Did you know that most synthetic pesticides are petroleum-based? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Margaret Reeves, Ph.D., Senior Scientist at the Pesticide Action Center of North America. Reeves discusses the Pesticide Action Network’s new report: “Pesticides and Climate Change: A vicious cycle.” She describes how pesticides contribute to climate change and explains the smoke and mirrors behind some “climate smart” terms and practic...
Apr 28, 2023•28 min•Ep. 720
Did you know that the herbicides, dicamba and 2,4-D, increasing sprayed on genetically engineered commodity crops (soy, cotton, corn) can drift from agricultural applications, as well as lawn chemical use, and harm our trees, native plants, home gardens, and greater ecosystem? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Robbie Doerhoff, Forest Entomologist with MO Dept. of Conservation, for a discussion about how two specific herbicides are wr...
Apr 21, 2023•28 min•Ep. 719
Did you know that climate change effects our natural environment and food system? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with David Abazs, organic farmer, and Executive Director of the Northeast Regional Sustainable Development Partnership at the U. of MN. Abazs defines “agrophenology” and explains how climate change impacts our landscape and food system. He provides examples of the importance of learning to carefully observe naturally occurri...
Apr 14, 2023•28 min•Ep. 718
Did you know that knowing our watershed, and understanding water and nitrogen cycles is key to sustainable food and farming methods? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Jeanne Heuser, award winning citizen activist, and former Technical Information Specialist with the US. Geological Survey. From hospice, Heuser reflects on her life’s work to protect watersheds, our food system, and encourage local engagement. Her regional work in the s...
Apr 07, 2023•28 min•Ep. 717
Did you know that sales of non-GMO verified products continue to grow in consumer popularity and sales? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Megan Westgate, Executive Director of the non-profit Non-GMO Project. Westgate explains what the non-GMO Project’s butterfly label tells consumers, why the verification matters, and how the FDA’s label for “bioengineered” food is confusing and misleading to consumers who want to avoid GMO food ingr...
Mar 31, 2023•28 min•Ep. 716
Did you know that gender influences agricultural research and practice? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Hale Ann Tufan, Ph.D., associate professor in the School of Integrative Plant Science with an adjunct appointment in the Department of Global Development at Cornell University. Tufan’s work focuses on gender equity and social inclusion. She discusses the roles and cultural positioning of men and women in agriculture, science, and...
Mar 23, 2023•28 min•Ep. 715
Did you know that the way in which issues are framed in the media influences how they are understood and acted upon? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Jillian Fry, Ph.D., MPH, Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Sciences at Towson University (MD), where she researches the intersection of public health, the food system, and environmental sustainability. Fry discusses her research paper, “A Tale of Two Urgent Food System Ch...
Mar 17, 2023•28 min•Ep. 714
Did you know that Japanese Americans were denied land ownership because of their nationality? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with David Mas Masumoto, organic farmer, activist, and award-winning writer based in the Central Valley of California. He is best known for his book, Epitaph for a Peach, which won the Julia Child Cookbook award and was a finalist for a James Beard award. In this interview, Masumoto will discuss his latest book, ...
Mar 09, 2023•28 min•Ep. 713
Did you know that bottle bills have the potential to reduce the waste stream significantly, yet only nine states have beverage container deposit programs in place? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Nancy Alderman, MES, founder and president of Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI), a non-profit organization composed of physicians and public health professionals who are dedicated to protecting human health from environmental harms...
Mar 02, 2023•28 min•Ep. 712
Did you know that global food production puts enormous environmental pressure on our planet? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Ben Halpern, Ph.D, marine ecologist and conservation scientist at the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at UC Santa Barbara. Halpern discusses his recent paper titled: “The Environmental Footprint of Global Food Production,” and describes four pressures of food production: greenhouse gas e...
Feb 24, 2023•28 min•Ep. 711
Did you know that mushrooms are more closely related to animals than plants? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Christopher Hobbs, Ph.D., internationally renowned botanist, mycologist, research scientist and author of Christopher Hobbs’s Medicinal Mushrooms: The Essential Guide: Boost Immunity, Improve Memory, Fight Cancer, Stop Infection, and Expand Your Consciousness . Hobbs discusses the unique traits and multiple benefits of fungi...
Feb 17, 2023•28 min•Ep. 710
Did you know that Black farmers faced grave injustices, racist policies and land loss while attempting to feed their families and communities? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Gail Myers, Ph.D., cultural anthropologist and creator and director of the multimedia documentary film project, Rhythms of the Land: A Love Story of Land and Family. Myers discusses her decades of interviewing African American farmers, the “eldest elders,” and...
Feb 10, 2023•28 min•Ep. 709
Did you know that many chocolate products contain unsafe levels of cadmium and lead? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Tod Cooperman, MD, President, Founder, and Editor-in-Chief at ConsumerLab.com, the leading independent evaluator of dietary supplements and nutritional products. Cooperman discusses Consumer Lab’s chocolate testing results and the dangers of lead and cadmium in relation to beneficial flavanols in chocolate. Cooperman...
Feb 03, 2023•28 min•Ep. 708
Did you know that organic agriculture is a key to mitigating climate change, building strong rural economies and supporting public health? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Lena Brook, M.S., Director, Food Campaigns, Healthy People & Thriving Communities Program at the Natural Resources Defense Council. Brook defines “organic” agriculture, discusses the new report: “Grow Organic: The Climate, Health and Economic Case for Expandin...
Jan 27, 2023•28 min•Ep. 707
Did you know that alcohol consumption increases our risk for cancer? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Nigel Brockton, Ph.D., Director of Research at The American Institute for Cancer Research. Brockton dives into the research explaining how and why specific nutrients impact cancer risk, with an emphasis on the role of inflammation, and alcohol. Tune in for supporting information for “dry January” and to find out if you are practicin...
Jan 20, 2023•28 min•Ep. 706
Did you know that many food additives allowed in the U.S. have been banned in the EU? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Thomas Galligan, Ph.D., Principal Scientist for Food Additives and Supplements at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Galligan explains that more than 1800 brand name food products contain titanium dioxide, yet in 2021, the European Food Safety Authority concluded that the cosmetic additive is no l...
Jan 13, 2023•28 min•Ep. 705
Did you know that food is a key intersectional point for health, labor, human rights, agriculture, environment, and climate change? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Alison Cohen, Advocate and Coordinator of the National Right to Food Community of Practice. Cohen exposes false narratives around poverty and hunger, and advocates for a legal framework to protect the right to food. Related website: file:///C:/Users/Dan/AppData/Local/Mic...
Jan 06, 2023•28 min•Ep. 704
Did you know that fiber-rich, plant-based diets are key to wellness? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Jill Nussinow, M.S., R.D., a.k.a. “The Veggie Queen,” culinary educator and author of multiple cookbooks. Nussinow describes the health benefits of organic, seasonal, high-fiber, whole food plant-based eating, the ease of speedy pressure cooking, and how adopting a breathing practice can enhance digestion and improve health and ener...
Dec 30, 2022•28 min•Ep. 703
Did you know that microplastics have infested every corner of Earth, from the highest mountains to the deepest seas? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Matt Simon , journalist, staff writer at Wired , and author of A Poison Like No Other: How Microplastics Corrupted Our Planet and Our Bodies ( https://islandpress.org/author/matt-simon ). Simon describes the “unbearable burden” of this insidious pollutant on our personal and planetary ...
Dec 23, 2022•28 min•Ep. 702
Did you know that the most popular New Year’s resolutions include losing weight and exercising more? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Theresa Stahl, Registered Dietitian certified in mind body medicine, and author of I’m Full: Remindful Eating Tips to Feel Great and Make Peace with Your Plate . Stahl describes her personal struggles with eating, explains how to embrace mindfulness, and shares insights from her decades of working wit...
Dec 16, 2022•28 min•Ep. 701
Did you know that restaurant workers have united to correct unfair labor practices in the workplace? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Teofilo Reyes, Ph.D., Chief Program Officer for Restaurant Opportunities Centers United. Reyes describes the major unfair labor practices among restaurant and food service workers, including wage theft, poverty wages, and lack of access to health care and time-off for rest and recovery. He discusses t...
Dec 09, 2022•28 min•Ep. 700
Did you know that most plastic packaging is not recyclable? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Martin Bourque, Executive Director, the Ecology Center, based in Berkeley, CA with international reach. Bourque pulls back the curtain on plastic recycling myths and describes meaningful policy action we can take to reduce plastic’s toxic footprint on our planet. Related website: https://ecologycenter.org/ https://upstreamsolutions.org/ http...
Dec 02, 2022•28 min•Ep. 699
Did you know that pesticide drift is a widespread, largely invisible problem that disproportionately harms racially marginalized, Indigenous, and working-class communities? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Jill Lindsey Harrison, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Geography at the University of Colorado – Boulder, and author of Pesticide Drift and the Pursuit of Environmental Justice (MIT Press). Harrison discusses the plight of poor agri...
Nov 25, 2022•28 min•Ep. 698
Did you know that all the feeding assistance programs in the world won’t solve the root cause of hunger, which is poverty? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Mark Winne, community food activist, writer, and Senior Advisor to the Food Policy Networks Project at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, for his discussion of the recent White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, and his recent blog post on the conferenc...
Nov 18, 2022•28 min•Ep. 697
Did you know that home gardeners have a critical role in helping to conserve the biodiversity of crops, which is crucial in combatting climate change? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Adam Alexander, award-winning film and television producer, and author of The Seed Detective: Uncovering the Secret Histories of Remarkable Vegetables (Chelsea Green 2022). Alexander discusses his true passion: collecting rare, endangered, but above al...
Nov 11, 2022•28 min•Ep. 696
Did you know that large-scale off-shore marine finfish aquaculture operations pose a risk to our ocean commons? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Andrianna Natsoulas, Campaign Director, Don’t Cage Our Oceans, a national coalition working to protect our ocean commons from the risks of off-shore marine finfish aquaculture operations. Natsoulas describes industrial off-shore aquaculture operations, who profits from them, and the feed an...
Nov 07, 2022•28 min•Ep. 695
Did you know that most poultry sold in supermarkets is produced by an unjust “tournament system” that pits farmer against farmer? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Aaron Johnson , Program Manager for Challenging Corporate Power at Rural Advancement Foundational International – USA (RAFI-USA), a non-profit organization based in North Carolina that challenges the root causes of unjust food systems, and supports and advocates for econom...
Oct 28, 2022•28 min•Ep. 694
Did you know that most food labels are tightly regulated by FDA? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Lauren Swann, Registered Dietitian and food label regulation expert. The two will discuss areas of confusion, trends, and the finer points of evolving food labels and their role in consumer education, marketing, and protecting public health. For FDA labeling information see: https://www.fda.gov/food/food-labeling-nutrition . Related web...
Oct 20, 2022•28 min•Ep. 693
Did you know that fracking, and other methods of fossil fuel extraction and production puts farm land, water quality and public health at risk? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Taylor Brorby, author, poet, essayist, environmentalist and author of Boys and Oil: Growing up Gay in a Fractured Land . Brorby discusses the impact of the expansion of the fossil fuel industry into his home state of North Dakota, the calculated pitting of pi...
Oct 13, 2022•28 min•Ep. 692
Did you know that bottled water purchases can predict political involvement? Join Food Sleuth Radio host and Registered Dietitian, Melinda Hemmelgarn, for her interview with Manny Teodoro, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and lead author of The Profits of Distrust: Citizen-Consumers, Drinking Water, and the Crisis of Confidence in American Government . Teodoro discusses the connections between the rise of the commercial drinking water industry, ...
Oct 07, 2022•28 min•Ep. 691
