logo
episode-header-image
Jun 2020
25m 30s

White People Own 98 Percent of Rural Lan...

Mother Jones
About this episode

Black families own just one percent of the country’s arable land. But that’s despite the fact US agriculture has deep roots in African traditions. Leah Penniman, author of the book Farming While Black, delves into the roots of our modern farming practices, and talks about a growing movement among young Black and indigenous farmers to reclaim lost land. Plus: A dispatch from Minneapolis, where a Jamaican restaurant has transformed into a protest supply hub.

Up next
Aug 2020
Sami Tamimi on the Delicious Complexity of Palestinian Food
On this episode, we hear from chef and writer Sami Tamimi, Yotam Ottolenghi’s partner and author of the new cookbook Falastin that brings you right into the center of one of the globe’s most hotly contested territories, Isreali-occupied Palestine. And, Tom Philpott is more than j ... Show More
33m 20s
Aug 2020
Elderberries Don’t Boost Your Immune System, and Other Coronavirus Myths Debunked
Our inboxes have been filled to the brim with advice from people peddling vitamins, herbs, and diets—all claiming that the product that they were hawking would help supercharge the body’s defenses to ward off the coronavirus. Is there any truth to these pitches? Can certain foods ... Show More
26m 28s
Jul 2020
Why We Need Black-Owned Food Media
“When we don’t own our media, we will not own our messages,” says Stephen Satterfield, the founder of the food culture magazine Whetstone, and one of the only Black owners of a major food publication. Satterfield talks about the challenges of finding investors for new media proje ... Show More
56m 2s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2021
The Black Farmer Movement Battling History to Return to the Land
Agriculture was once a major source of wealth among the Black middle class in America. But over the course of a century, Black-owned farmland, and the corresponding wealth, has diminished almost to the point of near extinction; only 1.7 percent of farms were owned by Black farmer ... Show More
26m 1s
Apr 2023
KQED Youth Takeover: Four Stewards at Work Healing Their Land and Communities
The percentage of Black-owned farms in the U.S. has dropped from a peak of 14% in the 1920s to just 2% today. In California, less than 1% of land is owned by Indigenous people. As part of KQED’s Youth Takeover week Marin Academy junior Finn Does brings together a panel of local I ... Show More
57m 48s
Feb 2022
The United African Farm to launch in three acres of land in Pakenham on 12/02/2022
The African farm, which started in one acre of land a few years back, has gained another huge land in Pakenham. The new land will be hosting the farm, picnic area, and areas that help the community have a place to gather and have fun times. The event will showcase the African cul ... Show More
20m 34s
Apr 2023
Is it time for white Zimbabwean farmers to return home?
“For me to leave a place of security, a place that’s been good to me and my family, to go back and get harassed - I’m not prepared to do that.” In the early 2000s, at least 4,000 white Zimbabweans were kicked out of their farms to make way for their black counterparts. Robert Mug ... Show More
16m 44s
Aug 2022
Women growing grain
Most of us rely on farmers to produce our food and rising costs for farmers are leading to spiralling food prices. It's in part down to huge increases in the cost of fuel and fertiliser, shortages of labour and the pressures of a changing climate. Kim Chakanetsa talks to two wome ... Show More
27m 26s
Feb 2023
What does it take to succeed with a farming start-up?
More than half of people across Africa are involved in agriculture in one form or another. For a long time it was seen as a more traditional pursuit – a way to get by. But younger people are looking at agriculture as a business opportunity. The African Development Bank says mille ... Show More
17m 8s
May 2021
‘Queen Sugar’ Author Natalie Baszile on the New Black Farming Revolution
In a week that marks one year since George Floyd's death, there’s no better time to talk about cultivating the world we deserve. Queen Sugar author Natalie Baszile believes that true Black freedom is tied to land ownership, food sovereignty, and a renewed dedication to the soil. ... Show More
36m 13s
Aug 2022
06/08/22 Farming Today This Week: Farm tenants, Veg growers, Seasonal worker folk song
The British Growers’ Association, which represents the horticulture and fresh produce industries, is warning of a potential crisis in the sector because of rising costs, water shortages and difficulties finding workers. They’ve just carried out research into carrot and broccoli p ... Show More
24m 51s
Dec 2021
The Sunday Read: ‘How the Real Estate Boom Left Black Neighborhoods Behind’
In Memphis, as in America, the benefits of homeownership have not accrued equally across race.Housing policy in the United States has leaned heavily on homeownership as a driver of household wealth since the middle of the last century, and, for many white Americans, property owne ... Show More
44m 13s
Oct 2021
The Tax Auction Block
With its luxury resorts and golf courses, Hilton Head, South Carolina, is a popular vacation hotspot. But the island is also home to the Gullah Geechee; descendants of formerly enslaved West Africans who have owned land on the island since their ancestors were freed. However, eve ... Show More
31m 8s