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October 21, 2021

‘I Was Killing People’ With My Farming Practices + What’s Going on With the Food Supply Chain?

In the latest episode of CHD.TV’s “The Empower Hour,” host Zen Honeycutt interviewed an organic farmer from the U.S. who described transitioning from chemical to organic regenerative farming, and a Canadian organic food producer who discussed problems with the food supply chain and how they relate to COVID.

CHD Live!'s 'The Empower Hour.'

The latest episode of CHD.TV’s “The Empower Hour” featured an interview with Marise May, owner of Cha’s Organics, and a roundup of the latest food news with Carol Grieve of Food Integrity Now.

Honeycutt also interviewed Mark Doudlah, owner of Doudlah Farms, who discussed the world-changing transition from agrochemical farming to regenerative organic farming.

May and Honeycutt discussed issues with the supply chain, as cargo ships sit at a standstill off both America’s east and west coasts, rising food prices, and what it all means, especially for organic businesses and consumers.

May said complex supply chain problems began last summer, and were likely tied to the COVID pandemic.

“Everyone’s kind of at a loss,” May said, detailing problems with labor shortages, demand and backlog stemming from a slowdown in China. “They’re just throwing their hands up, but there’s no guarantee.”

May covered some solutions for consumers, from joining co-ops to sticking with trusted organic brands.

Grieve provided her regular roundup of  food news, including health concerns with lab-grown meat, success with a regenerative Brazilian farming co-op and health tips on black beans.

Doudlah, a sixth-generation farmer, writer and educator, talked about switching from conventional farming to 100% certified organic, regenerative and biodynamic practices.

Before his father was diagnosed with Mantle Cell lymphoma, an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma — dubbed the “Cancer of the Midwest” for its connections to farmers working with pesticides — Doudlah said, “I was a very conventional farmer, beating my hands on my chest that I was feeding the world, but didn’t really appreciate at what cost.”

“We were killing people, that’s not something that is easy to say, that I was killing people by my farming practices,” Doudlah said, explaining the “cognitive dissonance” in the farming community.

He transitioned his farm over three years, purging the chemicals and bringing his fields back to health.

Honeycutt shared nutrient test results for black beans produced on Doudlah’s farm, compared with conventionally grown black beans.

The study found regenerative-farmed, organic black beans from Doudlah Farms were 8% – 50% higher in nitrogen, phosphorus and magnesium than conventional black beans, and testing did not detect any heavy metals.

Watch this week’s episode here:


Tune in every Friday at 9 a.m. PT / Noon ET to watch a new episode of “The Empower Hour” on CHD.TV.

Next up: Honeycutt will interview Jane Houlihan, MSCE, research director at Healthy Babies Bright Futures, and lawyer Brent Wisner of Baum Hedlund Law, the attorney who made history serving on the Monsanto trials and who is lead counsel for the plaintiff in the Ranitidine (Zantac) proceedings.

The Empower Hour” is hosted by Zen Honeycutt. Each week Honeycutt invites you to become part of the solution and a partner in building healthy communities using the time-tested tools of nutrition, detoxification and healthy lifestyle choices. Honeycutt is author of “Unstoppable: Transforming Sickness and Struggle into Triumph, Empowerment and a Celebration of Community,” and founding director of Moms Across America, a nonprofit raising awareness about GMOs and related pesticides in our food, and Moms Across the World, a collaborative effort of moms and supporters around the world. She is committed to educating and empowering mothers and others with actions and solutions to create healthy communities. Step out of the fear and into your personal power.

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