Jimmy Moore is the energetic host of the wildly popular podcast show, Livin' La Vida Low-Carb. In this show we talk to him about his 180 pound weight loss, the lessons he has learned through personal experience and his interview guests, and his two books. We also discuss the USDA proposal for the 2010 dietary guidelines. Jimmy does not mince words, and I think you will enjoy the interview.

Do you and your family drink fresh raw milk from your local farmer for health and nutrition? Jon and I do. However, the dairy farmers who produce your favorite beverage are struggling with multiple threats to their business right now. Keep reading for more information.

Nathan winters traveled by bicycle coast to coast to listen to the voices of American farmers. Along the way he made many friends while growing in wisdom beyond his years. We will continue to follow Nathan's adventures, including his work on a Vermont farm and the community-supported publishing of his upcoming book. You will want to follow Nathan, too.

This Podcast is a conversation with Zachary Adam Cohen, creator of the Farm to Table blog and television show and self-described “evangelist for the sustainable food movement”. Zachary talks with us about how his dream project started and addresses skeptics on the topic of social media. The link to our interview is found below.

I met Zachary [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/10/onl054-zachary-adam-cohen-on-farm-to-table-and-social-media/feed/ 0 - This Podcast is a conversation with Zachary Adam Cohen, creator of the Farm to Table blog and television show and self-described "evangelist for the sustainable food movement". Zachary talks with us about how his dream project started and addresses ... (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/ZAC.jpg) This Podcast is a conversation with Zachary Adam Cohen, creator of the Farm to Table (http://www.zacharyadamcohen.com/farmtotable/) blog and television show and self-described "evangelist for the sustainable food movement". Zachary talks with us about how his dream project started and addresses skeptics on the topic of social media. The link to our interview is found below. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/FTTLOGO.jpg)I met Zachary on Twitter and found that we had several followers in common. After several tweets and a couple emails, we eventually had a telephone conversation that led to this interview. This is one of the beauties of twitter, which Zachary describes as "global thought talk." It is a place where one can have conversations 24 hours a day with like-minded individuals from around the world. In our interview and in a recent blog he discusses the use of social media as a medium for change (http://www.zacharyadamcohen.com/farmtotable/social-media/social-media-strategy-local-foods-movement/). Zachary recommends Chris Brogan's book, Trust Agents (http://www.amazon.com/Trust-Agents-Influence-Improve-Reputation/dp/0470743085/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1256486449&sr=8-1) as an aide to help individuals use the web to build influence, improve reputation, and earn trust. Cathy and Jon described their own goals to promote sustainable food and to lobby for the labeling of GMO foods. This is a topic Our Natural Life recently explored in interviews with both Jeffrey M. Smith (http://www.ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=372) and Robyn O'Brien (http://www.ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=385). Zachary makes wide use of Facebook, Twitter, Friendfeed, and Stumbleupon to connect with the movers and shakers in sustainable food. How do you use social media to promote your favorite causes? Updates from Our Natural Life Jon has been away for a couple weeks, and Cathy neglected to post this blog October 19th due to responsibilities of daily living in his absence. Our fall garden survived the first freeze alerts with the help of generous mulching and a burlap blanket. The screening of FRESH: The Movie fundraiser for Georgia Chapters of Weston A. Price was a big success. Yesterday Cathy attended another fundraiser and panel discussion. This time it was a Slow Food event (http://www.slowfoodatlanta.org/slow_food_atl_events.html) for Wholesome Wave (http://www.wholesomewave.org/community_dv.html). She was so excited to learn about the opportunities in our community for helping low income families connect to fresh, sustainable, local food for half price! This is definitely a cause worthy of support. Speaking of Slow Food, Georgia Organics is featuring founder Carlos Petrini (http://www.georgiaorganics.org/conference/) as the keynote speaker for this year's annual conference. Past keynote speakers included Joel Salatin and Michael Pollen. They keep raising the bar! Jon and Cathy Payne no 47:57 http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/10/onl053-truth-and-lies-about-our-food-with-robyn-obrien/ http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/10/onl053-truth-and-lies-about-our-food-with-robyn-obrien/#comments Mon, 05 Oct 2009 02:36:43 +0000 Cathy R. Payne, EdD http://ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=78

This Podcast includes our recent conversation with the activist mother of four, Robyn O’Brien. Robyn is the author of The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food is Making us Sick and What we can do About It. In her book and this show, Robyn shares her story of how she came to be an unlikely food crusader [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/10/onl053-truth-and-lies-about-our-food-with-robyn-obrien/feed/ 0 - This Podcast includes our recent conversation with the activist mother of four, Robyn O'Brien. Robyn is the author of The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food is Making us Sick and What we can do About It. In her book and this show, (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/head-shot.jpg) This Podcast includes our recent conversation with the activist mother of four, Robyn O'Brien (http://www.robynobrien.com/). Robyn is the author of The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food is Making us Sick and What we can do About It. (http://astore.amazon.com/ournatlif-20/detail/0767930711) In her book and this show, Robyn shares her story of how she came to be an unlikely food crusader and began to educate others about food allergies, food additives, GM foods, and the dangers of soy. The interview can be downloaded from iTunes, Zune, or Stitcher. You can also listen from your computer using the embedded device below. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/jacket-cover.jpg)Robyn has not always been an advocate for clean food. She founded Allergy Kids (http://www.allergykids.com/) in 2006 to spread the word after her youngest child suffered a sudden allergy to eggs. In her book she traces her journey from conservative mother to researcher and advocate. She now works tirelessly to create awareness of children's issues regarding food safety. During the interview, we discussed GM foods. Robyn mentioned a recent ruling against genetically modified sugar beets. You can read more about this here (http://truefoodnow.org/2009/09/22/victory-court-finds-usda-violated-federal-law-by-allowing-genetically-engineered-sugar-beets-on-the-market/). The USDA's approval of GM beets was found to be unlawful. This is not because food safety studies were not completed - food safety studies are not required of GM foods. However, environmental impact studies were not completed. It is encouraging that many companies have opposed the use of GM sugar, and I imagine that this is due to public pressure. It is my hope that parents like Robyn will continue to unite and lobby for clean, safe, and sustainable food. Robyn encourages our listeners to believe in their ability to affect change, to move forward with baby steps, and to try to do one thing to move in the right direction. Updates Thanks for all the support out there! We truly appreciate our 103 fans on Facebook and our 2,050 fans on Twitter. We'd like to encourage you to subscribe to our newsletters and Podcasts and to review us on iTunes. We now have CDs for sale (http://www.ournaturallife.com/blog/?page_id=340) so you can take your favorite show with you in the car or pass it on to a friend or relative. Atlanta fans, if you have not purchased your tickets for FRESH the movie, be sure to do that today! If you do not live in the Atlanta area, you can find a screening near you here (http://action.freshthemovie.com/p/d/freshthemovie/event/events-display.sjs). Jon and Cathy Payne no 1:01:40 http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/09/onl051-are-you-eating-franken-foods-gmos-are-everywhere/ http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/09/onl051-are-you-eating-franken-foods-gmos-are-everywhere/#comments Mon, 07 Sep 2009 02:40:50 +0000 Cathy R. Payne, EdD http://ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=80

Jeffrey M. Smith did not set out to become the foremost expert on the dangers of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). However, since 1996 he has made telling others about the risks of GM foods his life’s work. What he has learned is that these unnatural foods put the health of people, animals, and the environment at [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/09/onl051-are-you-eating-franken-foods-gmos-are-everywhere/feed/ 0 Jeffrey M. Smith did not set out to become the foremost expert on the dangers of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). However, since 1996 he has made telling others about the risks of GM foods his life's work. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/images-5.jpg)Jeffrey M. Smith did not set out to become the foremost expert on the dangers of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). However, since 1996 he has made telling others about the risks of GM foods his life's work. What he has learned is that these unnatural foods put the health of people, animals, and the environment at great risk. If you buy conventionally processed foods at a supermarket or eat at restaurants, you are eating GMO food. The fact that a food has been modified with viruses or bacteria is not required to be included on a food's label. At Our Natural Life, we want to support Jeffrey's goals by getting the word out to as many people as possible. Please support us in our effort to educate. Our Podcast interview with Jeffrey can be found in the link below. You can also access the Podcast from iTunes, Zune, Tivo, and Stitcher. Are you eating Franken-foods? GMOs are Everywhere (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/images-3.jpg)In Iowa, where Jeffrey M. Smith lives with his wife, he is surrounded by fields of corn, soy, canola, and cotton that have been genetically modified with bacteria to allow these crops to either eat poison, meaning that they are herbicide tolerant, or they produce their own poison in order to kill insects. Scientific studies confirm that these foods are very dangerous to people and animals. Smith's book Seeds of Deception (http://astore.amazon.com/ournatlif-20/detail/0972966587) is the best-selling book on GMOs. However, his more recently published Genetic Roulette: the Documented Health Risks of Genetically Modified Food (http://astore.amazon.com/ournatlif-20/detail/0972966528), makes the topic greatly accessible. Instead of using a narrative format, Jeffrey uses easy-to-find, bulleted facts about the scientifically documented dangers and risks of GMO food. Quoting from Amazon reviewer C. J. Robinson, "The layout of the book is an exemplar of clarity and should serve as the model for any reference book. It is designed to make the material accessible to three levels of reader: scanners, casual readers, and those who want detail. Each double-page spread is devoted to a problem with GM foods, with the left-hand page having the topic heading, a quote by an expert, and a few summarizing bullet points; the right-hand page gives technical detail. You don't need a science background to understand it. While the book is not bedtime reading, terms are defined and the boggle factor is kept low. The table of contents enables the reader to scan the problems with GM food and quickly to access the evidence on each. " This comprehensive book was written as a combination executive summary brochure and textbook, making it very easy to readily locate pertinent information. It is written in four parts to include heavily documented evidence for these assertions: 1) There are documented health risks for genetically engineered food; 2) the regulation of GM foods is inadequate to protect public health; 3) industry studies are not competent to identify most of the unpredicted side effects; and 4) there are serious flaws in the arguments used to justify GM crops. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/safe_image.gif)In our Podcast interview, we use 2 letters Cathy received from Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss (http://chambliss.senate.gov/public/index.cfm) as a tool for discussion with Jeffrey. The letters were written in response to letters written by Cathy to Sen. Chambliss asking him to support HR 6636 (http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-h6636/show) , a bill sponsored by Sen. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio). You will hear Smith debunk seven claims that Sen. Chambliss makes - 1) GM foods are similar to selective breeding, 2) GM foods are necessary to feed the world, 3) Use of GM foods reduces pesticide use, 4) GM foods undergo years of rigorous safety testing for people, animals, and the environment, Jon and Cathy Payne no 1:13:02 http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/08/onl050-in-defense-of-omnivores/ http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/08/onl050-in-defense-of-omnivores/#comments Sat, 22 Aug 2009 02:41:55 +0000 Cathy R. Payne, EdD http://ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=81

In this Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Lierre Keith, author of The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability. Lierre, a vegan for 20 years, makes compelling arguments for eating meat and counters challenges that shunning meat is healthier, more humane, or better for the planet. The interview can be downloaded below or from iTunes or Zune.

Keith [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/08/onl050-in-defense-of-omnivores/feed/ 0 365 In this Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Lierre Keith, author of The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability. Lierre, a vegan for 20 years, makes compelling arguments for eating meat and counters challenges that shunning meat is healthier, (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/51w3alQAXmL._SL500_AA240_.jpg)In this Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Lierre Keith, author of The Vegetarian Myth: Food, Justice, and Sustainability (http://astore.amazon.com/ournatlif-20/detail/1604860804). Lierre, a vegan for 20 years, makes compelling arguments for eating meat and counters challenges that shunning meat is healthier, more humane, or better for the planet. The interview can be downloaded below or from iTunes or Zune. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/lierretree.jpg)Keith (http://www.lierrekeith.com/) nearly destroyed her health while clinging fiercely to her vegan lifestyle. Now she assists others who are making the transition from vegan and vegetarian to omnivore. Even though the vegan or vegetarian reader is her targeted audience, the book resonates strongly with promoters of healthy, traditional and sustainable food, such as Sally Fallon Morrell, founder of the Weston A. Price Foundation. Lierre heavily researched issues of diet and nutrition, agriculture, our food system, and the destruction of the ecosystem. Parts of the book read like a screenplay for Food, Inc (http://www.foodincmovie.com/), even though Keith has yet to see the film. She covers the fallacy of feeding grain to ruminants, the benefits of polyculture, and how a vegan diet designed to do no harm leaves thousands of life forms destroyed in order to produce a single meal. She also outlines the grave damage that can be caused by eating large quantities of heavily processed soy made into fake foods. This topic has been widely explored by the Weston A. Price Foundation (http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/index.html). Physician Michael Eades, whose work is cited in the book, recently featured a review (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/lipid-hypothesis/the-vegetarian-myth/) on his blog. It was a pleasure to have Lierre on our show, and we hope that you enjoy the interview as much as we enjoyed speaking with her. Jon and Cathy Payne no 58:20 http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/07/onl047-fresh-the-movie-interview-with-producerdirector-ana-sofia-joanes/ http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/07/onl047-fresh-the-movie-interview-with-producerdirector-ana-sofia-joanes/#comments Mon, 13 Jul 2009 02:47:49 +0000 Cathy R. Payne, EdD http://ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=85

In this week’s Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Ana Sofia Joanes, producer and director of the recently released documentary FRESH: The Movie. FRESH is a call to action, intending to inspire viewers to positive change and portray a hopeful message about possibilities for sustainable food. Local screenings are followed by a panel discussion with local representatives [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/07/onl047-fresh-the-movie-interview-with-producerdirector-ana-sofia-joanes/feed/ 0 In this week's Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Ana Sofia Joanes, producer and director of the recently released documentary FRESH: The Movie. FRESH is a call to action, intending to inspire viewers to positive change and portray a hopeful message abou... (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/s539633553_500502_1031.jpg)In this week's Podcast, Jon and Cathy interview Ana Sofia Joanes, producer and director of the recently released documentary FRESH: The Movie (http://www.freshthemovie.com/). FRESH is a call to action, intending to inspire viewers to positive change and portray a hopeful message about possibilities for sustainable food. Local screenings are followed by a panel discussion with local representatives from the sustainable food movement. Be sure to download the Podcast at the end of this blog to hear about the movie in Ana's own words. She exhibits great passion for the subject and dedication to the cause. You can also download Podcast ONL047 from iTunes. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/200907101948.jpg) Fresh: The Movie Readers of our blog and listeners to our Podcast know that Jon and I are passionate about knowing where are food comes from, having personal relationships with our farmers, and assuring that the food we eat has been sustainably and healthily raised, preferably from heritage or heirloom stock. Joanes' documentary does a superb job of highlighting farmers throughout the country who are doing things right. Because of high interest, FRESH is getting lots of media attention from sources such as the Huffington Post (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kerry-trueman/fresh-director-ana-joanes_b_207678.html), and bloggers Cheeseslave (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kerry-trueman/fresh-director-ana-joanes_b_207678.html) and FairFoodFight (http://fairfoodfight.com/blog/el-drag%C3%B3n/fresh-movie-review) . Also receiving attention are featured farmers Will Allen of Growing Power (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/05/magazine/05allen-t.html) and Joel Salatin (http://www.blueridgeoutdoors.com/index.php/sustainable-farmer-joel-salatin-goes-beyond-organics/) of Polyface farms. Will Allen performs miracles on 3 acres in the middle of urban Milwaukee while changing the food system to provide everyone equal access to healthy food. Joel Salatin respects the design of nature to leave his Virginia acreage richer each year rather than depleted, as in conventionally farmed land. Michael Pollan's (http://feedmelikeyoumeanit.blogspot.com/2009/05/fresh-movie.html) authoritative voice also lends credibility to the film. Many of you have read his landmark book The Omnivore's Dilemm (http://astore.amazon.com/ournatlif-20/detail/0143038583)a. Pollan asserts in the film that "Cheap food is an illusiion" paid for with tax subsidies, environmental damage, and poor health. The story that impacted me most, however, was about Russ Kremer (http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2008-11-26/news/the-pope-of-pork-in-tiny-towns-across-missouri-old-school-hog-farming-stages-a-comeback-mdash-and-at-tables-across-the-nation-diners-rejoice/), the formerly conventional pig farmer from Franenstein, Missouri who exterminated his herd after an accident led to an antibiotic resistant strep infection that almost cost him his life. His revelation that what he learned in college went against nature's plan is similar to the story shared with us recently by Bill Hodge (http://www.ournaturallife.com/blog/?p=327). Russ, however, required a life-threatening condition to make the transition. He is now a respected leader in sustainable pork. I also greatly admire the efforts made by small farmer Diane Endicott and her creation of Good Natured Family Farm (http://www.goodnatured.net/our_story/story.html)s, an alliance of 75 farms in the Kansas City area. This coop bands together to find purchasers for their products. Many of their fresh, local food is taken to Ball Grocery Stores (http://www.goodnatured.net/our_story/partners/ball_foods.html). Some enlightening information in the film is that if farmers stopped feeding grains to herbivores that do better on grass, 70% of our farm land would be available for development. Jon and Cathy Payne no 43:38 http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/06/onl046-producing-beef-in-harmony-with-mother-nature-an-interview-with-bill-hodge-of-hodge-ranch-llc/ http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/06/onl046-producing-beef-in-harmony-with-mother-nature-an-interview-with-bill-hodge-of-hodge-ranch-llc/#comments Mon, 29 Jun 2009 04:12:57 +0000 Jon http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/06/onl046-producing-beef-in-harmony-with-mother-nature-an-interview-with-bill-hodge-of-hodge-ranch-llc/

This week Bill Hodge of Hodge Ranch spoke to us passionately about his personal “revelation” and transition from conventional agriculture to more natural methods of farming. By working with nature instead of against it, he produces a healthier product, improves the land, saves money, and has hardy, long-lived stock.

Our Natural Life Podcast ONL046

We hope you enjoy [...]]]> http://ournaturallife.com/blog/2009/06/onl046-producing-beef-in-harmony-with-mother-nature-an-interview-with-bill-hodge-of-hodge-ranch-llc/feed/ 0 This week Bill Hodge of Hodge Ranch spoke to us passionately about his personal "revelation" and transition from conventional agriculture to more natural methods of farming. By working with nature instead of against it, he produces a healthier product, (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/aboutus-sm.jpg)This week Bill Hodge of Hodge Ranch (http://hodgeranch.com/links.html) spoke to us passionately about his personal "revelation" and transition from conventional agriculture to more natural methods of farming. By working with nature instead of against it, he produces a healthier product, improves the land, saves money, and has hardy, long-lived stock. Our Natural Life Podcast ONL046 We hope you enjoy the Podcast of our interview. It can be found at the bottom of this blog or downloaded from iTunes, Zune, or Tivo. We'd love to hear your comments or have you review our show on iTunes. This blog is not meant to duplicate the information in the interview, but to be used as a vehicle to provide links with more information and to encourage you to give a listen! Grass Finished Beef We've been buying beef from Bill and Di Hodge for the past 7 years and have never been disappointed with their product. Bill is the first farmer we purchased from directly and developed a relationship with. We admire the work he is doing with rotational grazing (http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/rotategr.html) . (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/88u-oct08-sm.jpg)(http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/123-july2008-sm.jpg) According to Hodge, a beef cow is kept for an average of 6 years before making a profit in regard to breeding. However, most cows in the industrial system do not live past the age of 5. Hodge's cows live 15-18 years and when Cathy visited his ranch she saw one who was 19. If you have seen recent films such as Food, Inc (http://www.foodincmovie.com/) , FRESH: The Movie (http://www.freshthemovie.com/) , or classics such as King Corn (http://www.kingcorn.net/) , you may be aware of problems with grain-finished beef. If not, Food Renegade has published some good articles here (http://www.foodrenegade.com/grass-fed-meats-health-benefits/) and here (http://www.foodrenegade.com/more-advantages-of-grass-fed-beef/) . Other good resources are Jo Robinson's book Pasture Perfect (http://www.eatwild.com/jo.html) and the Eat Wild (http://www.eatwild.com/index.html) website. (http://www.OurNaturalLife.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/store.jpg) Supporting Sustainable Farmers On twitter, Cathy has noticed a movement that associates itself with sustainable food called "Meatless Monday." Michael Pollan recommends eating less meat. However, we concur with Lisa M. Hamilton: In order for pasture-based livestock to become a significant part of the meat industry, we need to eat more of its meat, not less. As it is, grass-fed beef accounts for less than one percent of American beef consumption, and numbers for chicken and pork hardly register. Even where the industry is growing, it is stunted by inadequate infrastructure. The greatest challenge is a lack of small-scale slaughterhouses ...but the industry also suffers from a dearth of research, outreach for new producers, and investment in breeding for pasture-based systems. And those things will change only as the market grows. So if you want to use your food choices to impact climate change, by all means follow Dr. Pachauri's suggestion for a meatless Monday. But on Tuesday, have a grass-fed burger-and feel good about it. You can read the rest of Hamilton's article and view her links here (http://magblog.audubon.org/node/469) . We choose to eat pastured beef, pork, chicken, lamb, goat, and milk from pastured cows and goats on a daily basis. We also consume eggs from pastured chickens. Although we do have meatless meals, we rarely have a meatless day, as we are both "protein types (http://www.metabolictyping.com/) ." We prefer to go one additional step and give preference to farmers raising heritage breeds on pasture, something that Nature's Harmony Farm (http://www.naturesharmonyfarm.com/) has committed to. By "voting" with our food dollars three times a day in this manner, Jon and Cathy Payne no 1:06:28