Town Haul Podcast | Episode 28
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- Host: Amy Koonin (Rubicon)
- Guest: Ocean Robbins
On this episode of the Town Haul, host Amy Koonin dives into the power of healthy food with Ocean Robbins. His last name might sound familiar—his grandfather founded Baskin-Robbins. Ocean didn’t exactly follow his grandfather’s path. He’s an expert in food waste and sustainability; his book, The 31-Day Food Revolution, discusses the importance of healthy foods and how to detoxify your life.
On his family history:
OCEAN ROBBINS: “Going back a couple of generations, my grandpa founded an ice cream company, Baskin-Robbins and my dad, John, grew up with an ice cream cone shaped swimming pool in the back yard and 31 flavors of ice cream in the freezer. He was groomed to one day join in running the family company, but when he was in his early 20s he was offered that chance and he said no and he walked away from a path that was practically paved with gold and ice cream to follow his own rocky road.
He ended up moving with my mom to a little island off the coast of Canada where they built a one-room log cabin, grew most of their own food, practiced yoga and meditation for several hours a day and named their kid Ocean.”
On what he means by a food revolution:
OCEAN ROBBINS: “We live in a culture where it’s become normal to eat food that’s packed with added sugars. The average American eats 57 pounds of added sugars per year; it’s normal to eat food that’s full of hormones, antibiotics, chemicals. There are 1,400 chemicals in our food supply, and most of them have never been tested for their long-term impact on human health.
We live in a context where if you want to eat real, healthy food you’ve got to step outside the box. You’ve got to do something different, I say revolutionary. I’m not calling for food that’s a little bit less toxic, I’m not just saying let’s have McDonald’s but a little bit less trans fats in their French fries, I’m saying we need a fundamental revolution so that food becomes a source of health and vitality for us.”
On the power of healthy eating:
OCEAN ROBBINS: “Did you know that there was a study done by researchers at Rush University in Chicago where they found that when people ate one to two servings of greens per day, they added 11 more years of healthy brain function? The average likelihood of any potential onset of Alzheimer’s was pushed back by 11 years.
When you think about these numbers and when you think about the fact that it’s been thoroughly documented that we can prevent or reverse 80% of cases of heart disease if not more just with healthy food, it’s stunning and it’s powerful.
We realize that food is medicine and food really can heal. The toxic food culture that’s killing us also means that a healthy food culture can save us.”
On the one tangible item he can’t live without:
OCEAN ROBBINS: “My bike. I have an electric-assist bike and I ride it everywhere that I can locally. It keeps me in shape and it keeps me having fun and it makes travel an adventure.”
On his favorite Baskin-Robbins ice cream flavor:
OCEAN ROBBINS: “I’m partial to jamoca almond fudge. My dad invented it. I love the mix of chocolate and a little coffee, those are both health foods. I’ll be honest with you guys, I don’t really eat ice cream. I eat homemade frozen desserts, which Baskin-Robbins doesn’t make but they’re pretty awesome.”
