Food Focus Podcast
1) An Inflation Primer: How High and Why
We are hearing a lot about inflation lately, but do we understand what it is? More importantly do we understand why its happening? In this episode, Mike talks to Dr Trevor Tombe, Professor of Economi...Show More
2) Is Micro-Algae the Future of Alternative Protein?
Have you ever left a pail of water sitting and come back to a green and soupy mess? Did you think it looked like food? No? Maybe you should have. Yonatan Golan, the President of Israel based Brevi...Show More
3) Is Your Grandmother's Recipe Ready for Prime Time? Bringing New Food Products to Market
Have you ever thought that your old family recipe would be a hit on grocery store shelves? Do you have any idea how that might happen? In this episode Mike talks to Derek Vella, Director of the Guel...Show More
4) Milk from Farm to Family
In this episode Mike talks to Jenifer Tilton Flood, whose family milks 1,700 cows in Maine. We talk about what happens on a dairy farm - the joys and challenges of farming. They also talk about the f...Show More
5) Building a Farm Based Food Business - Challenges and Successes
Farmers are managers first and foremost. They need to build their businesses to ensure long term success. Many farmers get bigger. Others find a market niche. Increasingly we are seeing farmers st...Show More
6) A Look Back to Better Understand the Future of Animal Agriculture
Technology is advancing at an amazing rate. You might not think that looking at the history of animal agriculture would provide much insight into how we might think about gene editing and other techn...Show More
7) The COOP Model In Agriculture - The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
Coops have been a common model in agriculture and food, giving producers a stake in the processing and input sectors. What are coops and what makes them different from a "regular" business? In this ...Show More
8) Reflecting on a Career in Dairy Processing
Michael Barrett is retiring as the President and CEO of Gaylea - a dairy processing cooperative. Mike sat down with Michael to reflect on his career and how he got there, the change he has seen in th...Show More
9) Do Animals Feel? A Discussion on Animal Sentience
What do animals feel? Mike has a discussion on sentience with Dr Georgia Mason, Director of the Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare. We make individual and societal decisions on seafood ...Show More
10) From Farm to Food Service: A Unique Perspective on the Restaurant Business
Jenn Christie grew up on a farm and worked for most of her career in agriculture. In 2020 (yes the pandemic year) she and her partner opened a restaurant (Bonfire on Queen in Paisley, ON). In this e...Show More