Amie and Kirsten are on location at the Farm at Prophetstown to interview Chef and Event Coordinator Lauren Reed.  Lauren tells us how she came to the farm and why she loves it.  Learn about the Farm at Prophetstown while Lauren tells us the inside scoop on pie-eating contests, farm dinners, and renegade turkeys.  

Kirsten interviews Evan Rocheford, CEO and co-founder of Torbert's Orange Corn.  Torbert's Orange Corn, developed by Professor Torbert Rocheford at Purdue, is a non-GMO, biofortified, and yes, orange, corn.  Evan tells us why it was originally developed as well as why orange corn means a major nutrition boost.  Evan details how they are building an audience for orange corn here in the US and how you can get some orange corn grits for yourself.  I can testify that they really are delicious. Evan does a fantastic job of explaining the possible future impact of orange corn and how it can be used as an educational tool.  

Kirsten and Melissa discuss Pig Tales by Barry Estabrook.  Estabrook writes engagingly on all things porcine.  Beginning with an in-depth look at the very prevalent wild hogs in the US, Estabrook then turns to how we farm pigs for meat.  This is the book to read if you want to understand the moral, environmental, sustainability, and health failures of conventional hog farming.   Join us for another great discussion.  

Kirsten and Melissa discuss the 5th book of the Food Literacy Book Club--Death By Food Pyramid: How Shoddy Science, Sketchy Politics and Shady Special Interests Have Ruined Our Health by Denise Minger.  Unlike the other books in the club that have focused on food production, this title expertly addresses how the Food Pyramid had food so wrong and how our health has suffered. This book is an excellent resource for regaining our common sense about food and beacon for those wanting to know where to go from here.  Hint--there is no one-size-fits-all, saturated fat is not a demon, our bodies need cholesterol, and at the end of the day, you need to eat real food.  Join us for a great discussion.  

Kirsten interviews Dan Brunner and Nick Carter, the co-founders of Market Wagon.  They explain their innovative approach to connecting small farmers with customers in a transparent and amazingly convenient way.  Their online market can connect you with local produce and animal products, but also with prepared meals, baked goods, pet products, and much more.  Consumers are the ones who need to change the food system and the Market Wagon model makes it easy.  I encourage you to check-out Market Wagon and see if they can help you to connect with the wealth of products available locally.  

Overwhelming heat is here so let's talk about hydration.  Kirsten flies solo on this episode and has a lot of great info for you about how much water you need, why you should use your pee as a guide, when electrolytes are important, and what's wrong with those popular sports drinks.  Get smart about hydration. 

Amie interviews Kirsten about the realities of running a Farm to Fork restaurant.  We talk about genetically engineered animals, the chef-farmer relationship, the pricing hurdle locally, and what needs to change so restaurants are serving the farmer and not the other way around.  We also talk about Kirsten's giant head, Vanilla Ice, getting gum out of your hair, and Kirsten's war on rabbits.  

Kirsten interviews Ann Fields Monical about the Slow Food chapter starting for North Central Indiana.  Ann is the chair of the brand new chapter.  She explains why Slow Food is important to her personally and the plans for the new Slow Food chapter.  There is a callout on July 10th at MatchBox at 7pm.  Come and help us promote food that is good, clean, and fair for all.  

Kirsten and Amie talk about the realities of animal welfare (or lack of) in big ag.  More importantly, we ask what are you going to do about it.  Consumers are the ones that are going to have to change the system, so get educated and vote with your fork!  And, completely randomly, we also talk about Dora the Explorer and Rocketman.   

Kirsten and Melissa discuss the latest Food Literacy Book Club pick--The Third Plate by Dan Barber.  Barber, a chef, takes a long look at restaurants, the American diner, and the realities of agriculture.  Barber explains why diners and chefs will have to develop to support complex agriculture systems as resources dwindle, soil fertility disappears, and oceans are depleted.   What does the plate of the future look like?