Fritz Nordengren

Digital storyteller-award winning producer, graduate health care faculty, small farmer and rancher

When I was 11 years old, my mother was featured in the newspaper for her cooking and she gave me a shout out -- saying I was learning to make pancakes. In truth, I had mastered the one handed omelet flip demonstrated by Julia Child on her PBS TV show. As a young teen, my first paying job was in a neighborhood Greek restaurant. I started washing dishes and ended up running "the line".

Later in life, I edited two very small cookbooks and now, split my time between two worlds. In one, I’m an assistant professor for a graduate medical school. In the other, I run a small ranch.

Recognized for my creative work four times by USA Today, twice I was picked as one of the Top 100 Producers by AV Video/Multimedia Producer magazine, and recognized by the National Press Photographers Association.

In academic work and research, I’m working on a 5-hour documentary and lecture series, We Are What We Eat: The Nutrition, Policy, and Public Health of America’s Diet. I am pleased to serve on the board of directors of the Iowa Food Systems Council.

My home, Two Mile Ranch, is halfway between Des Moines and Kansas City. Two Mile Ranch features a game bird habitat where we raise and release pheasants and grow pasture-raised ducks, turkeys, and chickens that are antibiotic free.