“We’re not ‘dousing’ our fields, we’re not ‘mining’ our soil, and nutrients don’t ‘run off’ the fields during normal rainfall.” 

As a dietitian turned full-time farmer on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Jennie Schmidt has heard it all when it comes to misconceptions about how our food is raised.  Growing corn, soybeans, wheat, green beans, and wine grapes with her brother-in-law, Jennie is equally passionate about the health of her soil as she is about cutting through the noise about agriculture for fellow dietitians. She questions how farming today is monoculture and walks through example after example. 

And while Jennie recognizes the importance of dietitians being able to clear up misconceptions for the consumer so they can make the best choices for feeding their families, she warns that misinformation can have an even bigger impact.

“Misperceptions in the marketplace on food and farming can end up as bad policy and regulations when consumers are fed misinformation by environmentalists,” says Schmidt.

Listen in on Schmidt’s insights on everything from GMOs to monoculture to glyphosate to vineyards to technology helping soil health.

Follow on Instagram @dirtdietitian and Twitter @farmgirljen.