The Practical Guide: Why do you put so much emphasis on food being local as well as organic?
Nathan Donahoe: Organic produce originally became popular because of its reputation for flavor and quality, and when the flavor and quality aren't there it is usually because the food is not fresh or local; the same goes for meat and dairy. Any produce that is grown to be shipped between states and countries has to be picked unripe, or it will be a bruised mess when it reaches your grocery store. There even are certain strains of produce that have been hybridized to be "tougher" and withstand the rigors of shipping, usually at the cost of flavor. That is why it is so important to think of "fresh and local" and "organic" as inseparable.

Which brings us to the farmers market …
When you are on a first-name basis with your farmer and can actually shake their hand, something magical happens to your food. The most important - and often overlooked - aspect of a farmers market is the loving relationships it creates, which can affect us for a lifetime. Love is the most important ingredient. Which is why I say, "Make love with food."

Can a food be "organic" without being federally certified as such?
"Organic" doesn't mean there are no pesticides used, just those that are "allowed." There are times when a farmer who is "pesticide-free" may be a better choice than one who is federally certified "organic" but still uses pesticides. More and more farmers I meet are choosing to farm organically without going through this expensive certification process. However, these farmers are then operating without oversight, which is why nonconflicted, third-party certifiers are so important. I feel that organic standards must be raised - and that affordable certification options should be extended to small, family farms to enable them to compete in the marketplace.

What are some of your most memorable experiences in the field?
For my cooking-school internship, I chose to live and work at a traditional Amish organic family farm in Pennsylvania. No phones, no lights … but I had a horse and buggy and a scooter to get me around. It was very, very had work to wake at 5 a.m. to milk and feed the cows and clean out the manure trenches. Since Old Order Amish live so differently from most people, it is easy to think we don't have much in common. But I mostly remember laughing while working and how passionate we all were about farm-fresh organic food.

I like to eat life to the fullest; I also lived in the jungles of Hawaii for half a year at a permaculture farm and raw-food retreat. I spearfished with sharks, climbed coconut trees and milked goats. My most memorable experience was hunting a wild boar with a crossbow. Wild pigs were becoming a real problem, digging up our taro and other crops. They were also getting too brave about hanging around humans, which was not safe for us or the pigs. It was saddening to take an animal's life, but I felt if I was going to eat meat I should know how to get it from start to finish. It gave me a whole new respect for life, and I was able to feed half the neighborhood and a lot of poor people who never would have been able to afford it.

How did you become "Chef of the People"?
I was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at age 10, and as long as I can remember I was always treated like there was something wrong with me. I would see many different experts in conventional and alternative medicine spend large amounts of money trying to "fix myself," but nothing ever really seemed to help. As I began to experience the healing power of food and farmers markets, I found that a foundation of fresh, organic food and loving, fun relationships mediated most of my issues.

I really want people to be healthy and happy, and that became my dream for working with my clients. Not to be an "expert" or someone who was better than them, but to be a brother in their health adventure, someone who they could relate to who truly cared about them and wouldn't bankrupt them in the process. Being the "Chef of the People" keeps me grounded and reminds me that by working together, we can achieve levels of health and joy we could never find alone.

Nathan Donahoe, Los Angeles-based private chef, consultant and food activist, is a passionate advocate for the healing potential of farmers-market-fresh food. He's the former executive chef of The Canyon rehabilitation center in Malibu, California, and Riviera Recovery, also in Malibu, and a graduate of the Natural Gourmet Cookery School in Manhattan, New York. Learn more at www.chefofthepeople.com.