Leopold Center - In the news

Leopold Center in the News

King Corn - Discussing Iowa Agriculture Today	Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann is a guest on Iowa Public Television's Iowa Journal to talk about what's happened since the documentary, King Corn, was filmed in Iowa in 2004. The program aired April 22, 2008.
Smart Science: What is a food mile?	Forecast Earth, a weekly program produced by The Weather Channel, explains the science behind food miles (weighted average source distance) in a segment that aired beginning March 17, 2008. Heidi Cullen, the program's climate expert, quotes work done by the Leopold Center. Listen to the 4-minute clip
The Carbon Cost From Farm to Fork [PDF]	Newsweek magazine reporter Tony Dokoupil writes about the local foods movement and that more than food miles matter when it comes to a food's carbon footprint. He interviews Associate Director Rich Pirog for the story. March 17, 2008
Meeting agriculture's challenges in a rapidly changing world	Watch an hour-long presentation on the Washington State Public Affairs TV Network by Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann at the 2007 Focus on Farming conference in Lynnwood, Washington (streaming video), November 2007
Do food miles make a difference to global warming?	Reuters News Service Environment Correspondent Deborah Zabarenko reports on the U.S. local food movement and its relationship, if any, to environmental impacts. She interviews Leopold Center Associate Director Rich Pirog for her story. October 2007
The politics of local purchasing: The path food takes from farm to plate leads to fresh environmental debate [PDF]	Restaurant News writer Elisa Elan reports how foodservice companies are embracing the notion of purchasing local foods, and how they're trying to do it. She interviews Leopold Center Associate Director Rich Pirog about the need to look at the entire food supply chain and its carbon footprint. October 2007
Eating fossil fuels: An unsustainable equation	Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann comments in the October 2007 issue of Delicious Living magazine. He also tells the story about "the power of ducks" to describe the biological synergies that will be required of our food production systems of the future. October 2007
Do food miles make a difference to global warming?	Deborah Zabarenko, environmental correspondent for Reuters News Service, speaks with Leopold Center associate director Rich Pirog about the local food movement and whether food miles are an accurate gauge of environmental impact and greenhouse gas emissions. October 2007
Farming, food and the season of resurrection	Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann tells how America lost touch with its food source—the farm—and looks at the resurrection taking place on farms across the land. Clip from the April 7, 2007 edition of American Public Media's The Splendid Table hosted by Lynne Rossetto Kasper. April 2007
The Local Multiplier Effect	Yes! magazine devotes its Winter 2007 issue to the benefits of going local -- from food to investments to powering up. One chart explores the impact of locally-earned dollars on the economy, and quotes the Leopold Center's work on food miles. Winter 2007.
A Buzz Saw of Buzzwords [PDF]	The New York Times looks at the top new phrases for 2006, including "food miles," a small phrase that packs a big punch. December 2006.
Our Mood in Food [PDF]	Jill Wendholt Silva and Lauren Chapin write in the Kansas City Star about the politics of dining and the top 10 food issues of 2006, including more interest in local foods. December 2006.
Ten trends to watch in packaged goods in 2007 [PDF]	The staff of Business Review Online lists local foods as one of the top food trends to watch in 2007. November 2006.
Emerging Food Values: Beginning of the End of Just Eat It? [PDF]	Forum, a trade publication of the Grocery Manufacturers' Association based in Washington, D.C., interviewed Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann about his ideas on "new food values." The article appeared in their mid-fall 2006 issue.
Transitioning from industrial energy-intensive agriculture to a system based on biological synergies [PDF]	Arty Mangan, who directs the Food Farming program for Bioneers, interviewed Leopold Center Distinguished Fellow Fred Kirschenmann for his "Wisdom at the End of a Hoe" series. June 2006.
Miles to Go Before You Eat	Sierra Club columnist Paul Rauber looks into why it pays to buy locally grown food, especially when gas is more than $3 a gallon. His column is in the May/June 2006 issue of Sierra magazine.
Free weed-control service: Mice	Darcy Maulsby, writing for Rodale's New Farm web site, explores a Leopold Center research grant that has grown into a national research project, all focused on the role that nature's "little hammers" can play in weed management. March 2006.
The Case of Woodbury County [PDF]	The Leopold Center's work to support local food efforts in northwest Iowa are featured in Food & Society Update, a monthly newsletter o the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. January 2006.
Stuck in the Middle [PDF]	New York chef Dan Barber writes about the Agriculture in the Middle project and the declining number of midsized farms in a Thanksgiving op-ed piece for the New York Times. November 2005.
Fueling a fire [PDF]	The trade publication Food Systems Insider talks with Rich Pirog at the Leopold Center about the impact of high fuel prices on our food system. November 2005.
How far does your onion travel? [PDF]	Syndicated columnist Froma Harrop writes about the Leopold Center's "food miles" report in light of rising oil prices, September 2005.
Bumper crops [PDF]	Supermarket News reports on the growing number of farmers markets and the demand for local foods, September 2005.
MBAs in the Field (Literally) [PDF]	ISU graduate students working with the Value Chains Partnership project led by the Leopold Center are featured in Food & Society Update, a monthly newsletter of W.K. Kellogg Foundation. August 2005.
A 'potential gold mind': Switchgrass could be the Midwest's next big energy source [PDF]	John Sellers, Jr., who leads the Leopold Center's grassland agriculture program, is profiled by High Plains Journal writer Jeff Caldwell in the August 22, 2005 issue.
Little Big Cheese: Maytag's Growing Niche Market	National Public Radio's Greg Allen reports that a good example of place-based foods can be found in Newton, Iowa, the home of Maytag cheese. He also talked with the Leopold Center's Rich Pirog about the connection that people want with their food. January 4, 2005.
Saving the family farm, organically	Thane Peterson interviewed Leopold Center director Fred Kirschenmann for his BusinessWeek Online story about the solution to "get big or get out" demise of family farms. January 21, 2004.
Local foods could make for greener grocers	Science News senior editor Janet Raloff writes about the Leopold Center's "food miles" work in her Food for Thought column in the Aug. 2, 2003 issue of Science News online.