Tags
agriculture, farming, food, organic, produce, sustainability, USA
There was once a brilliant essay written called Self-Reliance. It contains the most thorough statement of one of Emerson’s repeating themes, the need for each individual to “avoid conformity and false consistency, and follow his or her own instincts and ideas.” I think Emerson’s voice is something we all need to listen to again when addressing the future of how we will eat. My thoughts turned to Emerson after reading the chapter “A year of eating locally” in Deep Economy by Bill Mckibben. The sections that disturbed me the most states that “American may soon get out of the food business because it will be unprofitable to tie up resources in farming and ranching.” Who has decided that the ability to feed ourselves is unprofitable? This mindset started taking shape as early as 1999.
I take you now to 2011 and the realities of this in action right this very moment in my local, regionally owned health food store. As I reached for the bag of apples on my list, I paused as I saw something incredibly disturbing. Shocked at what I saw, I immediately asked the produce manager if this was true – was I truly looking at a bag of organic apples from CHILE. What makes this even worse is the fact its September, the front end of the apple season in the USA. He explained that it was the only apples the organic supplier had. An organic apple that has traveled over 3,000 miles is in no way, shape or form part of a sustainable agriculture system. I refused to buy those apples, as should you. The carbon footprint of those apples negates any organic quality those apples may possess.
In the spirit of Emerson, we must use our own judgement if we truly care about the future of eating in the USA. Our greatest power is the power of how we spend our dollars and the only way to change the system is to not buy those things which are inconsistent with supporting a sustainable future for all of us. So I urge you today to just make one commitment to how you buy food – buy only food grown in the USA. Because at this juncture what is most important is we keep farmers farming in the USA – helping them grow more organic food will be the next step.
yes yes and yes.. love this page.. we work very hard on our property to raise a few animals using organic methods, sustainably managed and our own vegetables and fruit. We feed ourselves and our extended family and the friends. Our food is lovely healthy and clean. But it is seasonal. And this is hard. But the way it is. We do not eat fresh tomatoes or melons in winter… tough choices i know, but it just feels right.. c
Fresh clean food! There is nothing like it. It is such a better way to eat. My house burned down last year and my gardens as well. I have had to eat like normal people and it is horrible.
We need to share our knowledge with others so they can also grow their own food. I have developed integrated farming systems that have many applications for increased food production. They could be used on a much larger scale but even local food production in many regions still has a backwards approach to growing food. Until we think differently about our relationship to the land and create more policy within cities to support a local agriculture base most people will not have access to the type of food you and I eat.
Here’s a web link to my farm. http://web.me.com/ajwcoe/Site/Swamp_Castle_Farm_.html
Yesterday on Facebook I was invited to chat with a young man I have known since he was about 12. I would guess he is around 30 now. I was living overseas with his parents when he was just a boy. I was surprised and happy to speak with him. He was writing because he had read my blog about Chilean apples and he just happens to now work for, a Chilean apple company. After all our family inquiry we discussed the importance of apple export to Chile as well as the high price people in Chile are even willing to pay for Washington apples during their off season. I knew that Chile had spent years developing their apple export business. I explained I have nothing against Chilean apples I just think they should eat their apples and we should eat ours. There are plenty of countries in South American to export to, right? Well not really he said. He said Chile depends on northern countries to import apples.
The issue here is not really apples. It’s about how apples fit into our theory of “living green”. We can not talk about fossil fuel consumption as if it is the devil, drive a Prius and then eat an organic apple with a 3,000 mile plus footprint. You’d be better off driving a Hummer and eating an organic mcintosh apple from upstate New York. The carbon footprint might actually be less with the Hummer scenario and you kept a farmer working in the good ol’ USA.
Another important point is we don’t need Chilean apples because apples store well in cold storage and it is easy to have a supply year round. We have done this for decades. There have always been apples in the store. What was exciting about autumn was the ‘new crop’ apples and the varieties that are not as suited for cold storage would hit the grocery shelves. Autumn was a true celebration of the harvest with grapes, corn, and pumpkins to follow.
Knowing where your food comes from is important. Even more important now. Every decision you make about food has a much larger impact on the global sustainability picture. I raised two boys, now 16 and 18, on only produce grown in the USA or in my garden. If half of us did just this the effect on our economy would be tremendous. Better management of our farms and more support for our small farmers would allow us to have a steady supply of home grown fresh produce all year long. This doesn’t mean we would not import some produce; spanish clementines are one of my favorites, but we should support an agricultural system in the USA that supplies most of our needs.
Just to make some of you nervous, China grows half the worlds apples but botanically that’s logical because the apple originated in, China. Happy eating!