Career Profile: Meet Charlotte, Registered Dietitian
Charlotte Rommereim is a registered dietitian/nutritionist and farmer from Alcester. Her family has been farming the same land since 1874. She says her family is the whole package because, “My husband and I grow the food, and then I advise people how to eat it in a healthy way.” We sat down with Charlotte to learn more about her career and how she connects food and farming every day.
HFT: Tell us a little bit about your career path.
Charlotte: I’m a registered dietitian. For the majority of my career, I have been a consultant dietitian for long-term care facilities and rural hospitals. I’ve also done some work in the local cancer clinic and with WIC.
HFT: What does a typical day as a dietitian look like for you?
Charlotte: I spend time interacting with the residents of the long-term care facility to make sure they get the best nutritional care possible. I also advise the food service operation. In the hospitals, I do the same work with patients, but on top of that I provide outpatient education. I teach patients who have diabetes, heart disease or any other diagnosis how to eat properly and take care of themselves.
At the end of the day, I come home and help on the farm where it’s needed. Much of the time, I help in the pig barn and manage the financials.
HFT: What’s the best part of your career?
Charlotte: I enjoy helping people eat healthy and well. I love helping someone find something new they’ve never tried or a healthy new way to prepare something. I also love helping people reach results. To be able to help someone lower their blood sugar or manage their weight through what they eat is very rewarding.
Lately, I also work with my fellow dietitians and food professionals to help them understand farming and where our food comes from. Coming from the farm, I love to share stories about how much care and attention we put into raising safe and healthy food. It’s important for all of us to remember that no matter what practices are used to raise food – organic, non-organic, GMO, non-GMO, etc. – it’s all safe and all equally healthy.
HFT: What motivated you to become a dietitian?
Charlotte: When I was a kid on the farm, I started cooking when I was very young. At 12 years old, my mom had an injury so I stepped in and became the full-time cook for all the people who worked on our farm in the summer. My mom would instruct me and I would prepare the noon meals for all eight people. I fell in love with cooking.
My uncle was a surgeon, and he encouraged me to pursue medicine, which was also an interest of mine. So the career path I chose was a combination of those two things I loved to do. Plus, it was a natural extension of my life growing up on the farm where we raised food.
HFT: What is your educational background?
Charlotte: To become a dietitian, you need a minimum of a four-year degree plus an experience like an internship. I received my degree in nutrition and food science at South Dakota State University, and then I took a national exam to become a registered dietitian. After college, my husband and I moved to the Alcester area to start farming with my dad. I was able to find work in the area as a consultant to long-term care facilities and small rural hospitals.
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Have more questions for Charlotte or about being a registered dietitian? Leave them in the comments!
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