Transcript:   In today's podcast, we talk to Greg Putnam, co-founder, operator, and rancher of Little Belt Cattle Company. This beautiful ranch is a veteran-owned and operated first-generation business dedicated to raising high-quality cattle. The company uses regenerative ranching practices to protect our natural resources and reduce any environmental impact.  Former Navy Seal Greg Putnam talks to us about the challenges and excitement of taking care of approximately 8,000 head of cattle. He speaks to the hard work and dedication of multi-generation ranches, as well as similarities between the military and cattle ranching.

Dirt to Dinner welcomes Colin Murphy, Deputy Director of the Policy Institute for Energy, Environment, and the Economy, and co-director of the ITS-Davis Low Carbon Fuel Policy Research Initiative. He helps guide research and outreach on issues relating to transportation, energy, air quality, and carbon markets, with a primary focus on sustainable fuel policies like California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard. His work bridges the gap between cutting-edge academic science, and the day-to-day challenges of real-world policy making.   Prior to joining the Policy Institute, Colin was a Science Policy Fellow with the California Council on Science and Technology, and an advocate for sustainable transportation and energy policy with the NextGen Policy Center, where he helped extend California's climate programs through 2030. He has a B.S. in Biological Systems Engineering from UC Davis, a M.S. in Science, Technology and Public Policy from the Rochester Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. in Transportation Technology and Policy from UC Davis.

Scientists work every day to unlock more value in the staples we've relied upon for literally hundreds of years. We get better, more nutritious food and innovative new uses that meet real market needs, and we get smarter consumers to boot. Our food system does more than ever before to provide a steady stream of information so we can all make better, smarter food decisions.  None of that happens by chance. It takes money and lots of it. It takes work by thousands of researchers all pointed toward finding answers to some of the toughest issues we still wrestle with in our food system. It takes a concerted effort to get the word out to people. But who's in charge of this endeavor? Not the government, not fancy think tanks, not big business or big universities. All those folks play a role in important roles, but we often overlook what hardworking, financially-challenged farmers who drive research and better consumer understanding of our food.  In this episode of Digging In, we're turning to the peanut industry to provide a stellar example of these organizations that work on behalf of its farmers. The National Peanut Board, a research, marketing and promotion organization for peanut farmers in the U.S., is headed up by Bob Parker, current CEO; and Ryan Lepicier, current Chief Marketing Officer and next CEO. Together, Bob & Ryan have worked for more than a dozen years to turn the commitment of peanut producers across the United States into something really, really important to the interests of consumers everywhere. Here's who we're speaking with in this episode: Bob Parker joined the National Peanut Board, a farmer-funded research, marketing and promotion organization based in Atlanta, Georgia, as its president and CEO in 2012. At the National Peanut Board, he has focused on the mission of improving the economic condition of America’s peanut farmers and their families. Those efforts have centered around promoting the increased consumption of U.S.-grown peanuts domestically and internationally, addressing barriers to consumption such as peanut allergy and supporting production research to make peanut farmers more productive, efficient and sustainable.  The 2023 peanut crop is the 47th of Parker’s professional career, although he has been around peanuts his entire life. He has a broad range of experience in peanuts and agriculture, both domestically and internationally, from growing, processing, public policy and marketing. Parker is a graduate of the University of Georgia with a degree in agricultural economics. Ryan Lepicier serves as senior vice president and chief marketing officer at the National Peanut Board with a passion for fueling peanut demand and consumption. He will begin his role as NPB president and CEO on January 1, 2024. He and his team are working to make peanuts the most relevant nut among millennial consumers by ensuring people are thinking about peanuts differently, talking about peanuts positively, engaging with peanuts more often, and buying more peanuts.   Lepicier has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and communication from the University of Oregon and an MBA from Auburn University. He likes his peanut butter straight from the jar on a spoon. Crunchy, please.

Lynn Dornblaser is a seasoned expert with over 35 years of valuable product trend knowledge and experience at Mintel since 1998. She brings a unique perspective to her work, applying it to tailored client research and engaging in extensive public speaking engagements.    She has been recognized and quoted by esteemed U.S. news organizations, like The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, and CNN. Lynn has also had the honor of serving as a keynote lecturer and speaker for numerous industry groups and sales forums. Prior to joining Mintel, Lynn's expertise in new product trends was showcased as the editor and editorial director of New Product News at various trade magazine publishing companies.    We had the pleasure of tapping into Lynn's vast expertise in our lively discussion about everything food-related! From understanding consumer desires to the evolution of functional and alternative food markets, and even analyzing what brands are getting right and wrong, Lynn provided us with invaluable insights.

Julie Holmstrom is a distinguished Food, Agriculture, and Consumer Packaged Goods Consultant with over three decades of international experience in driving opportunities through comprehensive strategy implementation and Research and Development (R&D) expertise. Formerly serving as Innovation Technology & Quality Director, Nutrition and Technology Solutions at General Mills, her extensive career spans across the globe, where she has consistently excelled in steering product, process, and packaging development and renovation across diverse categories. As a technical strategist, Julie possesses a remarkable ability to bridge the gap between technical possibilities and consumer demands, aligning these aspects seamlessly with business objectives.

Christine Daugherty has both a PhD in plant physiology and a law degree. She is widely recognized as both a deep thinker and active agent of sustainability, working with a wide number of companies and other organizations deeply committed to the idea of sustainability. Christine will talk to us about the business community’s commitment to sustainability. She will weigh in on the continuing debate on carbon sequestration. And she will help us understand the parallels between sustainability and regenerative agriculture, including soil management practices. If you believe sustainability is one of the most important topics in today’s world of food and agriculture, you definitely want to hear what Christine has to say.

It’s no secret that many consumers are integrating a plant-based option into their diets. And, although increasing your vegetable intake is never a bad idea, it’s imperative to know what nutrients you may be lacking without eating meat. Read more about this here.

Welcome back to Dirt to Dinner: Digging In, where we dig into what's going on in the food and ag world. In this episode, we spoke with Ahmed 'Eddie' Qureshi about synthetic biology.  Ahmed is currently a founder of Valorant Health, which provides virtual care resources to over 67 million Americans living in rural and underserved areas. Ahmed started in Synthetic Biology wanting to apply its promise of scaling and iterating for maximum impact in healthcare. He was also a co-founder at DNAWorks, a spinout of the University of Washington's Molecular Engineering and Sciences department. You can read more about Ahmed here. Synthetic biology could be the future not only of healthcare, but of our food. This fascinating topic, which is a combination of genetic engineering and computer science, is changing the way we think about food and agriculture.  Simply put, synthetic biology is taking what we know in nature and making it better. Scientists utilizing synthetic biology can change the DNA in viruses, bacteria, yeasts, plants, or even animals to improve human health, the environment, agriculture, and industrial processes. For instance, it is being used to reduce fertilizer usage on crops, enhance milk protein fermentation for use in non-dairy products, to create a plant-based coating to extend the shelf life of produce, and even to turn mushrooms into leather.  In our conversation with Ahmed, we talk about the definition of synthetic biology, as well as the impact artificial intelligence will have on re-designing living organisms into new products. We hope you enjoy this podcast and learn a few new things along the way.

The frequency and intensity of wildfires are on the rise, posing significant consequences for an ever-growing number of people and our agricultural system. But what about the impact on our food system? We had the opportunity to speak with Jay Walter from Greenridge Farming in Oregon; Dave Cameron, the operator of C6 Agri Farms in Omaha, Nebraska; and Don Wysocki, an extension soil scientist at Oregon State University, to gauge their level of concern. Their answer? Well, it's a bit more complex than a simple yes or no...

Many of us use glyphosate, or RoundUp, as a weed killer on our lawns and in our gardens. This product also has applications in agriculture, forestry, and commercial uses. Despite its efficacy, there are big questions regarding its potentially harmful side effects on the environment and human health. Thankfully, Dr. Novy takes the time to educate us on how glyphosate works so we can better understand its pros and cons. And he shares some evidence-based reasons why glyphosate can be used as one tool of many in a toolbox for land and crop management when used judiciously. Dr. Novy runs the San Diego Botanic Garden  in Encinitas, CA, a 37-acre facility with extensive collections of Mediterranean climate plants as well as award-winning children’s gardens. He previously served as an environmental consultant on infrastructure projects in the northeastern United States. Dr. Novy completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at New York University and his doctorate at Rutgers University.