Everybody needs food: A trip to Desert Premium Farms

On the second morning of our Food and Farm Immersive, our graduate student cohort drove to Desert Premium Farms in Yuma, Arizona.

Read on for an interview with Julia Sarreal, Associate Professor in the School of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies.

On the final evening of the Food and Farm Immersion, students, faculty, and staff gathered at ASU’s University Club to celebrate the week with the help of the Director of the Arizona Department of Agriculture, Paul Brierley.

Walking onto the Justice Brothers Ranch, I could feel the Arizona sun beaming down on me, paired with the ongoing noise of airplanes flying over the Waddell area. It had been a long day of farm visits for my Sustainable Food Systems cohort. We had visited all larger, conventional farms earlier in the day, and we were looking forward to learning about what this farmer had to say about his citrus farm.

If you know a thing or two about plants and tree species, you could find a lovely meal on the Arizona State University campus. You walk outside, and foods like oranges, olives, mint, rosemary, and many more surround you. Walking the ASU campus, our tour guide, Deborah Thirkhill, took us on a campus food journey that could be the future for more college campuses.

Over the course of the fall 2023 Food and Farm Immersion, Hayden Flour Mills was one of the sites I was looking forward to visiting the most. The essence of Hayden Flour Mills mission is to shift consumers away from processed grains towards the natural, flavorful, and nutrient-rich products, which they achieve through the art of stone milling and the revival of heritage grains.

In this series, we’re meeting with Swette Center team members to explore their background in food systems, what they are currently working on, and their vision of food systems transformation. Read on for an interview with Erica Martin, Graduate Research Associate.

Paloma Dairy host and farm owner Robert Van Hofwegen, Sr, begins our tour with a hint of fire and brimstone, “This is not a factory.”

In this series, we’re meeting with Swette Center team members to explore their background in food systems, what they are currently working on, and their vision of food systems transformation. Read on for an interview with Joe Dobrow, Professor of Practice.

The management of green waste provides an opportunity to recover bioactive compounds and develop a functional product with beneficial effects on human and plant health (i.e. an organic soil amendment), supporting sustainable practices in the food industry.

Read on for an interview with Sara El-Sayed, Co-Director of the Biomimicry Center and Assistant Research Professor at the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems.

Nestled within the heart of Echo Canyon School in Scottsdale, AZ, there exists a vibrant oasis of greenery and learning—the school garden. On a recent visit to this unique educational sanctuary, our cohort had the pleasure of immersing myself in the beauty of nature, witnessing firsthand the importance of passing down knowledge and cocreating a space with our youth.