Meet Me At the Table
My goal with this blog is to bring you perspectives from my past, peppered with insights and facts on the future of food, farming and health – providing “food for thought, action and personal responsibility.” As a registered dietitian and a sixth generation farm owner in Kentucky, the connection of farm to plate is part of my DNA. I have spent my career navigating the connections between food, health, agriculture and consumer behavior. Together, we will dig into the complex and ever-changing story of who grows our food, what’s in our food, and how food affects our health and ultimately our lives.
Moving Beyond the Bandage Approach: Healing Hunger, Nutrition and Health
We all look for quick fixes, whether it’s for personal weight loss or solving community issues. We recognize a problem and we want to fix it immediately! It’s a mindset that is worthy but often not achievable. You can patch a leak … but if the source of the problem...
Taking A Bite Out of Food Waste Starts with Savvy Produce Storage
Headlines highlight it, grocery stores address it and consumers talk about it, but how serious are we about the cost of food waste? In a recent Forbes article citing the cost of food waste, it is estimated that $400 billion dollars or 100 billion pounds of food are...
Water — The Ultimate Food Fight?
Water is the core to our existence, from how our bodies perform to the availability of our food! For some of us in the Eastern U.S., the lack of available water and rain may not be an issue (especially with the recent rains/floods), but for others it is. The reality...
Rockin’ the “Robots” Makes Cows True Bovine Princesses
I’ve never met a dairy farmer that wasn’t passionate about their cows. After all, cow comfort and care are at the top of the list for a successful business. But the dedication required and the 24/7 schedule is a commitment many of us would find hard to maintain. I...
The 4th of July Picnic Price “Pinch”
Headlines say it and grocery bills confirm it: we are paying more for food this year. With the continued supply chain disruptions, inflation and the global effects of the Ukraine war, we will feel the 4th of July picnic price “pinch” this summer. The Price Increases...
Reducing the “HoofPrints” of Dairy — A Commitment to Sustainability
I’ve never met a dairy farmer that lacked passion and commitment about their cows and the quality of the milk produced. From my early days around my grandfather and father on our dairy farm, to today’s producers, the commitment remains the same even as technologies...
Don’t Make Foodborne Illness the “Life of the Party” — Think Food Safety
Long summer days and warm nights are the perfect setting for picnics, road trips, music festivals … and foodborne illness. Why the connection? As the temperatures rise, so do the occasions for serving food outdoors. If basic rules for handing food are not part of the...
Do You Buy Milk Based on Expiration Dates? Get the Scoop on Pasteurization
First of all, there is a reason Louis Pasteur, the French chemist, became famous. Thanks to his 19th Century discovery of a technique known as pasteurization, the public health issues associated with food spoilage and the consumption of raw milk were significantly...
Seeing Beyond the “Castle From My Window” – Is Agritourism the New “Crop” to Preserve the Land?
Travel was never part of my family “DNA” during my childhood. The daily chores of dairy farm life limited any “time off” for my parents, especially my father. But Sunday afternoon drives through the countryside were my father’s “time away” to explore and check out...
Looking Beyond the “Halo” for Personal or Planet Health?
Summer is here! Fire up the grills! With the start of summer holiday picnics and backyard grilling, our search for the best “burger” extends beyond the meat counter. The days of only having a choice between a hot dog, beef burger or a traditional veggie burger are...