Nourishing Matters to Chew On

A great conversation with Richard all about our grains sector and the incredible challenges, changes, and opportunities on the horizon for grain producers and what they may be growing in the future as demand for plant-based and other protein continues to grow both here and for export.  Richard Heath is the Executive Director of the Australian Farm Institute (AFI) and he’s also a Directo...

A great conversation with Paul about his new book True to the Land – A History of Food in Australia.  Available from Booktopia, Angus & Robertson, and Dymocks bookstores.  Paul is a food writer, a regular presenter at the Symposium of Australian Gastronomy, and is passionate about our food history and foodways. His wonderful book travels far and wide to tell the interwoven stories of the histo...

Welcome to the second of two ‘peri-urban’ stories from Greater Sydney. Stories about people who are helping build resilience, grow food, inspire change and enable change-making communities of practice in diverse ways. Listen in to my conversation with Roger to hear about innovative applied research and ecological services at the urban edge, closeby to the Blue Mountains where Farm It F...

Emmanuela Prigioni, ‘Manu’, is a fabulously warm and inspirational person, who loves growing social connections & community through the amazing Farm It Forward social enterprise that she dreamt up and that ‘many’ people now love and are connecting with her to learn from, replicate and grow where they live, love and work. This episode is all about Farm It Forward and the...

Australia has long had the highest rainfall variability on earth. Climate change means the frequency and severity of droughts will intensify, so it’s urgent to get on with smart research and action for drought resilience and adaptation strategies. And that’s what this episode is all about.   Listen in to hear from CSIRO Drought Resilience Mission Lead Dr Graham Bonnett, in conversation with resear...

Roger Stone is an Australian and international leader in climate science and a big believer in the value of seasonal forecasting to help farmers, communities and governments plan for and manage risks associated with drought and other extreme events. Listen in to this episode in which we discuss climate change and forecasting, learn about ENSO, the Southern Oscillation Index, El Nino, La Nina and p...

In this episode, listen in to a rich conversation with Dr Julie Brimblecombe for warm and deep insights into the current state of remote food insecurity and to hear good news stories from remote communities and remote food stores who are tackling food insecurity and diet related chronic disease in innovative – and world leading – ways. Julie is widely admired and much loved for her con...

Listen in to this cracker of a conversation with Gabrielle Chan in which we talk about her important and really engaging new book Why you Should Give A F*ck About Farming .    Gabi is a political journalist who lives upon and works from a mixed use farm in NSW. She is the Rural & Regional Editor for the Guardian Australia and the author of Rusted Off , 2018 and Why you Should Give A...

Welcome to the second part of my great conversation with Craig Aspinall that’s all about Landcare NSW’s ‘Working Together’ program that Craig manages as the Community Aboriginal Engagement Officer. It’s an Australian first in the Landcare movement and already delivering strong outcomes. Landcare NSW’s forward looking Working Together program is all about empower...

In this episode ‘meet’ Australian CliMate, a nifty app that was developed for agriculture to help farmers identify the chances of certain weather conditions, to compare previous seasons and help on farm decision making to manage climate risks.  Listen in, learn more about Australian CliMate from Dr Ann Starasts who is a Knowledge Broker with the new Southern Queensland and Norther...

Get inspired and get involved in ‘Working Together’ to heal country. Listen in to this episode, Part 1, of a two-part great conversation with Craig Aspinall, who is the Community Aboriginal Engagement Officer, with Landcare NSW. It’s an Australian first in the Landcare movement and not before time! Craig leads Landcare NSW's forward looking Working Together program that is all ab...

Listen in and be inspired by Kate Sievert, Cherie Russell and Sarah Dickie who are the founders of, and new generation force behind, Healthy Food Systems Australia (HFSA). HFSA is an advocacy group they’ve established that is dedicated to promoting a food system that is healthy and sustainable for all people and the planet, through holistic and system-wide policy actions. In this episode we...

Tilth, glomalin, exudates … luscious words from the world of soils and a great conversation with Matthew Evans and Sadie Chrestman about Matthew’s new book Soil – The incredible story of what keeps the earth, and us, healthy.  Matthew and Sadie Chrestman are the well known and much loved co–creators and operators of Fat Pig Farm, collaborators in arms and life and bot...

Listen in and be inspired by Professor Liz Harry and Dr Nural Cokcetin, two leading Australian scientists whose current research is making a big contribution to the NSW Government's bushfire industry recovery plan – honey research that’s good for honey bees, the apiary and broader farming sector, biodiversity and our collective, healthier futures. Enjoy hearing from Liz and Nural as th...

Well that's a wrap for season 1 of the Nourishing Matters to Chew On podcast, it's time for the Nourishing team to take a well earned break and nourish themselves for a little while. But first, in this episode, Anthea journey's us back through a wrap up of the first 20 incredible episodes released in season 1 of Nourishing Matters and the mini-series, Nourishing Books & Bites. A season that ha...

Cosy up, listen in and be inspired by Phil Pettit and the warm, high impact stories he shares in this episode about Community Greening, The Master Gardener Program, Youth Community Greening and the wonderful people and communities he and his colleagues work with in Sydney and across rural and remote New South Wales.  Investing in people, growing community connections, food and opportunities f...

Welcome to Part 2 of our great conversation about “offal” and the joys and benefits of Eating nose to tail. Joining Anthea for this conversation are Kate Wingett and Grant Hilliard, who are both wonderfully knowledgeable people with deep knowledge and understanding of the animal ‘value-chain’ and how it currently does – and perhaps does not – work for human heal...

This "On Offal" episode is the first of a special two parter that features fascinating insights, nutrition facts and inspiration from Kate Wingett and Grant Hilliard. Join us as we talk about ‘offal, supply chains and making more of these delicious and nutritious foods - to minimise waste, better value animals and all in all get back to our Grandmother’s Wisdom by enjoying eating more...

Anthea speaks to Mark Spencer, Founder of Climactic, a network of Climate Change focussed Podcasts and Podcasters - including Nourishing. He is also one of the key people behind Podcaster's Declare, an initiative calling for Apple Podcasts to add a climate category to their platform.  CLIMACTIC:  We live in Climactic times. Times that led Podcast Producer, Mark Spencer, to pose a simple...

A complete treat and fun, to speak with Nicole Abadee this week about her wonderful podcast Books, Books, Books and how books nourish and share joy and hope at times like these. Two talkative women, Nicole and I, went on a roadtrip to Scone last March to what was to then be the last ‘live’ Writers Festival for more than a year as COVID restrictions kicked in.  Within a month or so...

Imagine if great food from your region had to travel over 3300 kilometres from where it’s picked to land back in your local grocery store, 10 kilometres from where it was grown and picked?!  That’s a reality for a lot of top end producers and communities.  Listen in and be inspired by Erica Hughes to hear about the wonderful Farmer Meets Foodie virtual farmers marketplace and...

Imagine a ‘lettuce’ took six weeks to reach your store and had to travel up to 4000km to get there? What would it look and taste like?  That’s something people in remote areas often face. But new generation “protected agriculture” hydroponic growing systems offer powerful options to schools and communities who want to grow and enjoy more fresh food where they liv...

In this episode I speak with Dr Colin Chartres, CEO of The Crawford Fund, and Dr Daniel Walker, Chief Scientist of ACIAR, about an inspiring workshop that was held in March to bring leading Australian farmers and researchers together to present and discuss success stories, research challenges and paths forward.  Farmers and researchers across the country have high ambitions and believe it&rsq...

Australia’s first national Urban Food Month (UAM)  kicks off in April with a host of opportunities to learn, share and get involved!   Listen in to my conversation with this weeks change making guests Councillor Jess Miller, Councillor with the City of Sydney, Naomi Lacey, President, Community Gardens Australia (pictured), and Dr Nick Rose, Executive Director, SUSTAIN The Australia...

‘Catchment Keepers’, is a great new program for women farmers in the Murrumbidgee catchment that kicks off this winter that we’re keen for you to know about! (Picture/acknowledgement: Jenny Grant-Curnow of Canberra, tree planting at Grong Grong, NSW) In this episode I chat with Gemma Meier about Catchment Keepers and how it aims to support women – who juggle many roles - to...