On a special edition of The Main Course, Patrick Martins sits down with food titan Michel Nischan to celebrate his week as guest editor on Food Republic. Tune in to hear a spirited conversation about our food system and the various ways in which we can improve it. Should Wall-Mart be criticized or embraced for going green? How can subsidies be re purposed to promote local and fresh produce? Find out some of the sustainable companies and restaurants that inspire Michel and learn more about everything from Victory Gardens to the role shareholders play in sustainable food. This episode was sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

“A lot of subsidies that have been given to processed foods give the products an unfair price advantage which is why you can buy fast food much more inexpensively than fresh produce, which we should have 5 servings of a day.”

“In 1949, at least half of the fresh food consumed in the United States came from victory gardens. Then it became more convenient to buy from supermarkets.”

“The only way to get returns at the level shareholders expect is to drive down the cost of goods and labor.”

“I’m not freaked out Wall Mart saying they want to go green. I’m cautious, but if they put 1-2 million dollars a year into food access issues and trying to make local more affordable you have keep an eye on it.”

–Michel Nischan of Wholesome Wave on The Main Course