Ep. 71 - We need a thousand flowers blooming on local food initiatives. Food: you are already involved: you engage in the food system multiple times a day. Jessica Fanzo, Director, Columbia’s Climate School.
Release Date: 05/06/2025
Ep. 75 - Producing Products and Food in the Best Possible Way for People and Planet. Joshua Onysko.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Joshua Scott Onysko. Joshua is a true pioneer in the world of clean beauty, sustainability, and conscious entrepreneurship. He is the founder behind not one, but multiple industry-shaping brands, including Pangea Organics, Alpine Provisions, and Un Jeu D’échecs — each built with the core mission of creating products that are as good for the planet as they are for the people who use them. He’s a self-made, multifaceted entrepreneur with over 25 years in the natural products space, visiting over 50 countries in search of the finest ingredients, and...
info_outline
Ep. 74 - “How Donuts Gave Me Abs and a 90kg Snatch”. From Bolivia. Lisa Franz.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Lisa Franz. Lisa has a M.Sc. in Exercise Science, Health Promotion and Nutrition. She is the owner and head coach at Nutrition Coaching and Life and host of the Nutrition and Life Podcast. After struggling through various diets herself, Lisa learned about the evidence-based ways to change weight and body composition and has been fascinated with nutrition and building muscle ever since. #eatbetterfoodtoday #longevity #health #localfarmers #functionalmedcine #testing #healthyfoods Please visit our website for this week's recipe, interviews,...
info_outline
Ep 73 - If You Want to Make Your Health a Priority, You Have to Dedicate Time to It. CEO Blake Baynham.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Blake Baynham. Blake is a leader in functional medicine and Founder/CEO of The Fountain, a cutting-edge clinic that helps people optimize their health before problems ever show up. By focusing on health-span, not lifespan, Blake will discuss how take back control of your energy, longevity, and life. #eatbetterfoodtoday #longevity #health #localfarmers #functionalmedcine #testing #healthyfoods Please visit our website for this week's recipe, interviews, books, research, videos. Look for information on Blake at...
info_outline
Ep. 72 - Lose a Beekeeper and you Begin to Lose our Food System. Honey is the Original Healing Agent. Honeycomb Can Change the Consumer Relationship with Honey. Entrepreneur Douglas Raggio.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Douglas Raggio. Douglas’ journey to becoming a purveyor of fine fresh honeycomb weaves together his entrepreneurial spirit, culinary expertise, and passion for sustainable food systems. After a decade in the fast-paced restaurant industry, where he managed award-winning establishments in New York and Chicago, Douglas found himself increasingly drawn to the origin stories behind exceptional ingredients. His pivot into the world of artisanal honey began during a chance encounter with a third-generation beekeeper in the Hudson Valley. ...
info_outline
Ep. 71 - We need a thousand flowers blooming on local food initiatives. Food: you are already involved: you engage in the food system multiple times a day. Jessica Fanzo, Director, Columbia’s Climate School.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Jessica Fanzo. Jessica is a Professor of Climate and Director of the Food for Humanity Initiative at the Columbia Climate School. Her research studies the connections between climate change and food systems in nutrition. She studies communities living in climate and resource constrained settings to identify and explore opportunities within food systems to enhance diet, nutrition, and environmental outcomes. She was the first laureate of the Carasso Foundation’s Sustainable Diets Prize in 2012 for her research on sustainable food and diets for...
info_outline
Ep 70 - No Farms. No Food. CEO John Piotti. American Farmland Trust. Farming done right is critical to our future.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have John Piotti, President and CEO of American Farmland Trust. John has worked at the forefront of sustainable agriculture since the early 1990s. Under John’s leadership, AFT has engaged in the most comprehensive study of American land use ever conducted, helped secure billions of dollars in funding to protect farmland and promote climate-smart agriculture, and launched initiatives that advance regenerative farming practices and support next generation farmers. Prior to joining AFT, John served as President of Maine Farmland Trust and as House...
info_outline
Ep. 69 - Health, Hunger and Hope. As a Guest on Boomer Banter with Wendy Green.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this Episode, I am a guest on Boomer Banter with Wendy Green. Wendy as host asks very insightful questions on the orgins of this Podcast (Health), what I've discovered from my interviews over the past year-and-a-half (Hunger), and the new Center we've just started in the poorest suburb in America, East Cleveland, OH (Hope). Wendy is a great Host and led an exceptional conversation. Wendy can be found at . This was recorded Live and released by Wendy last week.
info_outline
Ep. 68 - From Washing Crates to CEO. I want to Invest Dollars into Stories Like Mine. Relentlessly Pursuing the Best.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Anna Shields, CEO of Snowville Creamery. Snowville was founded in 2003 and is based south of Cleveland in Pomeroy, OH, just outside of Athens, OH. Anna began her career in the dairy industry at the age of 16, becoming CEO of Snowville in Nov 2022. I’m excited to discuss her journey, what Snowville means to its consumers, its workers, and the local community. I have their delicious yogurt every morning after my workout in the gym. I reached out to Anna for this conversation, and she was gracious enough to allow me to visit Snowville and...
info_outline
Ep. 67 - A Stanford Medical School graduate now Integrating Food based Interventions into Healthcare. Treat, Prevent and Reverse Chronic Conditions with Medically Tailored Meals.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Dr Steven Chen, a board-certified family medicine physician and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Stanford University and Stanford School of Medicine. Steven is currently the Chief Medical Officer at Recipe4Health at Alameda County Health, outside of Oakland, CA. Recipe4Health is a nationally recognized, award-winning "Food as Medicine" initiative that brings together healthcare, agriculture, food systems, and community to integrate food-based interventions into healthcare settings. Steven and I met from a mutual friend, Jeff Tkach, CEO...
info_outline
Ep. 66 - Two Decades Supporting Local Schools with Fresh, Nutritious, Delicious Organic Produce. Citrus for a Healthier Heart. Old Grove Orange.
Eat Better Food Today!
On this episode we are grateful to have Anna Knight. Her family has farmed citrus trees, and now berries and vegetables for five generations in Redlands, CA. Their farm has partnered with School Food Professionals to support local students for two decades. For Anna, the large purchases schools make from her farm enabled her family to pay for her and her brother’s college education. Her mission is to ensure that small family farms in her community can continue to operate and thrive in perpetuity. We are having this conversation at Anna’s Orange Grove outside of LA. Anna...
info_outlineOn this episode we are grateful to have Jessica Fanzo. Jessica is a Professor of Climate and Director of the Food for Humanity Initiative at the Columbia Climate School. Her research studies the connections between climate change and food systems in nutrition. She studies communities living in climate and resource constrained settings to identify and explore opportunities within food systems to enhance diet, nutrition, and environmental outcomes. She was the first laureate of the Carasso Foundation’s Sustainable Diets Prize in 2012 for her research on sustainable food and diets for long-term human health. She was also elected into the National Academy of Sciences in 2024.
eatbetterfoodtoday #longevity #health #localfarmers #climate #globaltrade
Please visit our website https://eatbetterfoodtoday.com for this week's recipe, interviews, books, research, videos.
Look for information on Jessica Fanzo at https://people.climate.columbia.edu/users/profile/jessica-fanzo
What’s In Season https://www.seasonalfoodguide.org/
Cleveland Kitchen: https://www.clevelandkitchen.com/
Segment Notes:
Breakfast 1:47
Path to Director at Columbia 2:49
- Bachelors & PHD at University of Arizona, Bench Scientist, Columbia, Kenya, UN World Food Program, Hopkins, back to Columbia for the first Climate School in the country
The Food and Climate Connection 4:50
- Constant extreme climate events are constantly shocking the food system
- And Food Systems are contributing to Climate Change
o 30% of all greenhouse gases, 70% of all fresh water
- But Regenerative Agriculture Contributes Positively to Climate
o Farmers need help to pivot because their margins are so thin.
- Worldwide we Need a Mosaic of Solutions.
How Do We Get More Interest in Regenerative & Organic Farming 10:41
- Growing interest from consumers
Development of the Food Systems Countdown to 2030 12:12
- Created Framework of 50 Indicators to Monitor the Worlds Food Systems
- For Policy Makers to make decisions, Shed Light on Key Drivers
Food for Humanity 15:14
- To bring multiple Columbia disciplines together around central issue of food
Stefan Schmidt’s Global Crop Trust 17:30
- Leads Heritage to Mainstream Seeds Collection and Storage in a Seed Vault in Norway
- Need to preserve a diversity of seeds globally
Kenya and Small Family Farms 20:44
- Regenerative Farming, Incredible Opportunity to Feed the World, Needs More Investment
US-AID 23:26
- Affecting American farmers. Losing $2B in revenue.
- Gone are the essential medicines, vaccines
- DHS Surveys gone – health, food and nutrition information
o to know 25% of children under-nourished
- Early warning of areas to be experiencing drought
Climate Finance Degree at Columbia 28:38
- How Do we Finance Mitigation and Adaptation Policies
Book Fixing Dinner, Fixing the Planet 30:42
- Healthy Diet that treads lightly on the planet
- How do we make healthy food cheap, tasty, and convenient
- How do we create more healthy messaging, particularly for young people.
Food Insecurity 36:36
- Support more local organizations that feed food insecure populations
o We need a thousand flowers blooming on local food initiatives
- As food gets more expensive you buy the lower quality, less expensive foods
Food Regionalization 40:09
- Need global trade AND more local food production
Longevity 42:14
- Food, movement, social (your tribe – don’t be lonely)
- look at the Blue Zones
First Step Towards a Healthier You 45:31
- you are already involved: you engage in the food system multiple times a day
- Get involved in local food or donate to them
- get to know your farmers
The Recipe: Pesto Pasta with Chickpeas 47:37
This podcast is about giving back. A portion of our profits supports initiatives combating child hunger in underserved communities like East Cleveland, Ohio.
Join me every week as we redefine wellness one plate at a time. Let’s make healthy eating accessible for everyone while supporting local sustainable farmers, chefs, businesses, and organizations.
Subscribe to “Eat Better Food Today” for weekly inspiration on living a healthier, happier, more meaningful life!
This Podcast is a production of Sante Strategies, LLC. Sante translated is - Health Means Everything.
This is the company I have started to begin this health and longevity journey, focused on food.
Disclaimer: We are sharing our experiences on this Podcast. Please be sure to consult a medical professional.