Food Sleuth Radio

Did you know that children are more vulnerable to the effects of pesticides in our food supply and that switching to an organic diet can significantly reduce their exposure to these toxins?  Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Kendra Klein, Ph. D., Senior Scientist at Friends of the Earth and co-author of new research showing the value o...

Did you know that food served in jails and prisons does not promote mental and physical health? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Keri Blakinger, staff writer for the Marshall Project who was formerly incarcerated in upstate New York. Blakinger describes the food and other hidden living conditions in prison, as well as the impact of Co...

Did you know that “urban agriculture” is not new? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Monica M. White, Ph. D., Associate Professor of Environmental Justice at the Gaylord Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, in the Department of Community and Environmental Sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. White is the author of th...

Did you know that organic farms provide beneficial ecological services to rural communities and the planet? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Kate Mendenhall, organic farmer and Executive Director of the Organic Farmers Association. Mendenhall witnessed the negative impact of industrial agriculture in her rural IA community and chose o...

Did you know that workers in meat packing plants are at increased risk for Covid-19 , and other work-related injuries due to increasing line speeds (such as 175 birds to handle per minute)? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Leone Jose Bicchieri, Founder and Executive Director of Working Family Solidarity, based in Chicago, IL. Bicchier...

Did you know it’s possible to “feed the world” without the use of harmful chemicals? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Carmen Fernholz, award-winning organic grain farmer based in Madison, Minnesota. Fernholz discusses his farming philosophy, an organic farmer’s audit trail and the ecosystem services/benefits associated with biodiverse...

Did you know a community garden and social support can help end homelessness? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Darrie Ganzhorn, Executive Director of the Homeless Garden Project based in Santa Cruz, CA. Ganzhorn describes the therapeutic value and empowering impact of social support and holistic community gardening. The project’s succ...

Did you know that factory farms (CAFOs), racism and Covid-19 are connected? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Everett Murphy, M.D., retired pulmonologist from K.C., MO who has been instrumental in working to defeat the expansion of CAFOs  - concentrated animal feeding operations. People who live closest to CAFOs are more likely to suff...

Did you know that that the long-chain fatty acid, DHA, can significantly reduce preterm birth, and that African American women are more prone to preterm births? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Susan Carlson, Ph. D., Associate Dean for Research at the U. of Kansas (KU) School of Health Professions, and Distinguished AJ Rice Professor...

Did you know that African Americans were purposely left out of recorded history, resulting in lost wisdom and dignity? Join Food Sleuth Radio host, and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Donna Battle Pierce, former food editor and test kitchen director at the Chicago Tribune, and director of the non-profit Skillet Project which creates meaningful connections among gen...

Did you know that the stress and trauma from food insecurity puts children’s mental and physical health at risk?  Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Cindy Leung, ScD, MPH, Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of  Michigan School of Public Health.  Leung  is a nutritional epidemiologist whose re...

Did you know that water is our most important nutrient, and it is often contaminated with a variety of common contaminants? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Aly Cohen, board certified rheumatologist, integrative medicine, and environmental health expert. Cohen discusses the importance of water quality, common contaminants, filters, na...

Did you know that environmental chemical exposures impact our immune system, inflammatory response, and risk for COVID-19? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Aly Cohen, board certified rheumatologist, integrative medicine, and environmental health expert. Cohen discusses key points from the book she co-authored, Non-Toxic: Guide to Livi...

Did you know that food is a driver of economic and community development? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Craig Willingham , MPH, Deputy Director of the City University of NY Urban Food Policy Institute. Willingham discusses food insecurity, food access, food justice, policy, and the multiple community benefits of urban gardens in NY...

Did you know that wild plants offer a variety of nutritional, medicinal and ecosystem benefits? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Dina Falconi , clinical herbalist, wildcrafter, and author of Foraging & Feasting: A Field Guide and Wild Food Cookbook. Falconi describes her personal journey into the joys of foraging, and benefits of...

Did you know that women were the core of the Black Panther Party? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Judy Juanita, MFA, novelist, poet, playwright and former Black Panther member. Juanita describes the Panthers’ work, including the free breakfast program for poor children, the historical struggles of Black people in the U.S., and the ro...

Did you know that the foundation of food safety in America is primarily focused on pathogen and microbiological contaminants? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Jackie Bowen, M.S., MPH, Executive Director of the Clean Label Project, a national non-profit with the mission to bring truth and transparency to food and consumer product label...

Did you know that good nutrition is key to a strong immune system? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Lisa McDowell, M.S., R.D., Registered Dietitian and Director of Nutrition at St Joseph Mercy Health System, based in Ann Arbor, MI where she started a 25-acre organic farm to ensure fresh produce for patients and employees. In 2011, McD...

Did you know that litigation can help drive legislation? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Kim E. Richman, Founding Partner at Richman Law Group which specializes in consumer protection and civil rights litigation with the goal of protecting public health and our environment. The Richman Law Group investigates corporations that may be...

Did you know that the Smithfield pork processing plant in Milan, Missouri processes 10,500 hogs per day? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Axel Fuentes, Executive Director, Rural Community Workers Alliance, and labor organizer. Fuentes shares real life experiences of Smithfield meat processing plant workers including: line speed, repet...

Did you know that Article 14 of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights declares that  ​   “Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution”? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Karen Ehrens, Registered Dietitian based in Bismarck, North Dakota. Ehrens discusses her recent trip to the U.S./Me...

Did you know that there is no evidence to date that people can contract COVID-19 from food?  Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Don Schaffner, Ph. D., food safety specialist and Distinguished Professor at Rutgers University, and podcast host ( http://foodsafetytalk.com ). Schaffner describes best practices for safe food handling during...

Did you know that the U.S. Dietary Guidelines are updated every five years, but have thus far not taken sustainability into consideration? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Sarah Reinhardt, MPH, RD , Lead Food Systems & Health Analyst, with the Food & Environment Program, at the Union of Concerned Scientists. Reinhardt discusse...

Did you know that 40 million fellow Americans, or at least one in nine households experience food insecurity? (These numbers are before the impact of the Corona virus on our nation’s economy. ) Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Megan Lott, MPH, RD , Deputy Director of Healthy Eating Research, based at Duke University. Lott discusses nu...

Did you know that okra doesn’t have to be slimy? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and registered dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Chris Smith, founder and Executive Director of the Utopian Seed Project and author of The Whole Okra: A Seed to Stem Celebration. The grand champion of okra, Smith describes his okra seed trial research, celebrates okra’s many uses, teaches us how to rem...