J. Robin Moon (JRM): TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF – YOUR PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND, YOUR PERSONAL STORY, YOUR CONNECTION TO THE FOOD SYSTEMS AT LARGE.
Christina Ermilio (CE): In the last 10 years, I have found myself on a path working in food, consistently shifting to approach it from different angles and perspectives. Initially, I was drawn towards the technical side of baking, eager to perfect what I produced. However, with my background in cultural anthropology, I soon realized I wanted to lean into a food category with deep roots worldwide and literally at the center of the table: bread.
My journey began in the grain world while WWOOFing in Italy. I found a few farm bakers who grew grains, milled flour, and baked bread. They were deeply connected to everyone along their supply chain, and I spent a few months soaking in all the granular (pun intended!) information I could. An entire world of tradition, culture, and humans had yet to be explored. It became evident that I needed to understand the ingredients’ origins and the makers behind the intertwined modern and traditional processes.
Back in the United States, with this crew of fellow grain enthusiasts I met through Slow Food NYC, we hosted an event called Slow Grains, which celebrated the value of regional grains and elevated the role of local producers in our food system. This was the launching pad for my career. Soon after the event, I began working at She Wolf Bakery, leaning further into the regional grain and farmers market scenes. It was a dream to learn from and bake side-by-side with a fabulous group of bakers, using regional flours while also interacting with customers at the farmers market. There, I could discuss the full process with our customers, from where we sourced our flour and the breadmaking process to why I thought it was unique and essential.
In 2021, I moved to Italy to pursue a master’s degree in Sustainable Food Systems. Immersed in Italian culinary traditions, I delved into the intricacies of farmers markets and their pivotal role in fostering resilient food systems. Today, as I navigate the complex landscape of our food system, I am deeply committed to advocating for sustainable practices, empowering local producers, and fostering a deeper connection between food and community.
JRM: HOW DID YOU GET INTO WORKING IN/FOR FARMERS MARKETS?
CE: My first time working in farmers markets was while WWOOFing in Reggio Emilia, Italy for a small farm bakery with a vegetable farm and bakery production. At this point, my Italian was limited, but even so, knowledge and connections could be exchanged through food – this is the beauty of farmers markets.
During my time WWOOFing, I also met baker Matteo Calzolari of Forno Calzolari, celebrating the birthday of his bread starter (a leavening agent used in baking bread) at the farmers market. Years later, our paths intertwined again as he co-founded Comunità Grano Alto, of which I am now a part.
JRM: TELL ME ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE AT THE FARMERS MARKETS WHERE YOU’VE WORKED WHILE LIVING IN NYC. TELL ME ABOUT THE PEOPLE (FAARMER VENDORS, SHOPPERS, IN THE COMMUNITY) AND YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH THEM.
CE: After WWOOFing in Italy, it felt natural to transition to She Wolf, where I baked and sold at the farmers markets. There are few better ways to share your love of something than to help create it and then have the chance to talk about it directly with the humans who consume it. The atmosphere of these markets is best described as a tight-knit community. During frigid winter days, when producers brave the cold to sell their goods, we connect over the best methods to stay warm and offer each other hot drinks and snacks. Real bonds are created through shared experience. This camaraderie extends beyond fellow producers to customers (who also were braving the cold!), who would often rush to bring us warm beverages as we set aside their usuals. In these moments, the essence of farmers markets reveals itself – it’s not just about economic transactions; it’s about fostering care and trust within a dynamic, interconnected community.
JRM: TALK ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE AS A BAKER, WITH GRAINS, AND EXPERIENCE SPECIFIC TO THAT IN THE US AND ITALY.
CE: In New York, I was very fortunate to work with Farmer Ground Flour and Maine Grains at She Wolf Bakery. This allowed me to be part of a farmers market system that deeply valued the regional grain system, even requiring all vendors to use a certain percentage of local flour in their baked goods. In Italy, I began to uncover a complex web of relationships between the grower, miller, and baker. Ultimately, the key to these networks seems to be time spent together, which has drawn me towards the Comunità Grano Alto.
My baking perspective has completely shifted over time. Initially, I baked from what I wanted to make, which I eventually realized was working backward. Now, I bake from what’s on hand. It’s an ever-evolving learning process, but now I understand where I want to put my energy. The other piece of this shift involves the idea of embracing failure. While working with regional grains, your outcome can be more unstable and in flux. But rather than seeing it as a fault, I see it now as the superpower – endless possibilities in flavor and dimension in your bread. You have to be flexible and understand that the lifeless, stripped white roller mill flour won’t have the same complexity, but it is more predictable and stable. But these flours I’m talking about support a very different system; outside the world of commodities, they are flours with a soul.
RJM: WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE ROLE OF GRAINS IN PEOPLE’S LIVES (AGAIN, FARMERS AS WELL AS CONSUMERS)?
CE: Grains have played a significant role in our diets since the beginning of humankind (apparently, humans first ate them around 75,000 years ago in Western Asia). Their cultivation influenced a significant transition for the population, moving from hunter-gatherers to an agricultural society during the Neolithic period, around 10,000 years ago. Today, grains are foundational in our diets globally – and they play a significant role in our food system, from feed grains to food grains. Unfortunately, they became so fundamental that we prioritized efficiency and quantity and deprioritized their depth, including variety, taste, and nutrients.
We need a better way to communicate about the mysterious world of grains. It is a confusing, misleading, intriguing, and controversial topic. Grains are a dietary staple that is almost impossible to avoid. The cost of grains varies widely, from very cheap to exceedingly expensive: Why? Most grains are pitched to us as the cause of many health problems and detrimental to the environment. But ancient grains are healthy and better for the environment: What are they, and Is that true? There is quite a range of types of grains, yet it this vague vocabulary has gotten lost in marketing and industrial agriculture. This is part of my life goal – to help create more clarity around grain systems.
JRM: HOW DO YOU THINK THAT GRAIN-EATING HAS EVOLVED IN OUR FOOD SYSTEMS, AND PEOPLE’S LIVES, IN NYC AND ELSEWHERE?
CE: I think there is a desire to know more, but it is hard to get there because we are all overwhelmed by information and labels. Part of it is purposely confusing to make you think you’re choosing well when you often have no choice at all. When you look at the flour aisle in the grocery store – what do you see? To me, it is one of the most frustrating things: figuring out what you are purchasing is so hard. There is most likely no one to ask, and the labels have little meaning. This is the benefit of the farmers market. You can talk with someone who knows what is behind the product.
JRM: WHAT FOOD- AND GRAIN-RELATED WORK ARE YOU WORKING ON CURRENTLY, AND WHAT IS YOUR (NEAR) FUTURE TRAJECTORY?
CE: I am currently working with the Comunità to host their bi-annual bread and grain festival in Emilia Romagna, aiming to gather everyone from seed to loaf, fostering unity and bringing clarity to this complex food system. During this year’s edition, we will also integrate our inaugural bread tasting – a moment to taste loaves from around Italy. We’ll merge city and country, bringing together “couples” along the value chain: bakers alongside their farmers and/or millers, who will be ready to showcase their loaves and share with the public the stories behind the seed, the grain, the flour, and the loaf itself.
Recently, I interviewed a few members of the Comunità – here. This quote sums up so much of how I have felt about my journey in bread and farmers markets: “The burden and honor of the artisan are to communicate the story and the work of all, as they often have direct contact with the ‘final consumer.’ I have always thought that the main value of bread is to feel like returning to one’s native home, an inner landing place after a long journey. […] Bread is a communal product for the community. Its value is priceless. Its value lies in the awareness of each of us.” – Lorenzo Cagnoli e Furner dl’Inferne, Owner & Baker, Pasta Madre Forneria Contadina.
Every day, I am amazed to see more projects emerging in this space globally. In the US, we have gone through quite the process of demonizing grains and have assumed that there was no excellent bread anywhere to be found. This is undoubtedly untrue. It just takes a bit more work and more conversation… to discover the “real bread.” Every day, I learn of a new “real” bakery, sourcing great flour, connecting with their miller and farmer, consistently ebbing and flowing together (this is a great example). My dream is to start connecting these dots, to cultivate this knowledge, and to share what I know and continue collaborating with others to do the same.
ABOUT THE INTERVIEWEE:
Christina Ermilio: An American in Italy, former bread baker turned food systems communicator, nurturing sustainability through grains, bread baking, farmers markets, and advocating for regional food systems worldwide
