More About Nina

Nina was born at home in Buffalo, New York in 1971. She was raised on the family farm in Virginia and fed on simple real foods like raw milk from the family cow, ground beef, and a lot of vegetables. At age 9, Nina sold produce at roadside stands. In 1980, the first producer-only farmers’ markets opened in the Washington, DC area, and from then on, the Planck family made a living—and sent two kids to college—selling at farmers’ markets. In this world, Chip and Susan Planck are legendary for running a successful ecological commercial farm. Wheatland Vegetable Farms produced many proud alumni workers who became farmers.

After college, Nina worked on Capitol Hill, reported for TIME Magazine, and wrote speeches for the U.S. ambassador to London. But food was ever on her mind. Nina founded the first producer-only farmers' markets in London, England in 1999. Local, seasonal produce, fine cheeses, sustainable meats, wild seafood and more. www.LFM.org.uk

Tempted by England’s finest beef and raw milk cheese, Nina wondered about the advice most Americans get about diet. After some dutiful, dull, and unhealthy years living the vegan, vegetarian, and non-fat life, she came back to real food. Nina explains it all in her acclaimed “Real Food: What to Eat and Why.” 

A personal note for NYC parents seeking a different school experience in early childhood. 

The Kaufelt kids attended a serene, green, real-food, child-oriented, nursery school in New York City’s East Village. Learn more about New Amsterdam, the only Waldorf school in downtown Manhattan, at www.NewAmsterdamSchool.org.