Change is painful. Unknowns are scary. They are part of our everyday lives and we are learning how to live with the new 'normals'. There is no doubt that our worldview impacts our thinking and from these worldviews, we derive our values - the non-negotiables of our lives. Our food bankers, who are on the front lines every day, distributing record amounts of emergency to people in need across the s...

Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures. Tune in to hear from a favorite of many, Sheril Kirshenbaum. Sheril is the ED of Science Debate as well as the host of 'Serving up Science' on PBSDS. With major concerns about shortages in grocery stores and mad scrambles to find the last box of pasta or toilet paper roll, many of the nation’s largest farms are struggling with another ghastly ef...

'The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.' - Gandhi Tune in to hear from Diane Golzynski, Director of the Office of Health and Nutrition Services of Michigan Department of Education. Diane and her team are standing in the gap and living by the words 'they must be well FED, if they want to be well READ'. With 1.5 million public school children across the state of...

All of us, at some time or other, need help. Whether we're giving or receiving help, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world. That's one of the things that connects us as neighbors – in our own way, each one of us is a giver and a receiver. Listen in to hear from Phil, Gerry and Dr. Dawn Opel, Food Bank Council of Michigan's Director of Research and Strategic Initiatives discu...

In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts and to be assured that our questions are just as important as our answers. Food insecurity, in the midst of a pandemic, is magnified and multiplied. The solution cannot be, should not be, and must not be the responsibility of a community-based organization alone. We are grateful for the state and...

Phil and Gerry will attempt to solve the riddle, inside of a mystery trapped in an enigma. COVID-19. COVID-19 has grabbed our independence by the throat and pinned us against the wall and it appears it's not letting go any time soon. This does not stop the food bankers. They are determined to see this through to the end, whenever that is. They are heroes. They are continuing to put themselves at r...

COVID-19 seeks the most vulnerable and uses the healthy to carry out its intention. It is not only revealing our essence and developing our character, but it is also offering us perspective. Phil and Gerry dive in to the 'waves' of the pandemic. Last week was Wave I - children. This week they focus on Wave 2 - Senior Citizens. A lot of issues surround feeding seniors - typically they go to a congr...

We are challenged, confused and confronted by this obscurity and potency. COVID-19 multiplies the shortcomings of our society; it reveals our own character, and worse, it cripples our sense of hope, freedom, and trust. Due to the pandemic, this episode is brought to you through uncommon circumstances with Phil, Gerry and Mark creating the show virtually sharing the food bank's network response. Th...

The progress will not come by doing what we did yesterday. Hear from the astounding Dr. Dawn Shoultz Opel. Dr. Opel’s experience, wisdom, and passion for food security will help take us to the next level of effectiveness across the state. Did you know that food banking has only been going on for about 40 years? 21st century food banking will move from the philanthropic model to a shared partnershi...

'You cannot BE the same, THINK the same and ACT the same if you hope to be successful in a world that does not remain the same.' - John Maxwell Adaptability, not conformity is the key to maintaining a high level of effectiveness, impact and success. The Food Bank Council of Michigan and our network adapted - 20 years ago our network distributed over 70 million lbs. of food across our state, which...

'The best social program is a job.' - Ronald Reagan Times have changed, however, Mr. Reagan. The best social program is now a job that actually pays a living wage. Phil and Gerry delve into the current U.S. Department of Agriculture policy concerning food insecurity in America, the threshold of poverty, and the most up-to-date Self-Sufficiency Standard (SSS). The SSS determines the budget needed f...

Cutting food waste is a delicious way of saving money, helping create food security and protect the planet. Waste not, want not. A favorite of many, Sheril Kirshenbaum is featured on this week’s show. Sheril is the ED of Science Debate as well as the host of 'Serving up Science' on PBSDS. Sheril has a refreshing approach to science and reality with a thought-provoking view on food waste and climat...

Many are called, few are chosen. Peter Vogel, CEO of the South Michigan Food Bank was chosen for this work. Peter is investing his one handful of life by helping others, standing in the gap for those who need it, changing people and places, making things better, fixing broken organizations and making a HUGE difference! Phil, Gerry and Peter discuss Peter's niche of taking non-profit organizations...

'Agriculture is the most healthful, most useful and most noble employment of man.' -George Washington Listen in to hear the update on the detrimental role that the weather played in the fields this spring and fall from Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development - MDARD Director Gary McDowell. Director McDowell, Phil, and Gerry discuss the extreme hardships that Michigan's farmers went...

This episode features Lou Glazer, President of Michigan Future Inc.., an Ann Arbor-based Think Tank. Lou defines reality about a self-sufficient wage in his most recent op-ed in Crain's Detroit Business - https://bit.ly/37sKLaA. Today, there are more Michigan households that are unable to pay for basic necessities than there were in 2010 when MI was just starting to recover from the recession. WHY...

'Be quick, but not in a hurry.' -John Wooden There are no clear winners or losers in an infinite game. Solving hunger is an infinite game - one that has really just begun. Many of the struggles that we face exist simply in our mission because we are playing with a finite mindset in an infinite game. The Food Bank Council of Michigan and the food bank network have a clear mind and 2020 vision. Hear...

'History will judge us by the difference we make in the everyday lives of children.' -Nelson Mandela Paula Herbart, president of Michigan Education Association and Co-Chair of Launch Michigan. Launch Michigan's objective is to create a compelling plan and path forward for Michigan education that it would transcend any leadership change at the highest level of state government. Small dreams inspire...

"Our aim is not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but to cure it and, above all, to prevent it." - Lyndon Johnson In 1964, Lyndon Johnson declared war on poverty and sadly, we are still fighting it today, but there is so much more connected to poverty. Hear from Barb Petee, Executive Director of The Root Cause Coalition as well as the Chief Advocacy and Government Relations Office of ProMedi...