Rodger Wasson, legendary voice of American food and farming, invites us to his virtual table where he talks to experts around the world about everything from food production and cooking to soil and the future of the planet
Farm to Table Talk
Farmers work too hard for what they earn. They need to earn more and work less for their way of life that should be profitable. Small farms are critical to local communities and food systems, but are especially outmatched by the resources available to larger farms — technology, equipment, sales and marketing teams, and back office staff. So in partnership with local farms in Sonoma County California, Ari Memar founded Farmhand to level the playing field by equipping farmers with the technology and services to win back local share of the food dollar and support a thriving local food system. www.farmhand.partners/farmtotabletalk
The food system is extremely inefficient with 237 million tons going unsold or uneaten.–becomingfood waste, which goes t to landfill, incineration, or down the drain, or simply left in the fields to rot. That’s almost 120 billion meals’ worth of food that goes unsold or uneaten each year, roughly 1.4% of U.S. GDP. The impacts on climate and environment are also enormoussince food that is never eaten still requires resources to grow, harvest, transport, cool, cook or otherwise prepare—even when it ends up in land fills. Minnie Ringland is the Manager of Climate & Insights for www.reFed.org. 
Farm To Table Talk has been named one of the top farming podcasts:https://podcast.feedspot.com/farming_podcasts/
To be a good Doctor and to do good health you really need to understand farming and agriculture, because good farming also equals good health and overall wellness, once said Wendell Berry. Dr. Camilla Petersen owns her own concierge medical practice in Missoula Montana where creating good health starts with what we are putting into our bodies. Camilla is a ND, MD, FAAFP who grew up in the Ukraine and has practiced in Africa, South America, New Zealand, all over the USA and now in Missoula Montana where she is also a wife, mother of two, member of the Montana Medical Board, and a business owner.
www.petersenconciergemedical.com
Regenerative agriculture is the opposite of Degenerative agriculture. Research and innovative farmers are showing that no-till with cover crops increases net profit, organic matter, water quality, air quality and builds soil while reducing runoff. Regenerating soil allows farmers to literally gain more land and grow more crops profitably without losing tons of soil per year from degenerative farming. Mike Lessiter is president of Conservation Ag and the NoTill Magazine.
www.notillfarmer.com
covercropstrategies.com
Changing what you eat is a journey that may lead to growing, preparing, and marketing before sharing and consuming your food focused dreams. When the destination of the journey is a plant based diet, it may be a challenging transition. When Heather and Reggie Donaldson were moving from LA back to Cincinnati, they knew delicious plant based cheeses would be key to the success of their own plant based journey. Heather shares how that
journey led to producing their own plant based cheese, opening a “Mad Cheese” shop in Cincinnati and establishing a following of the cheese and of their journey. www.madcheese.com
Small and mid-sized farms face a storm of economic pressures, worsening labor shortages, climate extremes, and relentless market disruptions (tariffs) With profit margins squeezed farmers are turning to precision agriculture, leveraging advanced, autonomous drone technology to optimize resources, reduce waste, overcome labor gaps, and maintain profitability. Arthur Erickson, CEO of Hylio, a US based ag drone manufacturer, shares how small to large-scale farmers are integrating drones into their regenerating operations.
www.hylio.com
In the U.S., 90% of the $4.5 trillion spent on healthcare goes toward managing chronic disease, yet Physicians receive an average of just 19.6 hours of nutrition education. It’s time for a new approach to healthy living, from the ground up.. Prestigious agriculture research and education nonprofit, Rodale Institute is a global pioneer that integrates regenerative organic agriculture and healthcare, for
a future where food is medicine. Nadine Clopton is Rodale’s Program Manager of Regenerative Education. www.rodaleinstitute.org
Nutrition security alongside food security will ensure healthy and active lives. Achieving nutritional security is being achieved through nutrition-sensitive farming, diversified food production and community sensitization. Nate Blum is an agricultural expert and the CEO of the Sorghum United Foundation, dedicated to advancing human and animal health, as well as climate-smart agriculture. www.sorghumunited.com
As egg prices reach record highs, more homeowners are turning to backyard chicken farming as a sustainable and cost-effective solution. This surge in prices has led to a growing trend of individuals raising their own chickens to ensure a steady supply of fresh eggs. Kim Pezza is an expert in sustainable living and the author of Backyard Farming: Raising Chickens as well as other books in the Backyard Farming series to help us achieve greater self-sufficiency in our own backyards.
Farms of all sizes and types, from conventional to organic, need continually improving technologies if they are to meet their obligations to Mother Earth and their own bottom line. Gary Wickham. is the founder and CEO of Ireland based MagroTec. Farming utilizes applications of materials through spraying. Whether those materials are organic or traditional the goal is to use as little as possible and avoid drift to non targeted areas. MagroTec uses permanent rare earth magnets to expose fluid to static non-uniform magnetic fields under appropriate flow conditions. This affects the physical properties of the fluid that determine spray droplet formation, droplet dynamics, and droplet adhesion.Large farms are early adapters but as the technology advances it will be better for smaller operations, for the climate and for eaters. www.magrowtec.com