Eating Matters

On this episode of Eating Matters, we talk about the Farmer Fair Practices Rules (aka the GIPSA Rules) which, as wonky as it may sound, offers a fascinating look into the surprising process that 97% of chickens are produced in this country. These rules would have made it easier for farmers to sue companies they contract with over unfair, discriminatory or deceptive practices, offering more protecting farmers from abusive practices that advocates say are commonly experienced in their industry. Host Jenna Liut speaks with Claire Brown, a journalist at the New Food Economy who has covered this issue expensively.

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We remember Hannah Weiss, who interned with Eating Matters and who we lost suddenly and tragically on December 31 st of 2017. At such a young age, she was poised to making meaningful and lasting changes to our food system that we desperately need and deeply committed to doing so. She was a joy to know and is sorely missed.

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Building and sustaining regional food systems has been a much discussed topic this season, and in this episode, host Jenna Liut speaks with Tobias Peggs, Co-Founder and CEO of Square Roots - a company doing just that. Square Roots is an urban farming and entrepreneurship platform that strengthens communities through real food. They discuss how and why Square Roots was launched, what the company hopes to achieve, and the immense impact it can have on how we produce and consume food in this country.

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How much do you know about the Farm Bill? If the answer is "not enough," then this is the episode for you. Paul Wolfe, Senior Policy Specialist at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition gives us a primer on this behemoth legislation that arguably has the biggest impact on our national food and agriculture policies and system. It is not the easiest bill to navigate to say the least, and as it is up for reauthorization in 2018, we wanted to go back to basics to better understand what it entails and how it impacts the lives of everyday Americans.

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Let's get wonky and talk about how international trade policy effects on our food system. (Best teaser ever.) The re-negotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between the U.S., Mexico and Canada began on August 16, and can have huge repercussions on our food supply, farmers and the land. Ben Lilliston joins Host Jenna Liut to unpack the effects NAFTA has had on our food system over the past twenty years – and the potential effects that renegotiating the agreement could have. Ben is the Director of Corporate Strategies and Climate Change at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, which works locally and globally at the intersection of policy and practice to ensure fair and sustainable food, farm and trade systems.

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Host Jenna Liut speaks with Michael Winik, Founder & CEO of OurHarvest, an online farmers market delivery service working to increase access to locally grown, sustainably sourced and hugely delicious food from the greater New York area. Michael explains why and how his company could make huge changes to our currently broken food system by upending the food retail industry. He also leverages his background as a former investment banker to unpack what the recent Amazon/Whole Foods merger means for consumers, producers, and industry... and why you should care.

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Steph Gaylor founded Invincible Summer Farms in 2005 to grow and sell fresh produce, collaborate with chefs and the food community, and save rare seeds. She harvests 3,000 pounds of tomatoes alone (not to mention everything else) by herself while maintaining a seed bank with over 2,000 different varieties of tomatoes. Steph works to preserve the history and story of heirloom plants and is a steward for orphaned varieties and is one of the founding members of the Long Island Regional Seed Consortium and the Long Island Cheese Pumpkin Project. Host Jenna Liut talks with Steph about the importance of biodiversity in our food system, the inferiority of Sungold tomatoes, and why she wants the #ladyfarmer hashtag to die.

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On this episode of Eating Matters, host Jenna Liut digs into the merits of eating a plant based diet, a concept that has gained popularity in the past decade, even giving way to the development of plant based "meats." More recently, Netflix released a very pro-vegan documentary, "What the Health," which equates eating processed meats and eggs to smoking cigarettes in terms of negative health outcomes. Americans have a long history of diet obsessions, and Jenna discusses whether a plant based diet is a passing fad like the low fat craze of the 1990s, or if we should be abstaining from all animal products. Joining the show to unpack these issues is Marion Nestle, the Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, emerita, at New York University, in the department she chaired from 1988-2003 and from which she retired in September 2017. She is also Visiting Professor of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell and the author of six prize-winning books including: Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health; What to Eat; and, Soda Politics: Taking on Big Soda (and Winning).

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Over the past month, we have seen unprecedented devastation caused by multiple hurricanes hitting the US, starting with SouthEast Texas followed in rapid succession by Florida and most recently Puerto Rico. Food relief is of course one of the most important services provided during a natural disaster, and it always seems to me to be an area that receives little attention in terms of what this actually looks like. It is as challenging an undertaking as it is vital. Host Jenna Liut speaks with Brian Greene, CEO of the Houston Food Bank, an organization that has been at the center of relief efforts in the southeastern area of Texas for more than a month. about how food gets to the people who need it the most as well as what happens when the cameras go away and the long road to recovery begins. Joining her to discuss is Brian Greene, CEO of the Houston Food Bank, an organization that has been at the center of relief efforts in the southeastern area of Texas for more than a month.

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Host Jenna Liut speaks with Chef Rick Moonen. Known as the “Godfather of Sustainability” among chefs, his chef advocacy for the environment began about 30 years ago with the anti-GMO movement and continues today. He is often called upon to testify in Washington, D.C. and New York on environmental and sustainable fishing policy and is currently focused on encouraging people to eat fish lower down the food chain. He has appeared on Top Chef and Top Chef Masters and held executive chef positions at New York’s Oceana and the Water Club. Today, he is the proud Chef/Owner of rm seafood and Rx Boiler Room at the Shoppes at Mandalay Place in Las Vegas.

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