ORIGINS: A Speaker Series Heritage Radio Network

This evening’s conversation is with Jinji Fraser, the founder and owner of Pure Chocolate by Jinji.

Pure Chocolate by Jinji was started by Jinji and her father, Guy, in 2012 with the mission of helping people navigate their own wellness and nutrition. From there, the business took a shape of its own, becoming a vessel for Jinji and her team to create a brand known for pushing the boundaries of chocolate through storied flavors and direct and responsible trading. Today, with a new shop on the horizon, the Jinji chocolate crew is reinventing themselves again with drinking chocolate, and the arts of native women from around the world. Jinji will be opening her second location soon in the Baltimore neighborhood known as Lauraville.

Our featured panelist tonight, Bernie Herman, is one of the co-founders of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Foodways.  Bernie is the author of the recently published book, A South You Never Ate:  Savoring Flavors and Stories from the Eastern Shore of Virginia.  The book brings together over 100 recorded interviews on the foodways of Virginia's Eastern Shore as part of a larger endeavor undertaken around sustainable economic development through heritage foodways. He is currently working on a second volume along with a book of edited essays on the art of an African-American South.

Bernie Herman, George B. Tindall Distinguished Professor of Southern Studies and Folklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, works on the material cultures of everyday life and the ways in which people furnish, inhabit, communicate, and understand the worlds of things. His interests extend to a larger universe of material culture including vernacular architecture, contemporary quilts and quilt making, food histories, and contemporary art by "self-taught" makers. His food writing has appeared in Saveur, Gravy, Organic Life and Southern Cultures. His community engagement through public presentations, workshops, and exhibitions derives from a deeply held belief that work of the arts and humanities finds its first calling in the public sphere.

This episode of ORIGINS features New Jersey citrus growers Vivek and Seema Malik along with their daughter and baker Simran Malik.The Maliks are self-taught, part-time citrus growers. Citrus is a passion stemming from their love of Japanese cuisine. A chance encounter with yuzu soy sauce at Nobu in NYC, started a journey of discovery and adventure which has led to a greenhouse filled with 16 citrus varieties in Bordentown, New Jersey. In Hindi, “Bhumi” refers to Mother Earth. “Bhumi Growers” is a labor of love to honor Vivek’s mom who passed away just before this venture was born. Vivek and Seema focus on growing and sourcing specialty citrus for their customers and are constantly learning and educating themselves to help improve the quality of their citrus. They are pleased to call some of the top names in food as their clients. Their growth so far is based on the philosophy of establishing a direct connection with chefs, bartenders, brewers and consumers through Instagram, Twitter and referrals from existing customers.They are very pleased to be here sharing their passion with all of us.

Thanks for joining us tonight for a very important topic –our local farms. Today we learned that a local institution, Trickling Springs Creamery is closing. Two of our farmers from prior ORIGINS events have ceased operations. While it’s all not doom and gloom, I think this highlights the urgency of this conversation about our local farms. What can we do to keep our farms healthy and economically viable?

We’re thrilled to welcome our all-star female panelist tonight.
Our first panelist is Shelby Kalm, the Campaign Coordinator for Fair Farms, a program convened by Waterkeepers Chesapeake. She is a graduate of St. Mary’s College where she received her undergraduate degree in Public Policy, and Art and Art History. Before Fair Farms, Shelby worked for the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission and served as the Sustainability Coordinator at her alma mater.

The Fair Farms Campaign brings together consumers, farmers, public health professionals, and conservationists to advocate for a food system that is equitable, fair to farmers, invests in homegrown healthy foods, and restores our waterways.

Our second panelist is Dena Leibman, the Executive Director of Future Harvest- Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, a farmer-based nonprofit working to advance sustainable agriculture in the lower mid-Atlantic. Dena’s commitment to conservation and sustainable agriculture has propelled her through a long career in wildlife biology and communications positions at environmental policy and scientific institutions. Dena is also co-owner of ZigBone Farm Retreat, a 100-acre sheep and goat farm and naturally built retreat center.
Our third panelist is Anne Palmer, Program Director at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future (CLF) and a senior research associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society. She directs the Food Policy Networks project, which seeks to improve the capacity food policy councils and similar organizations to advance food system policies. Ms. Palmer’s research interests include food retail, food policy and food policy councils, food environments, obesity, urban agriculture, local and regional food systems, and community food security. In collaboration with seven other universities in the Northeast, she is a co-investigator on an USDA-funded project that explores how to use regional food systems to improve community food security. Prior to joining CLF, Palmer worked for the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs for 13 years developing and managing strategic communication plans and large-scale health communication campaigns and programs in Asia.

Food insecurity refers to USDA’s measure of lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members and limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods. Food-insecure households are not necessarily food insecure all the time. Food insecurity may reflect a household’s need to make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing nutritionally adequate foods.

This episode of ORIGINS features three representatives from the Evermore Cannabis Company located in Baltimore, Maryland. Medical marijuana was legalized in Maryland in 2014 and has been available to the public since December of 2017. This is a discussion of the nascent industry in the state.