Agriculture and nutrition. Answers to your questions about how food is grown and why. Insight on ways dietitians and consumers may have been food bullied.

No farmers, no food. No food, no need for nutrition experts. While that may be an oversimplification, Michele and Nicole have heard one message clearly: RDNs are hungry for connection with those who grow, raise, and produce food. In this Food Bullying podcast, Michele and Nicole bring together voices from the agrifood sector to help you better understand the food you're so passionate about. The dietitian community will be armed with the REAL stories of agriculture, the truth in food, and most importantly – empowered to help others feel more confident in their food choices.

Latest Podcast Episodes

Dietetic ethics, evidence, & evolution of food information: Episode 105

“Translating the science to the table does not mean we slide over the science.” Connie Diekman, M.Ed, RD, CSSD, LD, FADA, FAND is a Food and Nutrition Consultant in St. Louis, Missouri, and a former President of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Always on top of cutting-edge research, she...

mRNA, myths, & why science in food matters: Episode 104

“You have to do what’s right, no matter how much it hurts.” Dr. Kevin Folta is a molecular biologist who has worked with mRNA for more than 25 years. He is scientist in the genetics and genomics of small fruit crops, a recent farmers market president, and advocate for science...

Ranching, your relationship with food, & wellness: Episode 103

"The biggest hurdle for so many people pursuing health and wellness, including healing their relationship with food and being intentional about nutrition, has so much more to do with their mental and emotional state that we often realize. I believe that health should be pursued in a holistic approach, not...

Farm monoculture myths & soil nutrients: Episode 102

“We’re not ‘dousing’ our fields, we’re not ‘mining’ our soil, and nutrients don’t ‘run off’ the fields during normal rainfall.” This episode busts myths about monoculture and soil health in today's farming.  As a dietitian turned full-time farmer on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Jennie Schmidt has heard it all...

Apples, fungi, & pheromones: Episode 101

“Everyday life on the farm isn’t always sunshine and roses.” Nick Schweitzwer, a fifth generation farmer from the area known as “the ridge” north of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Roughly 60% of Michigan’s apple production are grown in the area and Nick grows over 18 varieties on his farm.  He shares...

Dietitian + farmer = sweet scent of Froot Loops + cows: Episode 100

“Go out and get the work done.” If there’s one insight to be gleaned from the 100th episode of the Food Bullying Podcast, it might be this one from co-host Michele. Or that she'd rather smell like her cows, while Nicole wishes to smell like Froot Loops. When Michele wanted...

Farm families, FFA, & the future of food: Episode 99

If Hannah Craun and Levi Schiller are any indication, the future of farming certainly shines bright in FFA members. Craun, a masters student at Virginia Tech focusing on cattle reproduction, and Schiller, an Ag Business major at The University of Nebraska, boast numerous awards and experiences in 4-H and FFA....

Prune power for brains, bones & guts: Episode 98

Natalie Mariani Kling is a fourth generation family member of premium dried fruit company, which was started by her great grandfather in 1906 in what is now Silicon Valley. "My family and I are committed to 'inspire healthy living' and being a real solution for busy families trying to eat...

Waste not, want not: Episode 97

Food prices increased a painful 13% in 2022. Yet Americans waste about $218 billion of food the U.S. and food is the single largest component taking up space inside of our landfills. RDN Rosanne Rust offers practical ways to reduce food waste in the home to save money and help...

It’s really soy good: Episode 96

How is soy a part of your diet? Maryland farmer Belinda Burrier talks about high oleic soybean oil, GMOs, international demand, the health benefits of soy, and so much more in the latest Food Bullying podcast.  Belinda farms soybeans, corn, wheat, and hay in central Maryland, just north of Washington...

The plant power of peanuts: Episode 95

Do you know the latest research on peanuts & allergens? Or that these protein essential grow in the ground? Or that the peanut plant is a legume that is rotated with other crops to help with soil health? Whether you like crunchy or smooth peanut butter in your diet, the...

Overcoming GMO food OMG: Episode 94

Take the gene as a sentence in a book. Copy that sentence (gene) into another book. Now scientists can put the gene into a specific paragraph. Farmer Paul Hodgen uses this example to explain genetic modification in food. He has worked with GMOs - genetically modified organism - in both...

You CAN cut food costs & add nutrients: Episode 93

"Avoid the center of the store...canned food isn't nutritious and filled with preservatives." These are examples of the negative bias put on the canning and processing community, according to our Food Bullying podcast guest Andy Russick. Reality is that canned vegetables and fruits can help you cut food costs, as...

Sweetpotatoes – the super vegetable: Episode 92

Heather Barnes thinks the sweetpotato should wear a cape because it's such a nutrition powerhouse. And did you know the proper way to spell sweetpotatoes is without a space between the two words? Heather is a Marketing Specialist with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. She grew...

Greenhouse effect, grass-fed & grain-fed beef: Episode 91

One of the misconceptions around beef is grass-fed beef is better for human health and the environment. "Many times this is promoted by those who are far removed from agriculture. Or they base it on one nutrient such as short chain omega-3 fatty acids. My scientific take: there are system...
Food Bullying Podcast Relaunch 2

Why listen?

Michele and Nicole help dietitians and consumers get firsthand perspective from farmers about how food is grown. One knows farming, the other dietetics - and neither are afraid to ask the tough questions. You'll get candid conversation from two moms who have unique insigh on food, experts from around the food plate, and how label choices effect your health. This 30-minute podcast will help you navigate grocery store aisles, better understand farming, and be prepared for those sticky conversations with clients.

  • Real insight from experts who are working in farming, science, and dietetics.
  • Answers to the most common questions around farming and food.
  • Tools to battle bullying found in the 200,000+ label claims found in a grocery store.
  • Ideas for creating your own social, ethical, environmental, and health standards when making eating decisions.

Meet the Hosts

Michele Payn

Michele Payn Food BullyingKnown as one of the leading voices in connecting farm and food, Michele helps you simplify safe food choices while understanding food bullying. An international award winning author, she brings common sense to the overly emotional food conversation and perspective from the cows in her front yard. Michele is a mom who is tired of the guilt trips around food, so she wrote Food Bullying: How to Avoiding Buying B.S. She’s also a kick boxing professional speaker who has helped thousands of people understand the real story behind food. Michele’s work has appeared in USA Today, Food Insight, CNN, Food & Nutrition Magazine, NPR and many other media outlets. Armed with science, compelling stories, and a lifetime on the farm, Michele will upend the way you think about food. She is also the author of No More Food Fights! and Food Truths from Farm to Table, an IPPY award winner in health, medicine and nutrition

Nicole Rodriguez

Dietitian podcast hostNicole Rodriguez, registered dietitian and certified personal trainer, resides in the metro New York area, where she offers nutrition counseling and fitness coaching to a diverse clientele.  Always encouraging her friends, family, followers, and clients to make fruits and vegetables the stars of their plates, Nicole serves as a partner in kind with the Produce For Better Health Foundation.  Eager to inspire the next generation of bold, active, and compassionate entrepreneurs, Nicole serves as leader of her daughter’s Girl Scout troop.  In her spare time, you’ll find her browsing the grocery store aisles, working on her deadlift, and on the beach with her family. Visit enjoyfoodenjoylife.com for more info.