Real Organic Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Eli Pipkin: Mastering Whole Grain Bread Jul 20, 2025

Show notes

#232 - Stone Barns head baker Eli Pipkin reveals what it takes to bake whole grain bread that is alive with flavor, nutrition, and story. Rooted in the mission of chef Dan Barber's Blue Hill, Eli shares how his team mills fresh flour, bakes with intention, and builds a bread program that honors farmers and soil. This conversation digs deep into how bread - when made right - can restore health to people, ecosystems, and food culture itself.

https://realorganicproject.org/eli-pipkin-mastering-whole-grain-bread-232

The Real Organic Podcast is hosted by Dave Chapman and Linley Dixon, engineered by Brandon StCyr, and edited and produced by Jenny Prince.
The Real Organic Project is a farmer-led movement working towards certifying 1,000 farms across the United States this year. Our add-on food label distinguishes soil-grown fruits and vegetables from hydroponically-raised produce, and pasture-raised meat, milk, and eggs from products harvested from animals in horrific confinement (CAFOs - confined animal feeding operations).
To find a Real Organic farm near you, please visit:
https://www.realorganicproject.org/directory
We believe that the organic standards, with their focus on soil health, biodiversity, and animal welfare were written as they should be, but that the current lack of enforcement of those standards is jeopardizing the ability for small farms who adhere to the law to stay in business. The lack of enforcement is also jeopardizing the overall health of the customers who support the organic movement; customers who are not getting what they pay for at market but still paying a premium price. And the lack of enforcement is jeopardizing the very cycles (water, air, nutrients) that Earth relies upon to provide us all with a place to live, by pushing extractive, chemical agriculture to the forefront.
If you like what you hear and are feeling inspired, we would love for you to join our movement by becoming one of our 1,000 Real Friends:
https://www.realorganicproject.org/real-organic-friends/
To read our weekly newsletter (which might just be the most forwarded newsletter on the internet!) and get firsthand news about what's happening with organic food, farming and policy, please subscribe here:

https://www.realorganicproject.org/email/

The Real Story Of Whole Grain Bread with Michael Pollan + Dan Barber Jul 13, 2025

Show notes

#231 - In this special conversation, Michael Pollan and Dan Barber and other food system leaders explore the deep relationship between whole grain bread, human health, and agricultural resilience. From the nutrient losses caused by industrial milling to the taste and vitality of freshly milled, soil-grown grains, this episode calls attention to the most overlooked staple on our plates - and how its transformation mirrors the rise of processed food and holds the key to reclaiming health and democracy for all. Hear how real bread connects eaters to farmers, to flavor, and to the future of food.

https://realorganicproject.org/real-story-whole-grain-bread-231

Paul Hawken: Reversing Ecological Collapse Jul 06, 2025

Show notes

#230 - Paul Hawken returns to share his hopeful and hard-won perspective on how organic farming and climate solutions go hand-in-hand, and to reflect on the themes in his latest book Carbon. Drawing from his decades of work in food systems and regeneration, he explains why soil is one of our greatest allies and how organic farmers are leading the charge toward a livable, equitable future.

https://realorganicproject.org/paul-hawken-reversing-ecological-collapse-230

Paul Hawken is a climate activist, entrepreneur, and the author of nine books including Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming, Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Social Movement in History Is Restoring Grace, Justice, and Beauty to the World, Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution, 2022's best-selling Regeneration: Ending the Climate Crisis in One Generation, and his most recent publication - Carbon: The Book of Life. He serves on Real Organic Project's Advisory Board.
You can follow along with his work here:
https://regeneration.org/solutions

Marion Nestle: Follow the Food Money Jun 29, 2025

Show notes

#229 Marion Nestle, author of Food Politics, joins us to discuss how corporate money shapes what ends up on our plates - and why nutrition science so often serves industry over public health. From USDA dietary guidelines to food marketing in schools, Nestle explains how power, politics, and policy collide in the American food system. With decades of research and advocacy behind her, she makes a compelling case for real transparency and accountability in what we eat.

https://realorganicproject.org/marion-nestle-follow-the-food-money-229

Marion Nestle is a prolific food systems author and Professor Emerita of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University.

Dan Barber: Farming Flavor First Jun 22, 2025

Show notes

#228: Dan Barber returns to explore how farming for flavor - not just yield or shelf life - can transform our food system from the ground up. As a chef and co-founder of Row 7 Seeds, Dan argues that seed breeding should begin in the kitchen, with taste driving innovation in the field. From soil-grown crops to flavor-forward farming, this episode digs deep into what we’ve lost - and what we can grow back by connecting chefs, farmers, and crop breeders.

https://realorganicproject.org/dan-barber-farming-flavor-first-228

Dan Barber is the chef and co-owner of Blue Hill in Manhattan and Blue Hill at Stone Barns in New York's Hudson Valley His book The Third Plate is an exploration of America's relationship with food and agriculture and its overall lack of a defined food culture, which he believes has served other geographies through the intentional incorporation of fertility practices into their cuisines.

Kate Mendenhall: Defending Organic Integrity Nationwide Jun 15, 2025

Show notes

#227: Kate Mendenhall, Executive Director of the Organic Farmers Association, breaks down the strategic grassroots campaign to keep organic standards rooted in soil, transparency, and trust. As corporate influence grows, Kate outlines how OFA is working to ensure the organic label still reflects its original values and that farmer voices are always at the forefront.

https://realorganicproject.org/kate-mendenhall-defending-organic-integrity-nationwide-227

Kate Mendenhall is the Executive Director of the Organic Farmers Association, whose aim is to "provide a strong and unified national voice for domestic certified organic producers." An Iowa native, Kate has returned to her home state to pursue this work, while also operating a small, diversified farm alongside her family. Kate was formerly the ED of NOFA-NY and as she describes in this interview, has traveled extensively around the globe to learn the craft of organic farming.

Peter Segger: Farming Small, Thinking Big Jun 08, 2025

Show notes

#226: Peter Segger shares his journey from music and metal testing to pioneering organic farming in Wales. He reflects on the legacy of the Soil Association, his encounters with E.F. Schumacher, and the decades-long effort to protect the soul of organic food against industrial takeover.

https://realorganicproject.org/peter-segger-farming-small-thinking-big-226

Peter Segger is a well-known early adopter of organic practices in the UK, having run a 45 acre mixed fruit and vegetable farm in Wales since 1974. A long time member of the Soil Association and dedicated student of the soil, Peter now sits on the board of the Sustainable Food Trust. He is also the founder of Organic Farm Foods, which is now the largest specialist supplier of organic fresh produce in the UK.

Julie Guthman: Big Tech's Takeover Of Organic Jun 01, 2025

Show notes

#225: Julie Guthman explains how Silicon Valley’s growing role in agriculture is reshaping organic from the top down. From hydroponics to venture capital, she explores what’s lost when food is engineered like software and soil is written out of the future.

https://realorganicproject.org/julie-guthman-big-tech-takeover-organic-225

(From the Harvard Radcliffe Institute site): "Julie Guthman is a professor of social sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her research has broadly been about how neoliberal-inflected capitalism shapes the conditions of possibility for food system transformation. She has also studied the influence of California’s agrarian past on contemporary efforts to reduce pesticide use."

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3XUclEoAAAAJ&hl=en

Austin Frerick: Grocery Store Monopolies May 25, 2025

Show notes

#224: Author and economist Austin Frerick returns to break down how grocery store monopolies are shaping what ends up in our carts, who profits from it, and who gets left out. From Walmart’s grip on food access to the collapse of fair pricing for farmers, Austin exposes how consolidation is driving inequality across the food system. This conversation offers a clear-eyed view of the corporate forces eroding real food, real farms, and the possibility of justice in what we eat.

https://realorganicproject.org/austin-frerick-grocery-store-monopolies-224

Austin Frerick is a 7th generation Iowan who, after watching his home state be transformed through agricultural policy to the detriment of the family farmer, became an expert on agriculture and antitrust policy and now serves the Co-Chair of the Biden campaign’s Agriculture Antitrust Policy Committee. He is the author of Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America's Food Industry.
https://www.austinfrerick.com/https://www.austinfrerick.com/

JM Fortier: Farms For Food Sovereignty May 18, 2025

Show notes

#223: JM Fortier shares his vision for farming as a pathway to food sovereignty. From his home in Quebec, JM has helped lead a growing movement of small-scale, soil-based farmers working to reconnect communities with their food. Through his work with the Market Gardener Institute, he’s offering tools, structure, and encouragement to a new generation hungry for change. This is a grounded and inspiring look at how living soil, real skills, and deep purpose can rebuild the food system from the roots up.

https://realorganicproject.org/jm-fortier-farms-for-food-sovereignty-223

JM Fortier is a farmer, educator, and author from Quebec, Canada, who also appears on a weekly television show. He is known for promoting a culture that replicates small-scale diversified farms that rely on market gardening strategies (direct sales of cash crops to community members) and human-powered growing practices. In the late spring of 2024, JM and his fried Chris Moran launched the Market Gardener Podcast:
https://themarketgardener.com/podcast/
You can learn more about JM and his many adventures here:
https://www.en.jeanmartinfortier.com/

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