Farm To Table Talk

Rodger Wasson
  • 4.5 (45)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Is it best that our food is Local and Organic or Big and Conventional? Our view is “Both, and..” We don’t come to the table with a bias, except that good farming like good food comes in all shapes and sizes. Farm to Table Talk explores issues and the growing interest in the story of how and where the food on our tables is produced, processed and marketed. The host, Rodger Wasson is a food and agriculture veteran. Although he was the first of his family to leave the grain and livestock farm after five generations farming in America, he’s continually worked for and with farmers though-out America and around the world. From directly managing commodity boards and councils to presently building the strategic consultancy, Idea Farming Inc., the Farm to Table Talk podcast has been created to satisfy the curiosity of today’s engaged consumers.

  1. 9H AGO

    Trump Tariffs Illegal – Congressman Jim Costa

    The United States Supreme Court by a vote of 6 to 3 has struck down President Trump’s tariffs, to the relief of most farmers who have experienced severe financial losses and rising costs of farm inputs. The new tariffs in 2025, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IIEPA)and labeled “reciprocal” by the Trump administration, blanketed nearly all trading partners with a 10 percent baseline, but China faced rates exceeding 100 percent. In response, Beijing escalated retaliatory duties on key agricultural imports. Almonds were hit with a 45 percent tariff. Wine faced a 40 percent duty. Oranges, cotton, and dairy products also saw steep increases. As a result American Agriculture has suffered, especially soybeans in the MidWest., In California alone  agricultural exports to China collapsed with the total value of 13 major commodities dropping from an average of $1.8 billion (2020 through 2024) to just $780 million in 2025, a 57 percent decline, according to research at UC Davis.. California Congressmen Jim Costa, MIke Thompson and John Garamendi met with California farmers the week of the Supreme Court ruling where there were expressions of strong opposition to the Trump imposed trade wars. House Ag Committee member, Congressman Jim Costa explained the implications of the trade issue and the scheduled mark up to the proposed Farm Bill that is getting underway.  Here are Congressman Costa’s opening remarks to the farmers and a follow-up exchange with Congressman Thompson at a farmer meeting at the Yolo County Farm Bureau Office in Woodland California.

    9 min

  2. 22H AGO

    Robotic Agriculture – Jaisimha Rao

    The future of agriculture will utilize the development and application of robotic technology.  Jaisimha Rao explains a robotic machine that uses AI and cameras to distinguish between crops and weeds, then sprays herbicides specifically on weeds. There is potential of humanoid robots in agricultureJ. Their AI system identifies weeds using visual recognition, contrasting it with text-based AI models like ChatGPT. The system involves collecting and annotating weed images by agronomists in India, which are then used to train the AI model. Once trained, the AI can recognize specific weed species and control the dual-tank system to apply the appropriate herbicides in a single pass. All mechanical manufacturing for their robots is conducted in the US, with only cameras being sourced from India. www.niqorobotics.com

    51 min

  3. FEB 13

    USDA Invests in Rural Infrastructure- Chris Roach

    At a time when America’s meat industry faces increasing consolidation, fragile supply chains, and the closure of rural processing facilities, Better For Butchery’s acquisition of the Princeton Kentucky plant represents a rare, forward-looking investment in independent meat infrastructure. Backed by USDA Rural Development financing, the facility will serve as a scalable, high-integrity co-packing and processing hub designed to help farmers, ranchers, and emerging meat brands reach market without sacrificing quality, transparency, or control.  USDA Rural Development played ia critical role n enabling the acquisition. The facility was financed through an MPILP loan backed by the USDA  aimed at strengthening rural economies, expanding domestic meat processing capacity, and supporting independent producers seeking alternatives to large-scale industrial packers. the facility now serves as Better For Butchery’s centralized processing, packaging, cold storage, and fulfillment hub. Purpose-built to support third-party brands, the operation enables consistent quality, reliable scheduling, and national distribution for farmers and food businesses that have historically struggled to access scalable processing. Better For Butchery’s acquisition marks a turning point for the company—from turnaround operator to platform-scale processor—and formally launches its co-packing and third-party processing services for emerging and established food brands committed to ethical sourcing and operational transparency. Chris Roach, CEO of Better Butchery joins Farm To Table TAlk to share what’s possible when public investment and private execution align. “With USDA Rural Development’s support, we’re rebuilding meat infrastructure in a way that works for farmers, workers, and brands alike—right here in rural Kentucky. Our approach is proving that modern, compliant, and values-driven meat processing can be decentralized to establish a new meat economy that is better for farmers, better for animals and better for all of us.” www.BetterForButhery.com  www.porterroad.com

    46 min

  4. FEB 6

    Food 2030 – Ozan Ozaskinli

    2030 will be here before you know it with a new world for food. .Ozan Ozaskinli is a Food Futurist and manufacturing strategist who’s asking questions about the future of what we eat and how we’ll produce it. He’s led transformation projects across 17 industries, spent 20+ years at firms like BCG, and now runs Value Gene, where he helps U.S. manufacturers modernize before tech disruption makes them obsolete. Originally from Europe, a big part of Ozan’s POV is how far ahead Europe is when it comes to food systems and what the U.S. can (and should) borrow before it’s too late. He talks about food in 2050, factory floors in 2025, and how leaders need to embrace change now.

    49 min

  5. JAN 29

    Speak Out For Change – US Senator Adam Schiff

    For the first time in 30 years America’s top Agriculture state, California, finally has a member on the Agriculture Committee of the US Senate, Senator Adam Schiff. Speaking to over a thousand farmers at Eco Farm, Senator Schiff called on farmers and consumers to engage and to make their voices heard. Senator Schiff spoke with Farm To Table Talk and addressd over 1,000 farmers at Eco Farm.

    22 min

  6. JAN 23

    Something Good – Carolyn Givens

    There is something good about local farms supporting schools, distributingCSA (Community Supported Agriculture), hosting a market at the farm and selling organic produce at area Farmers Markets. A farming program that delivers goodness in all these ways is aptly named Something Good Organics. Carolyn Givens shares why they do what they do and why the school and local community they supply are glad they do.  Carolyn Givens says they take pride in supporting John Givens Farm’s commitment to cultivating Certified Organic Produce for their community. somethinggoodorganics.com carolyn@somethinggoodorganics.com @somethinggoodorganics for Instagram

    27 min

  7. JAN 16

    Wasted Potential – Jocelyn Boiteau and Prabhu Pingali

    Each year, about 32% of the food produced across the world is lost or wasted. Tackling food loss and waste has been on the global agenda for decades, with policymakers citing it as a contributing factor to issues like food insecurity and environmental degradation. Despite this attention, food loss and waste remain a challenge across the world.A new book from researchers at the Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition (TCI) provides an evidence-based framework for addressing food loss and waste as a means to improve access to healthy diets. In “Wasted Potential: Tackling Food Loss and Waste Across Transforming Food Systems,” TCI alumna Jocelyn Boiteau and Director Prabhu Pingali set forth a policy agenda that builds demand for diverse, nutritious foods in order to incentivize food loss and waste reduction while mitigating tradeoffs between food security, environmental sustainability and socioeconomic welfare. In addition to stimulating demand for safe and nutritious foods, they call for investments in value-adding innovations like processing, packaging and cold chain infrastructure, as well as public infrastructure and financial services that improve market access.“Wasted Potential” was published by Springer as part of its Sustainable Development Goals Series. It is available to download through open access.

    55 min

  8. JAN 9

    2026 Farm Crisis? – Ray Yeung

    Farmers across America are beginning to worry that 2026 is bringing a Farm Crisis comparable to the early 1980’s when Willie Nelson launched Farm Aid to draw attention and support to the plight of farmers.  Ray Yeung has been farming for over 40 years in northern California and although recently experiencing really good yields, he sees farming costs exceeding returns and that is simply unsustainable. A farm crisis could  be felt beyond the farms to farm suppliers and consumers.  Viable farms are ncessary, so what is to be done? Yeung always knew he’d be a farmer. His father, Joe Yeung, started farming near Woodland CA after returning rom the Korean War in the 1950s. Ray worked on his dad’s farm for decades before branching out on his own to grow processing tomatoes, pumpkins,  winter squash and other commodities. Yeung sold his heirloom tomatoes at farmers’ markets, and by the early 2000s, the heirloom craze was in full swing. Today, he grows about 20 varieties, including pineapple, pink brandywine, green zebra, and Cherokee purple. (Processing tomatoes are profitable today.)

    38 min
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4.5
out of 5
45 Ratings

About

Is it best that our food is Local and Organic or Big and Conventional? Our view is “Both, and..” We don’t come to the table with a bias, except that good farming like good food comes in all shapes and sizes. Farm to Table Talk explores issues and the growing interest in the story of how and where the food on our tables is produced, processed and marketed. The host, Rodger Wasson is a food and agriculture veteran. Although he was the first of his family to leave the grain and livestock farm after five generations farming in America, he’s continually worked for and with farmers though-out America and around the world. From directly managing commodity boards and councils to presently building the strategic consultancy, Idea Farming Inc., the Farm to Table Talk podcast has been created to satisfy the curiosity of today’s engaged consumers.

Information

  • Creator
    Rodger Wasson
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    299
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Farm To Table Talk

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