On this week's Hot Grease, Nicole interviews Waleed Cope and Fredrecia Hartley of Bed-Stuy Alive, a week-long festival celebrating Bed-Stuy's cultural diversity. Also, find out who's taking the leap into the good food movement on the Frying Pan.

Food insecurity, obesity, diabetes, hunger, and federal food assistance- these are the topics of the day on It's More Than Food. In the debut episode, host Michel Nischan is talking with two guests about food access. Lori Silverbush is the Co-director of the A Place at the Table, a film that highlights hunger's economic, social, and cultural implications for our nation. Janet Poppendieck is a Professor of Sociology at Hunter College, and the author of Free for All: Fixing School Food in America and Bread Lines Knee Deep in Wheat. Find out about the cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Why so many Americans view SNAP participants as 'welfare queens', and how do negative opinions of low-income people feed the problem of food insecurity. Listen to Michel, Lori, and Janet discuss some stories from A Place at the Table, and how people of all ages are affected by a lack of healthy food in their communities. Later, hear Michel and Janet talk about emergency food's affect on our everyday culture, and the importance of a living wage in establishing food security. How do initiatives like Green Carts help to provide access to healthy food in food deserts and create jobs? Find out on the first installment of It's More Than Food! This program has been brought to you by Wholesome Wave.

"SNAP has the lowest fraud rate of any federal entitlement program. It's at less than 1%." [5:00] -- Lori Silverbush on It's More Than Food

"The great bulk of our food assistance does not any longer hinge on surplus commodities. So in a way, the new paradox is between diet related disease, and people that are not getting the food that they need." [15:55]

"One of the ways that emergency food affects our culture is as a moral safety valve. It makes us feel better." [40:00]

"The poor, in the United States, are poorer than they've ever been. They're further out of the middle. The poverty line is now obsolete, there are more people living outside of the mainstream." [23:50]

-- Janet Poppendieck on It's More Than Food

Gus Schumacher & Richard A. Jones are the guests on this week's edition of HRN's flagship show, The Main Course. Gus Schumacher is a founding member of Wholesome Wave and formerly the Undersecretary of Agriculture for the Clinton Administration. Gus discusses his work with SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and farmers markets, and explains how we can add more "Nutrition" to the SNAP program. He also talks about the upcoming Farm Bill and how we can move towards a more local and regional food system in America. Richard A. Jones, author of The Beekeepers Bible, does into depth about beekeeping and the incredible lives of bees. This episode was sponsored by The Museum of Food & Drink. For more information on the "Get the Ball Rolling Fundraiser" click here.

Gus Schumacher