Diaspora Food Stories The Global Food and Drink Initiative

Elisha Barnes is a 4th generation peanut farmer who was born and raised in Virginia.  His legacy includes a being raised in a strong family where agriculture was centered in their life and the seeds planted are now flourishing on his own farm, Pop Son Farm.
His partnership with Hubbard Peanut Company has been a game changer being a small farmer. Pop Son Farm’s peanuts are the now part of the company’s success as well as philanthropic efforts to help those who are food insecure.
In this episode, Mr. Barnes is sharing how farming has helped him stay connecting to his parents and what they taught him, the land and most importantly community.

Michael Henderson is the founder of B.A.G. Travel or Black and Gay Travel that specializes in designing adventures for small groups to destinations around the world.
The "adventure designer," began traveling more than 20 years ago, taking his first solo trip to Thailand.  After returning, he knew travel would be a way of life and over the years became a global citizen of the world, learning from each experience and people met along the way.
From Thailand to South Africa, Mexico and at least 32 other countries and counting.
What are his favorite destinations and which trip is at the top of his bucket list?  Be sure to listen to find out.
For more about B.A.G Travel and upcoming trips, visit the website.

Rachel Adjei is a chef and entrepreneur based in Toronto, Canada.  In 2020, she founded The Abibiman Project, a social enterprise venture that introduces the abundance of flavors and ingredients from the African continent and its diaspora through dishes and products created to give back to organizations serving the communities, especially residents who are food insecure.
As one of Toronto’s rising stars, she is creating an impact by doing what she loves: bringing people together through food. 
In this episode, she shares what inspired The Abibiman Project, establishing the right partnerships and what self-care as an entrepreneur looks like for her.
To learn more about Rachel and her work, visit The Abibiman online and follow along on Instagram.

Vernita Harris and Beatrice Moore have turned a 40-plus year friendship into a business over food. The friends met while in attending Praire View A & M University in Texas as college students and have since supported each other’s journeys through life since. 
Their friendship turned into a partnership during the pandemic in 2020 when they began to create a community by sharing recipes. This led to publishing their first cookbook, ”Pinch-Dash-Done: A Gateway to Flavorful Recipes,” which received several accolades.
Due to be released on April 6, their follow-up cookbook “Pinch-Dash-Done: Make It Seasonal,” focuses on cooking with fruits and vegetables that are in season for optimal flavors.
In this episode, they are talking about the success of their cookbooks that includes a partnership with AARP.

New Jersey native Dr. Wanida Lewis founded Crescendo Foods, Ghana’s first shared kitchen coworking hub, in 2021.
A food scientist by profession, Crescendo Foods’ focus is to “create a Pan-African ecosystem to celebrate culture through food as well as art.” It also serves as a safe place where innovative ideas can be nurtured.
Located in the country’s capital, Accra, Dr. Lewis and her team are preparing to host participants who want to learn about African cuisine, specifically Ghana’s cuisine and food culture, during their first culinary culture exchange program, Plate 2 Plate, this July.
To learn more about Crescendo Foods and Plate 2 Plate, visit their website.

Happy Black History Month!
We're going to be taking a short break this month to enjoy the work we do that centers around telling Black food stories.
We'll be back on March 6 to kick off more great conversations with amazing people in food, drink and travel!
Until then, be sure to catch up on episodes and visit our YouTube channel, The Global Food and Drink Initiative, to watch partial or full conversations!
Be sure to also check out Cuisine Noir, our digital and print publication, for more great stories throughout the month and year.
Cheers!