{"podcast":{"title":"The History of Fresh Produce","slug":"the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611","podcast_index_feed_id":6999611,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/hfp/","website_url":"https://hfp.captivate.fm","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/b25d857f-0f9b-4f2c-8116-1d496b4db3b5/W3kLioZTryHgRMozQmkg_ui1.jpg","author":"The Produce Industry Network","episode_count":159,"summary":"Join John Paap and Patrick Kelly in this podcast series that explores the fascinating and often overlooked history of fresh fruits and vegetables. Each episode offers listeners a unique perspective on how produce has shaped our world, featuring in-depth interviews with top experts and historians, engaging storytelling, and a blend of historical and contemporary perspectives. Whether exploring the journey of grapes through time or the influence of produce in Tolkien’s Middle-Earth, this series leaves no stone unturned. Social Channels: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/historyoffreshproduce/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@historyoffreshproduce?lang=en Threads: https://www.threads.net/@historyoffreshproduce?hl=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558921896574","last_synced_at":"2026-06-16T14:18:49.984714+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611"},"episode":{"title":"Huitlacoche: Corn Smut or Sacred Gift?","slug":"huitlacoche-corn-smut-or-sacred-gift","published_at":"2026-04-07T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611/huitlacoche-corn-smut-or-sacred-gift","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611","url":"https://hfp.captivate.fm","audio_url":"https://op3.dev/e/episodes.captivate.fm/episode/9f701aae-5471-4e90-a2c6-de45f00bbe5b.mp3","summary":"What is huitlacoche, the fungus that Indigenous farmers in Mexico gave thanks for at harvest - and that American agronomists spent a century trying to burn, quarantine, and breed out of existence? Why did two civilizations look at the same diseased corn cob and see, one, a seasonal gift, and the other, an agricultural catastrophe? And how does this strange, blackened organism open a window onto the great collision between Indigenous knowledge and colonial science; from the burning of Aztec codices to the tasting menus of New York? Join John and Patrick as they tell the extraordinary story of corn smut - the Mexican truffle, the genetics laboratory darling, the fungus that fed empires and terrified farmers - in an age when the line between disease and delicacy has never been more hotly contested... ---------- In Sponsorship with Cornell University: Dyson Cornell SC Johnson College of Business ----------- Join the History of Fresh Produce Club for ad-free listening, bonus episodes, book discounts and access to an exclusive chatroom community. Support us! Share this episode with your friends Give a 5-star rating Write a review ----------- Subscribe to our biweekly newsletter here for extra stories related to recent episodes, book recommendations, a sneak peek of upcoming episodes and more. ----------- Instagram, TikTok, Threads: @historyoffreshproduce Email: historyoffreshproduce@gmail.com","meta_description":"What is huitlacoche, the fungus that Indigenous farmers in Mexico gave thanks for at harvest - and that American agronomists spent a century trying to bur…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2302,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611/episodes/huitlacoche-corn-smut-or-sacred-gift/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-history-of-fresh-produce-6999611/huitlacoche-corn-smut-or-sacred-gift.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}