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Louisiana Eats Tours Farms Afield And At Sea

Pigs graze in forests on Mahaffey Farms in Princeton, Louisiana.
Poppy Tooker
Pigs graze in forests on Mahaffey Farms in Princeton, Louisiana.

Click here to listen to this week's show.

On this week's show, we hit the road to tour a variety of farms that do everything from growing fresh produce to raising colonies of honeybees. We begin with a tour of Mahaffey Farms in Princeton, Louisiana, where Evan McCommon has been converting his family's timber ranch into a biodiverse farm. The changes have been slow, but his resolve steady as the 1,100 acres change from a dense forest to an open savannah.

Then, we return to an urban farm in our own backyard. Three years ago, in the shadow of US 90 and the Crescent City Connection, Jordan Bantuelle and his partner, Ian Willson started Southbound Gardens on a keyhole lot almost invisible from the street. We take a tour of their urban farm and its unexpected bounty.

Spencer Marshall shows how he harvests honey from hives on his farm in Napa Valley.
Credit Poppy Tooker
Spencer Marshall shows how he harvests honey from hives on his farm in Napa Valley.

Next, to Grand Isle where we meet the Guerreros family of Caminada Bay Premium Oyster Company. Owner Marcos Guerrero and his son Boris welcome us aboard their compact bay boat for a morning out on the water to learn the process of oyster farming Louisiana-style.

Finally, we head to California to tour both Marshall’s Honey Farm in Napa Valley and Gourmet Mushrooms in Sonoma County.

For more of all things Louisiana Eats, be sure to visit us at PoppyTooker.com.

Copyright 2017 WWNO - New Orleans Public Radio

Poppy is the host and executive producer of the weekly show, Louisiana Eats! Food personality, culinary teacher and author, Poppy Tooker is passionate about food and the people who bring it to the table.