The Urban Farm Podcast with Greg Peterson

Bringing life into your home.In This Podcast: The OGarden, a high tech way of bringing indoor gardening into a small space in your home, is Pierre Nibart's labor of love to improve people's well being. With his OGarden, you can grow 90 plants in a self-lit, 29" by 53" space with minimal involvement. Learn how to start seeds, use the plants in your daily meals, and teach kids about gardening. Plus, it's a great way to get your kids to eat more vegetables when they play a part in growing the plants! Pierre has a life that, like his vision of the world, is largely out of the ordinary. At 11 years old, he left his parents' home, traveling and living in more than 20 countries, which allowed him to learn about many different cultures. He studied hotel management in a prestigious school in Belgium to finally discover his true passion, entrepreneurship. As president of Manufacture OGarden, Pierre delights in helping his customers bring all the benefits of growing food and plants into their home.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2020/01/04/507-pierre-nibart/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!507: Pierre Nibart on Indoor Gardening.

Providing convenience, variety, and deliciousness to the on-the-go conscientious eater.In This Podcast: We've all heard about the benefits of eating microgreens, but what does it take to grow them? Melissa Canales of Quantum Microgreens did a career 180 after a health crisis and now makes it her business to grow and supply this amazing health food. Hear about her growing set up and which varieties are the best for beginners. For more advanced farmers, she shares how she made the leap into farming, the business side, and how to find your place in the farming community. Melissa grows and sells microgreens in the heart of San Diego, California. Her company Quantum Microgreens was formed in early 2017, and she specializes in selling living trays of microgreens, grown outside year-round direct to customers at farmer’s markets. She does workshops in the community introducing people to the world of microgreens and helps busy people stay healthy with fresh greens. She also sells Grow Your Own Microgreens kits to share the microgreens love throughout the country.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/31/506-melissa-canales/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!506: Melissa Canales on Urban Microgreens.

Transitioning from factory farmed foods to healthy organic.In This Podcast: Many of us try to eat organic fruits and vegetables and pasture raised meats as often as possible. However due to marketing terms, we may not be eating what we think we bought. Eugene Trufkin explains what the gimmicky packaging terms really mean, how that impacts your diet and body, and how to source high quality meat and produce if you aren't growing your own. Nutrition minded, healthy food visionaries will love the information in this episode!Eugene grew up on a Biodynamic farm in Ukraine and has dedicated his entire life to the understanding of mental and physical health. He currently operates Trufkin Athletics in Irvine, California – a fat loss training center that takes a holistic approach to fat loss and wellness. He’s a graduate from the University of California, Irvine and a CHECK Institute trained professional. He also holds a degree from the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/28/505-eugene-trufkin/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!505: Eugene Trufkin on Changing to Better Diets.

Developing lead generation without giving up the farm.In This Podcast: An online presence is important for any farmer or person in agriculture to share their products and knowledge. This episode's guest, John Lagoudakis, professionally coaches businesses on reaching their audience. Here, he gives Urban Farmers tips on how to build their business using online strategies. Learn about the benefits of a website, the best way to use social media, and how to capture future customer's attention using consistent, free content and genuine interaction. John is one of Australia’s leading Internet marketers. It all started back in 2007, when he stumbled across affiliate marketing and  within two years was able to go from $0 online, to being one of Clickbank’s top 100 affiliates worldwide. He’s been featured in the New York Times bestseller ‘Get Rich Click’, has authored several books, and been the host of a long-running Internet marketing podcast.  Today, John helps businesses create lead generation campaigns on Facebook and Google that get results fast. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/24/504-john-lagoudakis/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!504: John Lagoudakis on Business Side of Urban Farms.

Taking the initial steps to starting her own farm.In This Podcast: Returning guest, Tiffany Panaccione, is back for an update on her new basil farm. She discusses some of her early learnings on preparing greenhouse plants for a garden, when to plant outside of your area's planting calendar, how she protects against pests, and theories on a mysterious overnight digger. Also, listen in for her experience attending the Earthship Academy, some of her mentors as she starts her farm, and why basil holds a special place in her heart. Tiff is a Phoenix native with a gypsy soul. Her self-healing journey has sailed her around the world and right back home to her roots. With a strong craving and an inner calling to go deep within herself and simultaneously the dirt, she is now listening, learning, discovering, and planning to cultivate the gifts of the Sonoran Desert. After all, she wonders… is it really worth doing the “hard work” if it isn’t your heart’s work? Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/21/503-tiffany-panaccione/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!503: Tiffany Panaccione on The Basil Project.

Bonus Episode 32: Seed Saving Class November 2019. In This Bonus Podcast: This special seed saving chat covers Bill McDorman's learning and experiences after attending the 8th Session of the Governing Body International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resource for Food and Agriculture in Rome, Italy. This is a recording of the November 2019 episode of a live Seed Saving Class discussing the global seed situation, plant patents, advanced methods for creating new plants, why seed saving is more important than ever, and so much more.Bill McDorman is Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, Ketchum, Idaho. He got his start in the bio-regional seed movement while in college in 1979 when he helped start Garden City Seeds. In 1984, Bill started Seeds Trust/High Altitude Gardens, a mail-order seed company he ran successfully until it sold in 2013.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/17/bonus32/  for the show notes on this bonus episode, and access to our full podcast library!

Building a community of farms, one yard at a time.In This Podcast: How do you farm in a city without a large plot of land? Allie Borovik, the creator of Neighborfood, is learning how to do just that in Austin, TX. Using Fleet Farming and Curtis Stone for inspiration, she has devised a business model that allows her to produce and harvest food for local chefs and restaurants without purchasing her own land. Listen in to learn her method of yard farming, the benefit to her landowners, and how she builds her inventory of yards and produce.Allie was born in Houston, TX and raised in Memphis, TN - not on farms, but always around food. She spent her college years in New York City playing volleyball and studying politics, food, and public health. In 2017, she fell in love with farming at the Farmer Training Program in Burlington, VT.  A year later she was growing vegetables and some animals at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture outside of NYC. Just this past spring, Allie moved to Austin, TX to start Neighborfood, a neighborhood-based network of small yard farms. Currently, she has three yards in production and is selling her produce to restaurants and markets around the city. Allie started Neighborfood as a way to feed people, build communities, and combat climate change. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/14/502-allie-borovik-on-networking-small-yard-farms/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!502: Allie Borovik on Networking Small Yard Farms

Learning how to cook with vegetables.In This Podcast: Shortly after getting married, Sonja Overhiser and her husband, Alex, did a 180 from fast and frozen food to eating a home-cooked, mostly  whole food plant-based  diet. She shares what motivated them to learn to cook as well as her efforts to teach others through an award-winning food blog, cookbook, and popular newsletter. There are so many social, mental, and physical benefits to plant-forward diets and she gives examples of how the shift in cooking has changed their life.Sonja is the writer behind the award-winning food blog A Couple Cooks and author of the book Pretty Simple Cooking, named a best vegetarian cookbook by Epicurious and Food & Wine. Along with her husband Alex, the couple has a worldwide following for their vegetarian and plant-based recipes. She's also author of a recipe series with Washington Post Food called Voraciously: Plant Powered, on how to cook more plant-forward meals. Featured everywhere from the TODAY Show to Bon Appetit, Sonja is a national advocate for healthy and sustainable eating to improve our health, communities, and planet. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/10/501-sonja-overhiser/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!501: Sonja Overhiser on Eating more plants.

Moving others to take the leap towards inspiration.In This Podcast: We normally focus on inspiring urban farming, but for our 500th episode, we wanted to educate on one way you can turn your urban farming passion into a business. John Lee Dumas is the creator of Podcasters Paradise, a school that teaches how to start and run a successful podcast. JLD tried several careers before he found his perfect fit, and he discusses what led him to podcasting, managing a business, how to create energy for action, and some of his hurdles along the way. Our guest today is not all that involved with the food movement, he is more in the inspiration movement.  I began listening to him in 2014 and was so inspired by his bright personality and incredible guests that I joined Podcasters Paradise - the podcasting school that he and his partner Kate run.  This led me to launch the Urban Farm Podcast in the fall of 2015.  Using their  techniques and  strategies, we now have a global reach, 50,000 downloads a month, AND hundreds of episodes educating and inspiring others to be part of their food system.  So, in celebration of our 500th episode I have asked JLD to be my guest today. John Lee Dumas, or JLD as he is known by his  listeners, is the host of Entrepreneurs on Fire, an award-winning podcast where he interviews inspiring entrepreneurs who are truly ON FIRE. With over 2000 episodes, 1 million+ listens a month, and seven-figures of annual revenue, he is just getting started. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/07/500-john-lee-dumas/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library! Disclosure: This interview mentions affiliate links. If you choose to purchase affiliate items or courses, The Urban Farm will earn a small commission at no cost to you. This helps us to continue giving you great content for FREE and we appreciate the support. We believe in all the affiliate programs we suggest. See our Disclosure Policy (www.urbanfarm.org/disclosure) for more details. 500: John Lee Dumas on Lighting your Life on Fire.

Creating a circular food system in the arctic extremes.In This Podcast: Dropping everything and moving to the northernmost city in the world might be what some people would call ‘extreme’, yet Chef Benjamin Vidmar did that and is going even further by working towards a zero-waste food system for the city. He shares how this project uses permaculture in a city that imports its food and exports its waste, and how he has garnered the city leaders’ support. Listen in to see how you can help.Benjamin is an Eco-chef and Foodie from Cleveland, Ohio with over 20 years of international experience. After working for 18 years as a professional chef in the United States, Asia, and Scandinavia, he visited Svalbard, Norway for the first time in 2007 and instantly fell in love with the Arctic. After several years as the head chef at Svalbard Pub, he felt called to interrupt and innovate a food system that simply wasn’t working.In 2015 he created Polar Permaculture to help restore sustainable systems in the “northern most” town in the world. Today, Polar Permaculture produces farm fresh, nutritious vegetables, microgreens, and sprouts for the local community with a sustainable, circular system in mind.  Their intent is to produce enough food for the entire town of Longyearbyen and process all of the community’s organic and biological waste.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/12/03/499-benjamin-vidmar/ for the show notes on this episode, and access to our full podcast library!499: Benjamin Vidmar on Growing Food at the Pole.