Farm-to-counter may not be a thing for most of us, but it is a service that Bolyard's Meats delivers all the time. Bolyard's is a butcher shop that works directly with farmers on the beef, pork, lamb, poultry and more. And in a really unique spin, you not only buy fresh from the farm meats at the meat counter, but you can get a great meal too. And …

As we change seasons, we're talking seasonal foods with chef Zane Dearien at a unique restaurant in St. Louis' Central West End -- Bowood by Niche. The restaurant is paired with a garden center, providing a perfect patio environment to enjoy a relaxed meal with friends and family. Our conversation focuses on the importance of utilizing seasonal foo…

Cheese farmer made be a made up term but when you make artisan cheddar cheese from the dairy cows you milk, it seems fitting! This episode we visit David Hemme, a Missouri dairy farmer who began making cheese seven years ago! The Hemmes are committed to "better from the beginning" and the result is incredibly tasty products with an eye on the futur…

With Cahokia on our minds after our last episode, we turn to my backyard of St. Louis and are digging into more Native American food and farming history. Joined by guest expert Dr. Gayle Fritz, an anthropologist and professor emeritus from Washington University, we uncover the mysteries of this once-thriving metropolis and its food and farming foot…

Did you know that rice is grown in Southern Illinois where the Ohio River meets the Mississippi? And there's actually a rice that has been bred to deliver a higher protein content that makes it low glycemic too! We talk with farmer Blake Gerard of River Bend Farms about the unique challenges of growing rice, how he came to grow and market an enhanc…

The marbling of wagyu beef adds benefits to the tenderness and flavor that makes it stand out according to Jeff Swanson. We visit Jeff & his family in Adams, Tennessee -- just an hour or so from Nashville. We delve into the history and flavor profiles of this extraordinary beef in this episode. Find out what makes wagyu different -- on the plate as…

So often, a podcast interview opens up whole new areas of discovery and here, food and farm books can help provide additional depth. In fact, the last few episodes opened that curiosity for host Janice Person who jumped on a friend's book recommendation. Now Janice shares recommendations for 10 books in the food and farm space! The books Janice tal…

We continue discussions about food and farm on the Gila Indian Community in Arizona. In this episode we talk to Terry Button about the work he and his wife Ramona are doing at Ramona Farms. Terry shares some of the foods the Pima people have eaten for generations, sharing the roles of corn and tepary beans and some of the foods that can be foraged …

Let's go on a journey to the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona's Sonoran Desert, to travel locations and understand differences in time. We look at water use over time as host Janice Person interviews two expert archaeologists, Kyle Woodson and Wesley Miles. Together, they discuss the prehistoric use of irrigation in the Gila River region and …

I love veggies from a backyard garden but I have to admit, I am not the most committed gardener. And I definitely have never kept my backyard in event space shape. After visiting Mortimer Farms in Dewey, Arizona, I'm pretty sure I would leave the food production to them and enjoyment to me! That would be fine to Ashlee Mortimer who's family started…

We offer a deep dive into the world of winemaking, sustainability, and the family-run business of St. James Winery in Missouri talking with Brandon Hofherr (marketing director) and Sam Cobb (vineyard manager). From the rich history of Missouri as the first AVA in the US, settled by German and Italian immigrants, to the challenges of overturning res…

Urban farming has so much potential but it can be hard to make a living doing it. With the economy today, every city and town seems to have more people experiencing homelessness. In Iowa, there is a unique approach connecting individuals utilizing services at Central Iowa Shelter & Services (CISS) to fresh local food in a win-win and a unique farm …

Shelby Smith never expected to be a farmer, so it may be fitting that she's a kind of farmer almost nobody thinks about. Shelby is a cricket farmer. Right in the heart of the Midwest. She describes this space as one changing quickly and compares it to the reality there was a time most Americans probably thought avocados were odd and wondered why ot…

Holidays bring together an amazing combination of foods & traditions, but how often do we step back and talk about how our families celebrated the holidays 25, 50, even 75 years ago? That's exactly the conversation we have with my mom (Ada Person) today. She shares her memories of holiday celebrations in the 1940s explaining what was on the table f…

We're off the farm in this episode as listeners and friends share their holiday foods and traditions. As we listen to these five people tell us about the foods that must be a part of their festive season, it's impossible not to reflect more on our own traditions. It's also likely to make you want to visit someone else's holiday table to try at leas…

We first talked with cranberry farmer Amber Bristow more than two years ago. She did an amazing job helping us understand this uniquely American fruit grown on vines low to the ground with water added at harvest to float the berries to the top making them easy to collect! We catch back up with her picking up on some of the things that have changed …

Back in 2020, we talked with Shannon Latham who runs a pumpkin farm up in Northern Iowa. Well, now that 2022's pumpkin season has rolled around, we headed back to the pumpkin patch to find out what the latest news is for Shannon and Enchanted Acres. Shannon shared a range of favorite foods -- pumpkin pudding, Pumpkin pie and of course pumpkin muffi…

Have you ever considered beekeeping as the path to teaching leadership skills and tap passions? Kamal Bell has been doing that on his first generation farm in Cedar Grove, NC. As we sat down to discuss the farm, we found chairs and sat down in a hot tunnel surrounded by seedlings to be planted soon for fall/winter harvests. We talk through getting …

Pawpaws are one of a handful of unique fruits and vegetables native to the United States, and yet they are not nearly as widely enjoyed as the holiday must have cranberries! One of the reasons they aren't as well known is the primary way to get pawpaws is foraging for them. Jeff Hake sits down with us to talk about pawpaws and other fruits being gr…

Common ground is a phrase that is said less frequently these days, and environmental common ground isn't what everyone expects happens when sustainability experts and farmers sit down together. But maybe we should. The health of our soils, shifting weather patterns and the role of greenhouse gases and more means there is a lot to talk about and wor…

Not many of us look at palm trees and immediately think of growing dates and yet, this episode may change that for you! And that's one of the things that visiting a date farmer brings out, but the process of working trees that reach the heights and ages of date palms also brings up more questions. Luckily, I found the right place in the Coachella V…

There are titles that go almost unnoticed, but being a cheesemonger definitely stands out! It took a long time but eventually, I met a cheesemonger. That cheesemonger, Jessica Keahey (founder of Sweet Freedom Cheese in Bentonville, Arkansas), led a virtual meetup and cheese tasting & we later met in person as we toured two dairy farms! We certainly…

I recently had the chance to tour two dairy farms in Northeastern Oklahoma. The differences between the two and some of the similarities among them were really striking. After the tours, I sat down with Anthony & Charlie Coblentz and Logan Courtney, a neighbor whose dairy is just 15 minutes or so away. Touring first helped me see some of the differ…

You hear the dream-like conversations regularly.... people shifting from a small backyard garden to something that will sustain them and their family. How often do you see people do it? For two decades I've had a front row to watch as my brother Ray Person, sister-in-law Elizabeth Kelly & a group of friends created a farm co-op that does just that.…

The unique taste of lamb draws me in everytime its on a menu and I think pasture to table lamb is something everyone should try. The Mediterranean flavors just aren't the same without lamb. That's what led me to head southeast from Columbus, Ohio, to the Root family farm. Kristin Root Patterson shares the family's love of sheep, and how they combin…

There is nothing that will wake me up faster or better than the smell of hickory-smoked country ham and bacon. And when I want to buy country ham or the "good bacon" (a phrase our family started when several of us showed up for a weekend get together and I brought bacon from Broadbent's while others brought grocery store bacon), it means Broadbent.…

The smell of fresh lavender is something that will captivate your imagination for all sorts of things! Lavender farms may not be everywhere, but thanks to Long Row Lavender, just west of St. Louis, Missouri, it's an easy drive for much of middle America. Tracy Smith shares the lessons learned about growing lavender, cooking with it, and bringing th…

In the midst of most family farms, is a house called the home place. When you layer that with the appreciation of food, family and hospitality that runs so deep in western Kentucky, you get the Peery House at Springhill Farms! And in this episode, we talk to three generations of the family about changes unfolding over the years at their home place.…

With a passion to build community and a love of agriculture, Will Kornegay has built a business that connects people, reduces food waste and provides access to fresh-from-the-farm produce. Based in rural North Carolina, Will saw a lot of produce was wasted on farms because there wasn't a market for it. Perhaps it was misshapen or got scratched up a…

Horseradish isn't a food that is in the forefront of a lot of food conversations, but you can't deny the burst of flavor can really add to other foods. Whether prime rib, oysters or bloody marys, horseradish makes othr foods better. This week we talk to Matt McMillan who takes us to a horseradish farm and talks to us about some of the reasons this …

This week is the time set aside to focus on agriculture. And while we do that routinely with our episodes, we thought a great way to mark the observance is by hearing about weather conditions, field work and general state of mind for farmers across the US (9 different states!) & a few from outside the country too! You'll hear from farmers who have …

Tony White was doing marketing work with the Yellow Pages and found himself starting a business that was stressful so a friend suggested he start gardening. Over the years the garden and connections to chefs have grown to the point that if you want great tomatoes in the Midwest, you should know Tony Tomato! We talk with Tony about some of his favor…

After doing the podcast for a few years, we thought listeners would enjoy hearing updates on three popular episodes of Grounded by the Farm. So in this week's episode, we touch base with three people we talked to some time ago about the latest happenings in their part of the world. Here's who we talked to and the background on each of them from pre…

As someone who loves an abundance of Asian cuisines, tofu may be on my plate or in my soup more than some Americans. But I haven't had many chances to sit down and talk to someone about growing tofu soybeans. We can check that off the list as the conversation with Jennifer "Jennie" Schmidt about her family's Maryland farm allowed us a chance to tal…

Family farm transitions are tough to discuss. A lot gets wrapped into it.... not only are you talking about things like retirement or potential death of an older generation, but it means changes in how things are done, recognizing the contributions of younger generations. And many times all of this is wrapped up with generations of family legacy an…

The Arbogast family farms outside of Harrisonburg, VA. From the beautiful Shenandoah Valley, their chicken houses dot the farm as do cattle out on the pastures. Lauren talks with us about the chicken farm, explaining the way the chicken houses are managed and how chickens go from freshly hatched chicks to ready for the market. Having a blend of gen…

Growing up with cattle, Ryan Goodman got a good look first-hand at cattle care and feeding. But working cattle in half a dozen states and visiting ranches in the vast majority of the U.S., Ryan has had the chance to compare and contrast various environments and some of the things farmers and ranchers have to take into consideration. We talk with Ry…

Sitting down to talk with This Farm Wife Meredith Bernard was pretty much like sitting down with someone I had known forever. And my guess is thousands of people feel similarly since more than 100k have subscribed to her YouTube Channel. Meredith & her husband Lawrence farm along the North Carolina - Virginia line. Although towns are close by, with…

The Leonard family found themselves dealing with the challenges of urban sprawl and rising land prices. As they started diversifying to include agritainment, new challenges rose. But there are lots of smiles now, photos with Santa, haunted mazes at Halloween and more! Patty Leonard and her family have a long history of dairy farming. In fact, her g…

Farm stays on Maryland's Easter Shore may not be the first thing to come to mind when you think of Maryland or a vacation, but maybe they should. There is a lot of curiosity to be tapped there and I certainly enjoyed my visit! Those farm stays at Sugar Water Manor give people a chance to go deeper in their interest to learn more about how food is p…

The joy of discovery paired with the growing interest in where our food comes from makes food and farming a perfect way to enjoy learning. That’s the mindset we are trying to create with the new farm and food curriculum. These educational materials accompany some of our podcast episodes to share farmers stories. And thanks to working with an amazin…

We didn't realize when I interviewed Paula Hynes that we were about to get so busy on a project it means all hands on deck! We have been working on a curriculum to bring these farm-to-table discussions to teachers, parents and students. There's a lot to get done and we hope subscribers understand the temporary shift on our end. Maybe you can use th…

There may not be many places in the world with more differences than the beautiful green rolling hills of Ireland and the drought-ridden savannas of Kenya. Paula Hynes had the chance to leave Ireland for time with the Maasai people. It offered a whole new perspective on farming, but also on life more broadly. In 2017 that Paula was fortunate enough…

If you have ever open the gold wrapped on Kerrygold Irish Butter, you may have noticed that it looks different from some of the other butters you buy. What is it that makes it different? And who are the farmers connected to it? That's part of our conversation in this episode as we talk to dairy farmer Peter Hynes of Ireland's County Cork. Peter & h…

Although rice is probably the biggest constant in Filipino food, there are a variety of foods that many Americans may not be familiar with. And Albert Santos has worked in several areas of The Phillipines studying agriculture and working with plants and people across the way. And he has made sure that I got lots of opportunities to enjoy Filipino f…

For most people, canola oil is something you buy as an oil or a spray to cook with, but it is a striking vision with beautiful blooms that are numerous and totally light up the prairies mid-season. And it is incredibly Canadian because plant breeders in the country worked to improve the health profile and taste! Canola farmer Lesley Rae Kelly joins…

In today's world, people talk about plant-based proteins as a dietary preference, or a way to deliver innovation. But when you think about that, how often does your mind turn to growing a plant-based protein in a desert? How often do you think about subsistence farmers, people who struggle to feed their family the most basic foods because weather s…

Have you got a favorite plant breeder or maybe not even sure what plant breeding is about? This episode is for you either way! We talk with Dr. Lee Hickey who has a plant breeding lab at Australia's University of Queensland about some of the cool science that helps advance the seeds farmers plant and the foods on out plates. I met Lee in the friend…

Fish is a growing part of many diets as a good protein source, and people like Ugandan fish farmer Jean Kaahwa are growing fish for us! He farms tilapia in Africa's Lake Victoria. In this episode, we talk with Jean about Uganda and the role agriculture plays in the country as well as a wealth of projects he has started as he teaches fellow African …

Usually Grounded by the Farm episodes include us interviewing a farmer, talking about the food they produce. And in this second season, we are interviewing farmers in various parts of the world. But this week, we hit several obstacles for interviews and listeners were nice enough to ask the questions. That put our host Janice Person in the intervie…