Jason Leake with 100 Days of Real Food

Interview with Michael Moss, Author of Salt Sugar Fat

Today I’m talking with Michael Moss, who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting in 2010, and was a finalist for the prize in 2006 and 1999. He is also the recipient of a Loeb Award and an Overseas Press Club citation. Before coming to the Times, he was a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, Newsday, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. I read his book, Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us, in preparation for this interview and wish its contents could somehow be required reading for anyone who sets foot in a grocery store. More on that later…let’s get right to the questions.

1) What’s your latest book, Salt Sugar Fat, all about, and what are you hoping to accomplish with it?

It’s an expose of the processed food industry, based on a trove of confidential documents that put me at the table of the largest food manufacturers as they are planning, plotting and formulating new products. These documents, which I fully footnote in the book, in turn, enabled me to identify the key players in processed foods – scientists, marketers, CEOs – and convince them to talk to me and reveal even more secrets about their heavy dependence on salt, sugar and fat to maximize the allure of their products. I’m hoping the book is a wake-up call for the processed food industry, and at the same time empowering to consumers, in that simply knowing everything the companies are doing to compel consumption of their products is in itself a powerful tool in learning to shop and eat more healthily.

Interview with Melanie Warner, Author of Pandora’s Lunchbox

Melanie Warner wondered how a piece of individually wrapped cheese could retain its shape, color, and texture for years. She started running this and other “food experiments” in her home, including chicken nuggets that turned to liquid mush, while simultaneously conducting research that took her to food science departments, research labs and factories around the country. A mother and former New York Times business reporter, Melanie offers up a behind the scenes look at the processed food industry in her eye-opening new book, Pandora’s Lunchbox, which just so happens to contain an interview with one of our very own 10-Day Pledge graduates, Darcy Struckmeier and family! How cool is that?

GMOs and The Monsanto Protection Act: Our Take

This is a guest post by my husband, Jason Leake. To learn more about Jason check out our team page. There’s been a flurry of reports circulating the internet about the so called “Monsanto Protection Act,” so this is a good time to weigh in with our thoughts on GMOs in general and to hopefully clear up some confusion in the process. As we’ve learned firsthand from Lisa and Vani’s recent intense media coverage around the Kraft petition, a lot can get lost in the telephone game (for example Vani is NOT a mom, the referenced food dyes are not actually banned and instead require a warning label in the UK, etc.), and so it is always advisable to do your own digging when you read a story. Over time you’ll determine trusted sources, but it’s never a bad idea to cross-check the facts. Today’s post is by no means meant to be the ultimate resource on GMOs, chock full of references and counterpoints, but I do want to provide an opinion about them and the “Monsanto Protection Act” based on my experience, reading, and immersion in the food world. Spoiler alert: There’s an interesting link between Kraft and the Monsanto Protection Act. Sponsor Shoutout Before we dive right in though we want to be sure to give a shoutout to one of our meal planning sponsors, No More To Go (as in – no more “to go” meals!). Meal planning services are a great way to help families realistically make the switch to non-processed foods. With No More To Go you’ll get 5 complete dinner recipes along with a corresponding grocery list each week, many of which already follow our “real food” rules or can easily be modified as shown in their grilled fish taco and slow cooker salsa […]

Interview with Robyn O’Brien, Part II (Plus a Book Giveaway!)

This is Part II of my interview with Robyn O’Brien – in Part I we discussed food allergies, diet and our food supply. And we are actually giving away 10 copies of Robyn’s book The Unhealthy Truth, which shares the story of “One Mother’s Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America’s Food Supply – and What Every Family Can Do to Protect Itself.” It’s straight up non-fiction, but as Robyn reveals what she learns through her research it begins reading like a thriller (at least for someone like me who’s interested in food and my family’s health!). At the end of the interview you’ll see instructions for how to enter to win.

Interview: Robyn O’Brien, Author of The Unhealthy Truth (Part I)

Is your child one of the 33% who suffer from asthma, allergies, ADHD, or autism? If so, you will not want to miss this post today. Robyn O’Brien, a.k.a. “the Erin Brockovich of the food industry,” believes that our kids are the “canaries in the coal mine” and that the sudden rise of these childhood ailments, especially food allergies, might be a warning sign to all of us that something in our food system is very wrong.

In her book The Unhealthy Truth, Robyn takes you along for the ride as her extensive research reveals “One Mother’s Shocking Investigation into the Dangers of America’s Food Supply – and What Every Family Can Do to Protect Itself.” I was on a flight when I hit chapter 3, which is when the pages really started flying (no pun intended, I swear). At one point my jaw dropped; later I let out an audible gasp. I found myself writing interview notes even though at that point in time I had no interview gig. Fast-forward to now, and here I am talking to Robyn O’Brien. Who knew?

Interview with Bruce Bradley: A Former Big Food Executive Talks

This is a guest post from my husband, Jason Leake, and is part of his new interview series for the blog. To learn more about Jason check out our team page or his post entitled “Real Food From a Man’s Perspective.” ……………………….. Most of us have heard at one time or another about how the food industry is the devil. But is it really? Or are all these kale-loving real food bloggers (like us) just overreacting? Today I am talking with Bruce Bradley, a former Big Food exec turned food advocate, blogger, and author, to find out the real deal. To my knowledge, Bruce is the only former Big Food marketer actively speaking out about concerns over the food we eat, and he has just published a novel called Fat Profits which exposes the industry. Interview with Bruce Bradley Q: What was it like working as a marketer for Big Food companies like General Mills, Pillsbury, and Nabisco? How did the industry and your feelings about your job change during those 15 years? A: I started working as a processed food marketer in the early 1990s. The industry was very different then. Obesity rates weren’t making headlines. Walmart wasn’t selling groceries. And it was before the food industry went through a massive wave of consolidation that has whittled down the control of our food supply into the hands of a very small group of HUGE companies.

Interview with Doctor: Food as Medicine

This is a guest post from my husband, Jason Leake, and will be part of his new interview series for the blog. To learn more about Jason check out our team page or his post entitled “Real Food From a Man’s Perspective.” ……………………….. Recently at a family reunion in Ohio I found myself in a late-night conversation so captivating that I didn’t go to bed until 2:00 AM. I was chatting with Adam Yanke, M.D. and Rupel Dedhia, M.D. who both practice medicine in Chicago, IL. Adam is Lisa’s cousin and is in residency to become an orthopedic surgeon while his wife Rupel is a practicing General Internist (which is definitely not the same thing as an intern, by the way!) These photos are from a trip to the Himalayas where they provided free medical care to local people. They travel extensively and Rupel’s parents are originally from India, so while the young couple is very much at home in Chicago and have been educated in the US, they also benefit from a world view. So why was I so excited to hear their perspectives?

Jason Leake with 100 Days of Real Food

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