Farms and Frontlines

Farms and Frontlines
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Welcome to "Farms and Frontlines," the podcast where we dive deep into the complex and critical issues surrounding global food security. Hosted by a former Congressional Staffer and a History Professor at West Point Military Academy, this show brings together a unique blend of expertise and perspectives to shine a light on one of the most interesting challenges of our time. We dive into history, lay out current issues, ask questions, and explore potential solutions and problems in conflict areas.

  1. MAR 2

    This Episode Is Bananas

    We’re kicking off our most ambitious series yet with an overview of the Banana Wars, a sweeping chapter of U.S. history that stretches from 1898 to 1934, with consequences that echo into the present day. In this episode, we lay the groundwork: what the Banana Wars were, why they happened, and how something as simple as a piece of fruit became a driver of military intervention, foreign policy, and corporate power. Max and Jess explore how U.S. fruit companies, especially the United Fruit Company, built vast plantation empires across Central America and the Caribbean, reshaping local economies into single-export “banana republics,” a term popularized by O. Henry in Cabbages and Kings. They unpack how railroads, ports, and shipping networks tied farm systems to frontline systems, and how U.S. Marines repeatedly intervened to protect American economic interests under doctrines like the Monroe Doctrine. Along the way, they trace how bananas went from rare luxury to America’s most consumed fruit by the 1920s, thanks in part to master propagandist Edward Bernays, who rebranded bananas as a daily health necessity. This episode sets the stage for a deep dive into Cuba, Panama, Nicaragua, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and beyond, as Farms and Frontlines examines how agriculture, corporate logistics, and military force combined to shape U.S. power in the Caribbean basin. Sign up for our newsletter!

    32 min

  2. FEB 16

    I Can't Bernays It's Not Communism!

    In this second part of our Edward Bernays series, we move from cigarettes and bacon to coups and Cold War politics. Max and Jess pick up where the last episode left off, diving into Bernays’ early work during World War I and how it shaped the modern world of propaganda, public relations, and mass persuasion. First, they explore Bernays’ role in the U.S. government’s Committee on Public Information, the first large-scale American propaganda machine, and how he learned to shape public opinion by appealing to emotion instead of reason. Those wartime lessons would become the foundation of the public relations industry. Then the story shifts south to Guatemala in the 1950s, where Bernays worked for the United Fruit Company. As land reforms threatened the company’s massive holdings, Bernays launched a sweeping PR campaign in the United States, framing Guatemala as a communist threat. That narrative helped build public support for a CIA-backed coup that overthrew the country’s democratically elected government. It is a conversation about influence, corporate power, Cold War paranoia, and the long shadow of one man’s ideas. As always, we leave it up to you to decide whether Bernays was a genius, a villain, or something more complicated. Sign up for our newsletter!

    37 min

  3. JAN 12

    The Man Who Taught America What To Want

    In this episode of Farms and Frontlines, Max and Jess dive into the unsettling origins of modern advertising, consumer culture, and even the American breakfast. The conversation centers on Edward Bernays, the pioneer of public relations and nephew of Sigmund Freud, whose ideas reshaped how Americans think, buy, and eat. From engineering the bacon and eggs breakfast through manufactured medical consensus to reframing cigarettes as symbols of women’s liberation, Bernays pioneered techniques that blurred the line between information and manipulation. The episode explores how advertising shifted from meeting basic needs to shaping identity, desire, and behavior, laying the groundwork for today’s media saturated world. Along the way, Max and Jess wrestle with the uncomfortable legacy of brilliance used in service of profit, power, and control, and ask listeners to reflect on how often our choices are truly our own.Sign up for our newsletter!

    34 min

  4. 11/17/2025

    Honeygate!

    Honey is supposed to be one of the purest foods on earth. So why is global honey production rising while bee populations are collapsing?In this episode, Max and Jess follow the sticky trail from declining pollinator health to a massive international fraud known as Honeygate. We explore collapsing colonies, crop monocultures, honey laundering, and why so much cheap honey on store shelves isn’t honey at all.We also dig into what consumers can do, how to spot the real stuff, and why supporting local beekeepers matters more than ever.Sign up for our newsletter!

    30 min

  5. 11/03/2025

    Operation Mamma Mia!: The Agromafia and International Food Fraud

    In this episode, Jess educates Max on the billion dollar, illicit food fraud industry. We cover how the Italian Mafia gained legitimate enterprises through American subsidies post WWII, how they strengthened their positions through vertical integration, and how they (among other criminal enterprises) figured out how to sell fake olive oil, cheeses, and wines to not only Europe, but the world at large. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review us! Also sign up for our newsletter if you want more in-depth stories about our episodes, upcoming stories, guest bios, and more!

    37 min

  6. 10/20/2025

    Prayers, Pastries, and Pranks: The Real Origins of Trick-or-Treating

    It’s spooky season, and Farms and Frontlines is diving into the surprising history behind trick-or-treating. Max and Jessica trace the tradition all the way back to the Celtic festival of Samhain, when families left food to appease wandering spirits, and through the Catholic Church’s “soul cakes” that children collected while praying for the dead. From medieval souling to Scottish and Irish “guising,” the practice eventually crossed the Atlantic, where American suburbs, postwar candy companies, and even Peanuts comics turned it into the Halloween we know today. Along the way, Max and Jess uncover why soul cakes might have been the original pumpkin spice, how candy corn started life as “chicken feed,” and why the end of World War II’s sugar rationing was the real turning point for Halloween candy. Expect stories of VHS tapes in trick-or-treat bags, pranks gone wrong during the Great Depression, and the surprising link between peanut butter, Hershey, and Reese’s Cups. From ancient bonfires to candy capitalism, this episode explores how food and ritual shaped one of the most beloved holidays in America—and why every Kit Kat still has an ancestor in a little cake baked for the souls of the dead.

    41 min

  7. 10/06/2025

    The Great Grain Robbery

    After a summer break, Farms and Frontlines returns with a deep dive into one of the most fascinating intersections of agriculture and Cold War politics: the 1972 Wheat Deal, better known as The Great Grain Robbery. Jess shares her move from West Point to the National Intelligence University, and together we unpack how a secret U.S.–Soviet grain deal reshaped global food markets, sparked inflation at home, and forever tied the Farm Bill to both foreign policy and domestic food programs. From 300 billion loaves of bread to Cold War soft power, this episode explores how American agriculture became a tool of diplomacy, strategy, and controversy.⁠Sign up for our newsletter!

    39 min

  8. 06/16/2025

    Reimagining Agriculture in the Wake of American Wars

    Farms & Frontlines – Episode 23: Reimagining Agriculture in the Wake of American Wars In this episode, hosts Max Terzano and Jessica Rudo unpack their latest project, a paper titled Farms & Frontlines: Reimagining Agriculture in the Wake of American Wars. They explore how successive U.S. conflicts from World War I to today have profoundly shaped farming practices, food policy, and global agriculture. World War I innovations: The military's early use of motorized tractors and tracked vehicles led to mechanized farming, while conservation efforts began after the Dust Bowl and Great Depression. The New Deal & Farm Bills: Jessica and Max trace how FDR’s Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933 and the 1938 Farm Bill introduced soil conservation programs and targeted subsidies—planting soy, reducing erosion, and stabilizing prices. World War II mobilization: War sparked mass food production for troops, innovations in canning, transportation, and even deliberately flavorless emergency rations. Military-industrial spillovers: Post-war, chemical agents—from Nazi Zyklon B to Bayer‑Monsanto pesticides like Agent Orange and Roundup—found a new home in U.S. agriculture. Cold War soft power: With surplus production, the U.S. used agricultural aid (Public Law 480, “Food for Peace”) and the Green Revolution to influence developing nations and counter communist appeal. Looking ahead: Building on past tools, the hosts suggest a “new green revolution” or even a “green devolution” that combines stewardship of soil and climate resilience with innovative tech and Indigenous and Black agrarian traditions. Max and Jessica close by teasing the rest of their paper, including “The Great Grain Robbery”. America’s massive grain shipments to Russia in the 1970s and its geopolitical and economic fallout. Join them as they trace the battlefield-to-backyard pipeline, from military needs to modern food policy, and reimagine how we can turn agricultural innovation toward regenerative, climate‑friendly futures.

    32 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Welcome to "Farms and Frontlines," the podcast where we dive deep into the complex and critical issues surrounding global food security. Hosted by a former Congressional Staffer and a History Professor at West Point Military Academy, this show brings together a unique blend of expertise and perspectives to shine a light on one of the most interesting challenges of our time. We dive into history, lay out current issues, ask questions, and explore potential solutions and problems in conflict areas.

Information

  • Creator
    Farms and Frontlines
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    32
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Farms and Frontlines
  • Show Website
    Farms and Frontlines