E82: Rediscovering Navajo Indigenous Agricultural Wisdom

July 28, 2020

There’s a great deal to learn from the deep connections between regenerative agriculture and the farming traditions of First Nations people. My guest today is James Skeet, a member of the Navajo Nation and the founder of Spirit Farm in New Mexico, a demonstration farm that draws both Native Americans and others to learn more about issues like composting and regenerative farming techniques.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Community & Economic Development | Diet & Nutrition | Equity, Race & Food Justice | First Nations Food Issues | Regenerative Agriculture |

 

E76: Food Fights – A Civil Conversation About Contemporary Food Debates

February 20, 2020

Understanding our current food system, where it came from and especially where it might go is much easier if one understands history. Our field needs historians, thoughtful scholars who can do deep exploration of what has preceded the snapshot in time that represents what we’re experiencing today. This is why an exciting development was the recent publication of a book entitled Food Fights edited by two historians at North Carolina State University, Charles Ludington and Matthew Booker. We’re joined today by both of the editors.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Chefs & Food Writers | Climate Change, Environment & Food | Food Policy | History & Food | Ultra-processed Food & Additives |

 

E75: Land Grant University Gold for North Carolina

February 11, 2020

Agriculture is a remarkably complex, fascinating, and important topic. We all eat of course, but often we don’t know much about the story of our food, how it gets produced, where it comes from, how technology, for example, can help provide wholesome, healthy, and safe food, and more. There are some remarkable people out there who see the big picture and who understand both the past and future of agriculture. One such person is our guest, Richard Linton.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Food Policy | North Carolina | Regenerative Agriculture | Urban Agriculture |

 

E72: Will Harris on White Oak Pastures Success with Regenerative Ag

January 10, 2020

Imagine being a fourth-generation owner of a business and deciding to completely change things to upend tried-and-traditional ways of doing things in favor of something brand new, untraditional, and potentially pretty risky. Such is the story of our guest today, farmer Will Harris.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Regenerative Agriculture | Voice of Farming |

 

E69: Gabe Brown on the Desperate Need for Regenerative Agriculture

January 9, 2020

Imagine a farm doing such creative work that more than 2,000 people come to visit each year from all 50 states and more than 20 countries outside the US. What do you think such a farm might be doing? Our guest Gabe Brown can explain.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Climate Change, Environment & Food | Regenerative Agriculture | Voice of Farming |

 

E70: Myths and Misperceptions about the Pork Industry

December 9, 2019

Have you ever wondered whether they are antibiotics or hormones in your grocery store pork chops? Or what swine farmers do with their pig waste? Or maybe you’re interested in buying locally grown foods, but you’re not sure what that really means when you’re in the grocery store. In this podcast, Marlowe Vaughn and Bob Ivey of Razorback farms in Goldsboro, North Carolina, tackle myths and misperceptions about the pork industry.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Antibiotic Resistance | North Carolina | Voice of Farming |

 

E64: Technology, Transition and Family at Triple B Farms

November 18, 2019

Today I’m talking with Brandon Batten of Triple B Farms, a sixth generation farmer in Johnston County, North Carolina. Brandon’s passion for agriculture comes from growing up on the farm and learning the ropes from his late grandfather. A graduate in biological and agricultural engineering from North Carolina State University. He advocates for using farm level research to make sure that the latest technology and advancements in all aspects of agriculture to reach the farmers that need them.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Climate Change, Environment & Food | North Carolina | Voice of Farming |

 

E62: Bert Pitt on Today’s Farming Challenges

November 11, 2019

At the age of 68, Bert Pitt is lean and tan, with Robert Redford blue eyes and a working man’s hands. He’s a seventh generation farmer, raising cotton and sweet potatoes now, and lives in his family’s ancestral home in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. Farming is both his job and his heritage, and he passionately believes in the value of small family farms.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | North Carolina | Voice of Farming |

 

E60: A Visit to Middlecreek Farms in the Blacklands of North Carolina

November 4, 2019

Driving along the North Carolina coastline protected by the Outer Banks barrier islands, I pass swamps, canals and fields. I’m visiting an agricultural region called the Blacklands. The soil is black and fertile and the Blacklands range across eight counties. I’m visiting Middlecreek Farms, a family operation in Engelhard, North Carolina, now run by Dawson and Bethany Pugh. The day’s plan to begin harvesting corn has been scrapped in the aftermath of a heavy rain and the farm crew works in the shop making repairs and doing equipment maintenance.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | Climate Change, Environment & Food | North Carolina | Voice of Farming |

 

E68: Tobacco, Hemp & Trade Wars

October 29, 2019

Some farmers see industrial hemp as an opportunity to transition away from tobacco. Hemp is widely grown worldwide as a source of both fiber and oil seed. Harvesting equipment and dryers used for tobacco can also be used to harvest and cure hemp, allowing farmers to repurpose equipment they already own. North Carolina legalized hemp production in 2014 as part of a pilot program. Brandon Batten is one of the farmers producing industrial hemp as part of this program.

Related podcasts: Agriculture & Tech | North Carolina | Voice of Farming |