Best Agriculture Roundup Podcasts (2024)

1
Greek cuisine today sparks memory and nostalgia 50:59

1h ago50:59

50:59

“As Greeks, we don't really shop from supermarkets. Everyone knows someone who knows someone who comes from a village and has access to olive trees and olive oil.” On today’s show, a conversation with Greek chef and anthropologist Nafsika Papacharalampous. She shares a recipe for Greek comfort food, and talks with me and Ogla Kalentzidou about the …

1
04/10/24 Poultry register, fishing and offshore wind farms, TB in deer 14:14

28m ago14:14

14:14

Poultry keepers say they can't access government websites to register their birds. From 1st October anyone who keeps birds has to register with the Animal and Plant Health Agency, to help with monitoring bird flu outbreaks, even those with just one or two chickens. Failure to comply could mean a fine of £2,500. However bird owners who've tried to r…

1
03/10/24 - Crisis in dairy recruitment, deer damage to trees, imported carrots 14:13

2h ago14:13

14:13

Dairy farmers are finding it a real struggle to recruit new staff, according to the farmer-owned dairy coop Arla. They spoke to nearly 500 UK dairy farmers and just under 90% of them said they had advertised jobs and had few or no applicants at all. So what’s holding young people back from a life working with dairy cows in a career that can also in…

1
02/10/24 Flood task force, Conservative party conference, farmed deer. 14:04

13m ago14:04

14:04

There's been more flooding across the country. Last winter saw the wettest period since records began in the 1830s and government figures show that more than a third of river catchments in England have reported either the wettest, or second wettest September to August period since 1871. We catch up with two farmers whose farms are flooded and the N…

1
01/10/24 New kept-bird register, US certification scheme for regen ag, deer cull. 14:13

3d ago14:13

14:13

From 1 October, all owners of poultry in England and Wales, must be registered with the Animal and Plant Health Agency, even if it's just one hen in the back garden. This can be done online, through the DEFRA website. The aim is to be able to track all kept birds, in the event of more bird flu outbreaks. The new rule also applies to pet birds such …

1
28/09/24 Farming Today This Week: Henry Dimbleby, Environmental Land Management Schemes, Planning, Cider Apples 24:39

3d ago24:39

24:39

We’ve been reporting over the last couple of weeks about a £358m underspend over the last three years from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' £2.4 billion agriculture annual budget for England. Now, former DEFRA director and author of the National Food Strategy, Henry Dimbleby says it’s critical that this money isn’t lost from …

1
Exploring the role of Burmese refugees in the US food system 51:00

4d ago51:00

51:00

“We know that there are all sorts of good chemicals that come out of the dirt and working with land–working with plants–that are beneficial to our mood and our health. For refugee populations that have had to be on the run or had to live in refugee camps for decades, having a little piece of land that you can tend to that you can take care of and t…

1
27/09/24 - Henry Dimbleby, dead Scottish salmon, underground energy cables 14:23

4d ago14:23

14:23

We’ve been reporting over the last couple of weeks about a £358m underspend over the last three years from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' £2.4 billion agriculture annual budget for England. Farmers are furious at the scale of this underspend and there are concerns that the money will be lost for good in cuts in this autumn’…

1
26/09/2024: Bluetongue; Welsh bog; rural planning 13:58

5d ago13:58

13:58

As the first doses of bluetongue vaccine arrive in the UK, affected farms are to be surveyed about the impact of this latest outbreak. Unexploded Second World War bombs are one of the hazards for those aiming to restore a Welsh bog, Crymlyn bog sits alongside some major parts of Swansea's industrial heritage - an area targeted by the Luftwaffe. Far…

1
25/09/2024 Brownfield passports, green belt planning, agri-environment schemes. 13:54

6d ago13:54

13:54

All week we’re looking at planning and the countryside. The government has announced plans for "brownfield passports", to fast track house building on brownfield sites. The countryside charity, CPRE, has welcomed the proposals to make brownfield sites the first choice for building new homes. It says we could build most of the homes we need on such …

1
24/09/2024 Labour Party conference, solar farm inquiry, bluetongue, cider apples 14:13

7d ago14:13

14:13

The Labour Party conference is underway in Liverpool. Last week we heard from the Liberal Democrats and next week we'll report on the Conservative Party conference. Agriculture is a devolved issue, so the budget and how it's spent is up to governments in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Af…

1
23/09/24 - Upland farmers in trouble, new planning proposals 11:53

8d ago11:53

11:53

Farmers in the Lake District have lost an estimated 10 million pounds in funding, in a year - and some are now under severe financial pressure. So says the National Farmers Union, which claims there are limited opportunities for upland farmers to tap into the Government's new ELMS - Environmental Land Management schemes - which are replacing the ol…

1
21/09/24 Farming Today This Week: Radical change to food safety proposed, flood repairs outstanding, trail hunting, blackberries 24:51

14d ago24:51

24:51

Radical changes to food safety are being proposed. The Food Standards Agency is discussing removing responsibility from cash strapped councils and relying instead on data collected by food companies and supermarkets. Chris Elliott, professor of food safety at Queen’s University Belfast and Vice President of the Chartered Institute of Environmental …

1
Who are the modern day robber barons of our food system? 51:01

11d ago51:01

51:01

“At least 100 years ago, the last robber barons, we got nice libraries out of it. This one, it’s like ‘oh, what is the family using its money for? To gut public education via charter school networks?’ It’s kind of Machiavellian–it’s Machiavellian in a really sad way” This week on the show, I’m talking with Austin Frerick, the author of Barons: Mone…

1
20/09/24 - English devolution, funding for rural communities, farm homeless hostel and storks 14:07

11d ago14:07

14:07

A new report is calling for more investment in rural areas. The Rural Coalition says the English countryside has the potential to generate billions, but chronic underinvestment is costing jobs and money. Meanwhile, the Government is promising a "devolution revolution", with new mayors soon to be elected in Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire. …

1
19/09/24 - Radical changes to food safety proposed, tech to fight food fraud, curlew conservation, carers' countryside respite 14:07

12d ago14:07

14:07

Radical changes to food safety are being proposed. The Food Standards Agency is discussing removing responsibility from cash strapped councils and relying instead on data collected by food companies and supermarkets. Under plans discussed yesterday by its board the FSA would take direct control of things like hygiene and food standards for large co…

1
18/08/24 Trail hunting, Blackberries, Lapwings 14:10

13d ago14:10

14:10

It is 20 years since fox hunting was banned by Tony Blair’s Government. Since then, those who enjoyed the sport have adapted to trail hunting instead. That is where a trail is laid across countryside for hounds and horse riders to follow. There is no kill at the end. However animal rights campaigners say trail hunting is a smokescreen for real hunt…

1
17/09/24 Lib Dem party conference; Farmland birds; Peat 14:05

14d ago14:05

14:05

It's party conference season and Farming Today will be covering the three main conferences. This week, the Liberal Democrats meet in Brighton. Their relative success in the recent General Election has given them a boost, and many of their new constituencies gained this summer are in rural areas. The big question is budget. Before the election the L…

1
16/09/24 More farmland conservation needed for wild birds, legal challenge halts forest, flood repairs outstanding 11:56

15d ago11:56

11:56

Britain’s declining wild bird populations will only recover if more farmland is set aside for conservation, says the RSPB. A legal challenge to a new forest on a vast moorland in the Scottish Borders has forced its owners to stop planting. As the Met Office predicts another autumn and winter of destructive floods, a number of flood defences in Engl…

1
14/09/24 - Farming Today This Week: Farming underspend, Westmorland Show, fishing 24:41

17d ago24:41

24:41

DEFRA has confirmed there has been a £358 million underspend of the agricultural budget over the last three years. It follows unconfirmed reports in the press that the new Government plans to cut the future budget by £100m a year. So what would that mean for farming businesses and the environment? We visit the 225th Westmorland County Show to see t…

1
New Growth cultivates a sustainable local food system 50:58

18d ago50:58

50:58

“And that’s why we call it a food value chain.You know, it’s a supply chain but it’s based on the values that you have as far as how the land is treated, how people are treated, what kind of nutrition contents in your food–all those things [that] people up and down–from the farmer to the consumer have an interest in. And so, this system that we’re …

1
13/09/24 Sinking ropes to save minke whales, cod negotiations with Norway, willow biomass 14:03

18d ago14:03

14:03

More than 50 minke whales and basking sharks get tangled up in fishing gear around the Scottish coast each year. We hear about efforts to stop it from happening. The fishing industry wants the Government to negotiate a better deal for fishing for cod in Norwegian waters. With energy prices rising this Autumn, the ability to generate your own power …

1
12/09/2024 Westmorland Show, farming budget underspend and its impact on the environment 13:51

19d ago13:51

13:51

Small livestock farms are most at threat from cuts to the agriculture budget yet are in areas of the country that we most need to invest in, for nature, climate and public access; that’s according to environmental thinktank the Green Alliance. Caz Graham visits the Westmorland County Show, just outside Kendal in Cumbria, to discuss sheep, cheese an…

1
11/09/24 - Agriculture budget, overfishing, bottom trawling and fishermen health concerns 14:07

20d ago14:07

14:07

The health of the fishing industry relies directly on the number of fish in the sea, and the balance between conserving fish stocks, while also catching enough to make a living, is in constant tension. The Blue Marine Foundation charity has launched legal proceedings over the previous Government's decision to set fishing levels on multiple UK stock…

1
10/09/24 - Wet harvest weather, Cornish fish freezing and new EFRA Chair 13:50

21d ago13:50

13:50

Waterlogged fields, wet crops, delays and lower yields - the reality of harvest 2024 for many UK farmers. It's been a really difficult year. This winter, rainfall was 60% above average in England, and that came after the wettest 18 months since records began in the 1830's. That hit the sowing of both winter and spring crops. The summer has been the…

1
09/09/24 - A UK Fishing Strategy, elm disease and a National Park charity 11:39

23d ago11:39

11:39

The UK fishing industry is renewing calls for the Government to develop a Fishing Strategy - the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations says with strategies for energy and conservation impacting on fishing areas, a strategic approach is needed. There are just under 5,000 fishing vessels registered in the UK - ten years ago there were near…

1
07/09/24 Farming Today This Week: bluetongue vaccine, seabed recovery, £100m cuts to the farming budget? 24:42

28d ago24:42

24:42

The Government plans to cut the budget for nature friendly farming in England by £100m, according to a report in the Guardian. It claims that civil service sources say the cut is needed to help fill a £22 billion treasury shortfall. The reduced spending could affect the new Sustainable Farming Incentive which replaces the old EU system, paying farm…

1
For owners and for labor, restaurants are difficult 51:00

26d ago51:00

51:00

“When you have to make those decisions do you buy the nicest ingredients to make your food, since that’s why people are there? Or do you pay your employees two dollars more an hour? Or do you rent the building that’s gonna put you in the location that gives you the highest chance of success? I think that in many ways restaurant owners have one of t…

1
06/09/24 - Bluetongue, temperate rainforests and Scottish veg 13:58

26d ago13:58

13:58

The government has agreed to the use of 3 vaccines within the UK - subject to licence - to try and stop the spread of bluetongue. It follows of confirmation of the infection on a new premises in Yorkshire. Bluetongue is a virus carried by biting midges blown into the UK from northern Europe - it’s currently widespread in the Netherlands. It is unpl…

1
Rotational grazing and perennial pastures 51:01

1M ago51:01

51:01

"...one of which is sorghum sudan grass, and if you don't mow that, it gets to be like ten feet tall. And so we had pigs that were running through there, that reminded us of the velociraptors in Jurassic Park–you know, you can't see the animal, you just see the top of the plant waving back and forth. And so we were always on safari when we had to g…

1
Planted Bloomington is a food truck with a vision 51:00

1M ago51:00

51:00

“Animal agriculture creates more greenhouse gas emissions than all transportation combined. Yet, as individuals we’re often told ‘you should take public transportation and ride bikes,’ all of which are good things but not very frequently are we told, ‘let’s reduce our consumption of animal products, and that will have a tremendous impact on the env…

1
What does diet culture have to do with racism? [replay] 51:00

2M ago51:00

51:00

“Speaking directly to Black women and wanting Black women to know that their bodies are not the problem. The way that our bodies are treated and problematized and pathologized, we’re often taught that it’s our fault, that it’s our problem to fix or we just need to love our bodies out of societal oppression.” This week on the show a conversation wit…

1
Problem solving you can eat 51:00

2M ago51:00

51:00

“I grow tomatoes at my house. My mom’s such a good shot, she was shooting cherry tomatoes off their stems” This week on the show it's back to school and into the garden. We meet kids in an after school garden club at Benjamin Franklin Elementary in Terre Haute, Indiana. Next we drop into a multi-age classroom in Bloomington where kids work with a c…

1
Insect drama in the coffee field 51:08

2M ago51:08

51:08

“When the phorids arrive, the ants release a pheromone that tells their nest mates, all the other ants that are in the vicinity, their sisters that are in the vicinity, tells them ‘Careful! The phorids are here! You better go back to your nest or get paralyzed.’” This week on the show, we get to nerd out on insects with Ivette Perfecto who studies …

1
Connecting through food at the public library 51:00

2M ago51:00

51:00

“When you think of literacy and you think of what does that mean and what are all the parts of it– think about reading a recipe. Think about measuring the ingredients. Think about learning how to cook. Think about planning a meal, or budgeting for that meal.There are so many things that are learning-through-play, learning-through-doing-it, in a tea…

1
The inclusive vision of The National Young Farmers Coalition 51:01

3M ago51:01

51:01

“We’ve been presented with problems today that we’ve never dealt with before as an agriculture industry–like climate change. And I don’t think that the approach we’ve taken, historically, is going to work here…As long as I’ve heard the words ‘climate change,’ I have heard that Indigenous practice is the solution.” This week on the show, a conversat…

1
Can traditional foods help manage disease? 50:59

3M ago50:59

50:59

Have you ever had a hunch about something, tested it out and been shocked by the results? That’s what happened to public health scholar Funmi Ayeni. She took a traditional Nigerian home remedy and applied the rigors of scientific research to test its efficacy. The results were nothing short of jaw dropping. This week on Earth Eats, food research th…

1
Indigenous foodways as tools of empowerment 51:00

3M ago51:00

51:00

“As I started to think more about theories around food, and it’s a thing that we do every day without fail, and it really shapes the way that we interact with one another, it shapes the way we interact with our environments, the ways that we create networks of relationships–being able to name it has given it a power to be able to use it to tap into…

1
Learn about specialty brewing with local fruits at Upland’s Woodshop 51:00

3M ago51:00

51:00

“We use wood so that we give the various microorganisms sort of a place to colonize and live from batch to batch. And over time those colonies and those species that have taken hold will change, they’ll drift and so, you’ll develop a unique character to each tank that’s really interesting.” This week on the show we dive head first into a giant oak …

1
Historian Rebecca Spang on the strange origins of the restaurant 51:00

4M ago51:00

51:00

“The dominant vocabulary for talking about restaurants is ‘what food do they serve, what are the good dishes?’ People think that’s the only thing that’s important about restaurants.” Today on the show we talk with Historian Rebecca Spang, about the origins of restaurants, and what they mean to us today. “The experience just of knowing that there ar…

1
Palm oil is everywhere–Max Haiven talks about why that matters 51:00

4M ago51:00

51:00

“When you begin to zoom out, you realize that in fact palm oil is all around us, and the world, in a strange way, is made of palm oil; and we’re all, in a certain way, made of palm oil–in the sense that we use it to reproduce our bodies and to clean our skin and to live the lives that we live in a globalized world.” This week on the show, a convers…

1
Beth Hoffman speaks frankly on the financial challenges of farming [replay] 49:50

4M ago49:50

49:50

“It’s a great thing to be outside, to have birds chirping, to be around green grass, and animals. But the problem has become, that you can’t really be a business unless you are a financially viable business.” This week on the show we explore the economics of small scale farming, and debunk some of the myths of the agrarian lifestyle. We talk with B…

1
Tacotarian’s plant-based tacos aren’t just for vegetarians [replay] 51:00

4M ago51:00

51:00

“There are a lot of people, they like the faux meats and they want to eat a Carne Asada that reminds of the actual, like, Beef Carne Asada. There are a lot of people who try to steer clear from the faux meats, so we wanted to have plenty of veggie items on the menu for them as well. We really wanted to represent different ingredients and different …

1
Food sovereignty in times of transition 51:52

4M ago51:52

51:52

“It’s not about simply that protectionism and nationalism–that we only want to make sure that we eat Lithuanian food. It is a much deeper sense of urgency that as a state–and its political sovereignty–depends on the ability to produce food and feed its population for a long time.” This week on the show a conversation with sociologist Diana Mincyte …

1
Can chefs shape our food system? 51:38

5M ago51:38

51:38

“There’s a restaurant on almost every street in our various cities–they are woven into the fabrics of our communities, and they are deeply embedded in our lives. Restaurants are the places we go to celebrate marriages, to mourn divorces, the places we go to gossip with friends to celebrate after church and they become these places to hear the stori…

1
Taking on Monsanto: journalist Carey Gillam tells the story of Lee Johnson vs. Big Ag [replay] 51:00

5M ago51:00

51:00

“We all need to eat to survive and the quality of the food, the access to the food--the type of food that we eat is central to our health and to the health of the planet.“ This week on the show, a conversation with Carey Gillam, the author of The Monsanto Papers--Deadly Secrets, Corporate Corruption, and One Man’s Search for Justice. And we have a …

1
Turkish hand pies spark childhood memories for Derya Dogan 49:10

5M ago49:10

49:10

“Imagine, we have dinner like at 7, 8 pm–my baba would take all of the çörek to the bakery and have it baked and he’s back home at 10pm–doesn’t matter! Fresh tea, hot tea, feta cheese, olives–breakfast. That’s like your night breakfast the day before Eid.” This week on the show, we spend time in the kitchen with Derya Dogan . She walks us through t…

1
In celebration of Earth Day: a conversation on the deep roots of regenerative farming 51:00

5M ago51:00

51:00

“When I try to understand–why on earth would agriculture be practiced that way? The answer is colonization. The answer really is, this wasn’t about managing land for everyone’s mutual benefit. This was a process of extraction.” In honor of Earth Day earlier this week, we are revisiting an important conversation about regenerative agriculture with L…

1
What a garden can mean–when you need it most 48:46

6M ago48:46

48:46

“And she brought two jars of lilacs, like [a] drink made of lilacs. She brought also cups and everybody could try it. It was really something like a miracle for me because I have never thought that it could be drunk in this way.” This week on the show, a story about a community garden in Tallinn, Estonia. We talk with Jerry Mercury, a political imm…

1
Get ready for food truck season, and ice cream with the Chocolate Moose and Pinoy Garden Cafe 51:00

6M ago51:00

51:00

“And as the blade rotates and the interior cylinder freezes, it begins to churn the ice cream into a wonderful fluffy content that will be established shortly thereafter.” This week on the show, let’s kick off the summer season with a story about ice cream. Toby Foster talks with Jordan Davis and Elijah Lawson of the Chocolate Moose, Bloomington's …

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