238. Food As Our Deepest Connection to Nature with Jill Demers of ReWild Ranch

Jill Demers is the founder of ReWild Ranch in Montana, a one-of-a-kind regenerative farm, wellness destination, and educational space, rooted in the one question she's been asking for over two decades: Why are Americans so disconnected from their food — and at what cost? As a regenerative farmer and certified nutrition therapy practitioner, Jill has built ReWild as an answer to that question — a place where the farm is the center point, and guests leave changed in ways that they will never forget.This conversation is rich, wide-ranging, and deeply resonant with everything Lady Farmer stands for. It's also the kind of talk that makes you want to go outside and put your hands in the dirt.In this episode, you'll hear about:Mary's return to growing her own vegetables — tomatoes, seeds, and all — as she and Emma transition away from their longtime CSAEmma's reflections on joining a new CSA and what food rhythms look like in a young familyJill's origin story: childhood memories of fresh-shucked corn, a lifelong obsession with food and ecology, and graduate school research on the Dust BowlWhat ReWild Ranch is — a regenerative farm, glamping destination, and women's retreat space in the Bitterroot Valley of MontanaThe three ways guests can experience ReWild, from passive glamping to immersive hands-on workshops and women's retreatsHow Jill's son Alder's autism diagnosis became the catalyst for her deep dive into nutrition therapy — and how dietary and lifestyle changes led to the eventual loss of his clinical diagnosisThe Dust Bowl: what caused it, what it revealed about soil health and industrial agriculture, and why Jill argues we may be living through something even more catastrophic todayGlyphosate, the gut microbiome, and the parallel between soil health and human healthThe "60 harvests" statistic — where it comes from and what it means for the future of foodWhy Jill believes feeding the world is not America's job — and what a "checkerboard" model of small-scale agriculture could look like insteadThe concept of "accidental education" and why ReWild is designed to connect people to food, nature, and each other in ways they can't unlearnWendell Berry, John Steinbeck, and the long literary tradition of writing about humanity's relationship with the landThe genuine constraints of local, seasonal eating vs the cultural reality of a food system that allows almost limitless food choices — and how to navigate that without guilt or rigidityResources & Links Mentioned:ReWild Ranch — Jill's regenerative farm, glamping, and retreat space in Montana (please verify URL before publishing)Kiss the Ground — documentary film on regenerative agriculture and soil healthThe Nature-Embedded Mind by Julia Plevin — mentioned by Mary; a psychotherapist's exploration of humanity's innate connection to nature (please verify author name and title before publishing)Zach Bush, MD — physician and researcher who speaks extensively on the shikimate pathway and glyphosate's effects on the microbiomeWendell Berry — essayist and farmer whose writing on agriculture and community Mary has been revisitingThe Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck — Jill's graduate thesis subject; discussed as an early work of ecological criticismMy Story as Told by Water by David James Duncan — mentioned by Jill as a formative readStay in touch & keep the conversation going:Have thoughts on this episode? A question for Mary and Emma? We'd love to hear from you — send us a message at thegooddirtpodcast@gmail.com or leave us a voicemail at 443-459-1950. Tell us what the good dirt means to you.And stay tuned — Jill and Mary and Emma have so much more to explore together. Part Two is coming.🌻 About Lady Farmer:Subscribe to The ALMANAC, a Lady Farmer Newsletter & CommunityVisit Our WebsiteFollow @weareladyfarmer on InstagramEmail us at thegoodd