"She could be a farmer in those clothes."
Remember that line from Clueless? Think of the stereotype of farmers it implies. Uncool, not with the times, maybe not so bright... wearing overalls and a flannel... Back in 1995 (when Clueless came out), OrangeClouds the upper middle class suburban teen didn't know any better than to believe that image of farmers. I don't know where I thought my food came from, but I didn't know any farmers and in my mind, they were irrelevant.
Since then, I've met many farmers. Sure, some of them dressed in flannel, but others dressed trendier than I do. Clothes, of course, aren't an important aspect of farming to discuss, but I think it IS important to put a human face on the people who produce our food.
As I'm sure you've noticed if you've read my previous diaries, all too often the same policies that are good for farmers are also good for consumers. I've got a few pics from the farmers' market and I'd like to profile a few farmers I've come to know over the past few years. Hopefully, you'll leave this diary convinced that farmers AREN'T irrelevant and you'll be excited to take action about the 2007 farm bill.
When farmers win, entire communities thrive. I read a report recently that examined many studies done over the past several decades, finding an overwhelming trend that small and particularly midsized farms that are owned and operated by the same person or group of people (as opposed to absentee ownership with one group managing and a third group doing the work) bring the most benefits to society. (Email me if you want a copy of this report.)
(Update: Just to be clear, the report said that arrangements that created stratified communities with gaps between rich and poor were the ones that created problems. A few people in the comments noted that they own farmland that they do not farm themselves, but they take interest in the care of the land and have good relationships with the farmers... that's not the sort of situation that creates problems. It's when you've got a huge farm and you're paying people nearly nothing to pick fruit that you create problems.)
That is why, for the past few weeks, I've been harassing every Kossack I find to take action on the 2007 farm bill. It's a quick call to your representative with a request to remove sections 121 and 123 from the House version of the proposed bill. Well, apparently there's some U.S. attorney scandal going on, and there's gonna be a big election in 2008 or something, so no one's paying much attention to the farm bill.
I shouldn't say "no one" is paying attention - several of you are and I am extremely grateful - but for a community that can raise thousands for charity or for a candidate in a single day, we can do better than we've been doing for the 2007 farm bill. I want Congresscritters across the country to start wondering why they are getting so many calls about the farm bill.
In an attempt to shed a little more light on the matter, I'd like to profile a few farmers I know in this diary, to put a human face or two on the subject.
Ellen
Future Fruit Farm, WI
Our certified organic family farm is located on the beautiful ridges overlooking the Wisconsin River Valley. Here, we have chosen to specialize in and grow old-time and exotic varieties of fruit. The unusual and delicious apples and pears that we produce are harder to grow, but we feel, far superior to more common types of fruit. The rich flavor and perfume of our fruit is often lacking in more commercially grown fruit. We practice certified organic methods of agriculture to grow our fruit. Each tree is given special attention. Each piece of fruit is handled gently and hand-sorted. We value quality over quantity. The taste of our Future Fruit is sought after. For over twenty five years, our Future Fruit Farm Family--Bob, Ellen,and Selena Lane--have been testing varieties of apples, pears, and plums, attempting to perfect organic fruit growing methods and meet the challenges of climatic pressures. We value supporting local food supplies and our family farm is dedicated to sustainable agriculture.
I met Ellen last summer, a few weeks after Wisconsin's strawberry season ended. At the market that morning, I found one stand that still had a few strawberries around and I bought several pints. When I stopped at Ellen's table, she commented on the strawberries, and I gave her a pint. She was so touched that she enthusiastically shook my hand and introduced herself.
The next week my friend Jonny got an unexpected (and large!) raise at work and he bought a membership to Ellen's CSA program for us to share as a celebration. From then on, a long stop at Ellen's table at the market became a tradition.
In addition to farming, Ellen also teaches dance. She looks exactly like I'd expect a dance instructor to look - and she looks nothing like my old overalls-and-flannel image of a farmer.
Once she told me she attributed her unconventional career choice to her mother, who encouraged her to be herself and loved her no matter what she chose to pursue in life. She said perhaps she didn't end up in the mainstream because she didn't have any force in her life pressuring her to be like everyone else as she grew up. The way she said it, it reminded me of Frank Capra's You Can't Take It With You.
If you read the blurb about Ellen's farm above, you can probably tell how much love she puts into her work. She's the sort who is easily moved to tears over global warming - and as someone intimately familiar with her farm's ecology, she notices its effects on her own life already. Despite her incredible success at producing fantastic fruit, I know that money's an issue. Once she commented to me that she and her husband put every penny they have into their farm.
To me, the value of fruit that was produced with so much love and care is absolutely priceless, but unfortunately I don't run the world and one of the few things I can actually do to help Ellen is letting my representatives know that I support policies that will help Ellen and her farm thrive.
Annie
I met Annie here in California, the last week of Asian pear season. I think Annie puts crack in her Asian pears. I liked them but I never thought they were anything special before I tried hers. I don't know why I decided to buy a few, but I did. Now I have to wait all year to get more.
I've heard that farmers are an aging population, but Annie looks about my age. Due to our similarity in age, I find it fascinating to learn about her life as a farmer because I can so easily put myself in her shoes. What might have inspired me to take the path that she did? When I was in high school and college, I dreamed of growing up to dress business casual and work in an office (I now know how misguided I was). How did Annie realize years ago that working on an organic farm beats the hell out of the ratrace of corporate America?
When I asked her about it, she said her love of farming began early, when she ran around her grandpa's tomato farm, picking and eating tomatoes. She remembers always choosing school projects that involved growing plants, finding it stimulating to water plants and nurture them as they grow.
As she grew up, she started thinking about organic farming. Today, it's crucial to her that her niece can pick fruit of her trees and she doesn't have to worry about any chemicals in the fruit that may be harmful.
So, she leased some land from her sister, and I can attest that she's producing absolutely amazing navel oranges, grapefruit, blood oranges, Asian pears, cherries, apricots, plums, peaches, nectarines, and more. I can easily buy 8 lbs of her fruit and eat it all in a week (in fact, I did that last week).
Annie finds organic farming challenging, although the challenge engages her competitive side, driving her to work hard to succeed. It's time consuming to farm without pesticides because (for example) instead of spraying everywhere, she has to remove all of the weeds herself. Still, it's worth it to her: her reward is sharing her fruit with customers who share her values.
Here are a few pics I snapped at the market last week, so you can see Annie's customers drooling over her fruits.
Action!
This next week, take 2 minutes to call your representative. Ask them to remove sections 121 and 123 from the farm bill. Section 121 pushes NAIS (the National Animal ID System) forward. It would take a whole diary to explain why that's a bad thing - and fortunately Elfling wrote one. Think "PATRIOT Act for animals." Section 123 keeps states and localities from banning crops that were deregulated by the federal government.
Exciting! A(nother) dKos Cookbook!
This past week, several Kossacks suggested we do a cookbook featuring recipes with seasonal foods for YearlyKos. Moneysmith stepped up to take the lead on this project, and she wants to hear from YOU as soon as possible (since there's not much time left before YK07 anymore!).
Send in your favorite recipes, especially ones that feature local, seasonal foods (from any season, wherever you live). Moneysmith's email is listed on her user page, linked above. She's also going to be looking for quotes from Kossacks about your experiences growing, cooking, and eating your favorite foods to include in the cookbook, so keep your eye out for details on that.