Protecting the People Who Grow Our Food

When we think of farming, a lot of us picture idyllic scenes — endless blue skies, lush fields of green crops, and freshly picked vegetables. As rewarding as farming can be, it’s also incredibly demanding work — physically, and mentally.

And in some ways, farming is getting harder, as factors like climate change, and the shifting political and economic landscape have introduced a host of new challenges that are having real effects on the well-being of farmers and the people who produce our food.

On this episode, we explore the connection between farming and health, and some solutions that could make our food system more resilient. We hear about new research on the health impacts of hotter summers, meet a doctor in California who’s made it his mission to bring health care directly to farm workers, and find out how a farmer in Maine bounced back from the hardest couple years of his life.

ALSO HEARD:

• Farmer Teddy Moynihan of Plowshare Farms in Pennsylvania talks about growing produce that both tastes good, and is good for you.
• California’s Central Valley produces more than half of the fruit, vegetables, and nuts grown in the U.S. The region relies heavily on immigrant farm workers — but many of these workers have no access to health care. Reporter Steven Rascón spent time with Kenny Banh, a physician and professor of emergency medicine who’s bringing health care directly to farm workers.
• When Geof Hancock and his partner started their own farm in 2014, they knew it would be lots of hard work — what Geof didn’t know then was what farming would ultimately cost him. He talks with reporter Liz Tung about how he went from school teacher to farmer, the two hard years that almost broke him, and the transformation that made it all worthwhile.