On the surface this seems like a pretty simple question. Most of us would say without hesitating, “I do!” Perhaps you earn the money that buys the food, maybe you do the grocery shopping, or the cooking, or physically place the food on the kitchen table. All of this clearly qualifies as feeding your family, but when we really examine the source of the food that we eat the answer becomes so much more complicated.
Most of my posts have been written to entertain, to inform, hopefully to help. Today I am going to climb up on my soapbox. Today I am writing to motivate you.
I have been reading an increasing amount of disturbing news related to food lately. Everything from small family farms being invaded and shut down to ammonia laced meat scraps, that even McDonald’s rejected, being served in school lunches, TO OUR KIDS! What is going on here?
The organic and local food movement has been gaining momentum over the years, and I am obviously on board. More and more people (who can make the choice) are choosing not to support big business- in this case the food companies that control what is grown, or monopolize the food industry and fill the grocery store shelves with lab-created food products that are causing and/or exacerbating national health problems.
I believe that people’s choices are having an impact, to the point that the government is being called on to intervene. One of the ways they are “protecting” us is by shutting down family farms who are making their living by the sweat of their brows and the strength of their arms. These people are providing REAL FOOD to family, friends, and neighbors who have made the choice to purchase from them, and now they are being persecuted. Or how about the farmers who are being taken to court for saving their seeds from year to year? Are they really that big of a threat or is this purely an effort to make a statement?
Someday I believe that the accessibility and affordability of quality food is going to become a crisis. I think it’s time to make our own statement before this happens. If we don’t learn to support ourselves, or stand up for those who are making good, ethical, and healthy choices, we will be at the mercy of those who believe that it’s o.k. to take away a child’s home-made lunch and replace it with mystery nuggets; who believe that it’s within their rights to hold in evidence a family’s livelihood while they turn around and approve high-fructose corn syrup, green ketchup, and hormone and antibiotic-laced animal products.
The reason that my husband and I started our organic farm is that we wanted to be able to say, with confidence, that we are the ones feeding our family. We still opt for convenience far more often that we would like to, but we’ve come a long way from where we were. How about you?
I’m not saying that everyone should start a farm, but I challenge you to take steps today to change one thing in your diet or household. Replace one non-organic item with an organic (fairly-traded) replacement. Talk to a friend or neighbor who hunts, fishes, or farms and see if you can buy from them. If you’re not quite ready for this, read The Omnivore’s Dilemma or Food Matters, watch the movie Food Inc. Don’t let others (including me) tell you what’s best, make your own educated choices, and make your own statement.
O.k., I’m done. I’ll jump down now and listen to what you have to say. Share your thoughts or what you’re doing to make a change. You can even feel free to contradict me, I promise I’ll respond rationally.
We have been fans of locally grown foods for a long time! We frequent farm markets all summer and we just joined our local organic food store…the Grain Train in Petoskey…we spend enough money there to make it worth it. We don’t grow our own food, but we try to eat whole foods and organic as much as possible. I don’t love to cook, so we eat simple…that helps. It’s interesting that one thing I don’t mind doing is peeling, cutting, chopping, preparing fresh food. So that is what we do. It may appear more expensive on the surface, but it may not be if health is factored in.
I think eating simple and fresh is the way to go! I agree about factoring in the expense of health care! Thanks for the comment.
We’re lucky in that we live in a fairly rural area with a strong network of farm direct foods available, both in the form of meat, dairy, and produce (and even our own local brewer and distiller, who both use local, fresh and organic ingredients :) ). I think you’re right, that it’s an impending crisis, and has much to do with our nation’s current health-care woes. I worry most about urban and suburban America, where the choices we take for granted are either not available or unaffordable.
Thanks for the rant. Every voice on the matter can help. You and your family are role models, Nicole.
An organic local brewery…awesome! I agree that the urban residents, or those living anywhere who can’t afford to spend a few more dollars on organic, are the ones who will suffer the most. It’s a difficult issue already with the sheer number of people to feed. I hope that we can find positive solutions.
So important. I’m a lousy gardener, I think snails are cute and the birds have a field day in my vegetables, but, I’m learning. This year we’ll expand and add barriers. We’ll also leave a bit unprotected for our wilder neighbors and increase the butterfly habitat. Other than that, we buy local, skip fast food and eat as well as possible. Slime, chemicals, pestisides and genetically altered seeds will come back to haunt us. Now, about that organic beer …
I think it takes a lifetime to really know what to do with a garden. We add and change things every year. LOL on the organic beer! We are raising bees right now, and hope to try our hand at some homemade mead! Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment Kelly.
Hi, Nicola, congratulations on that rant! I have to say that I am a tad shocked at some of the things you mention. I live in Scotland but receive regular health topic newsletters from your side of the Atlantic, which, while very informative, until now I kind of thought are often exaggerated out of proportion. To read in your post about farmers being taken to court for saving their own seed and family farms being closed down sends chills down my spine, as the above mentioned newsletters are possibly not talking about the minority incidents that I thought they were. It is scary to watch where our food production is heading and feeling powerless to change things. Attitudes over here are a bit lax when it comes to organic farming, I get incredulous comments when I tell folk I don’t want any nasty stuff in my garden, even if it means the work is harder. Living quite a bit away from the major population centres I find it difficult and expensive to get everything organic, and I haven’t found an organic butcher in the area at all yet, not helpful, unless you’re vegetarian, which we are not. Trying my hand at vegetable gardening – with mixed success I have to say. Everyone to their own, I suppose, but it pains me that I am in a minority and have to explain myself to people all the time. It is encouraging to see that there are people about, like yourselves, who try to make a difference. I do wish more folk could see how really important that is. Well done, and keep up the good work!
This is so interesting Sonja. I am fascinated to hear about your experience. I agree that it is scary what is happening with food production, and yes, there really are some tragic things happening to small farms over here. I am a bit surprised that people aren’t more open to organic in your area. I have this image of everyone in Scotland having their own little plot of land with a family cow and doing everything “the old way” :) We live in a very small town right now surrounded primarily by conventional farms. The people are wonderful but they do tease us a bit about going organic. I think that farming is just so difficult in general that most people will do anything they can to make it easier and more profitable. I commend you for sticking to your ideals even though it means more work, and a lot more bugs. I can’t wait to hear more and thank you Sonja for taking the time to read my post!
Gosh, that was a quick reply ;-) I just wanted to add something to my thoughts earlier : I think the local attitude to organic is probably defined by money mostly, it is expensive to buy and a lot of people don’t have that kind of money or aren’t willing to make the sacrifices necessary. Then government tells you that nutritionally organic and conventional is the same, so Joe Blogs doesn’t need to worry himself any further. There are organic producers, and shops including large chains who sell organic produce, but it is limited up here. Attitudes are different in more affluent areas of the UK I’m sure, but nothing like as open minded as in Germany where I grew up. People who go to health food stores and hand weed are often confused with tree-huggers, which I am not. O well. Never mind. We struggle on :-) xx
Yes, the same is true here. It’s more expensive, not readily accessible to everyone, and there is that elitist stigma associated with buying and eating only organic in some areas. It’s sad because the people who can’t afford it are the ones who really need more nutritional “bang for their buck”, and they’re currently not getting it. My husband and I are quite the contradiction, which it sounds like you’re dealing with a bit too. He is currently in the military yet we live in the country and have an organic farm. The two just don’t usually go hand in hand :D
Lol, contradictions are the spice of life. I fully understand what you mean – my husband is ex military and still works for them as a civilian. It seems incompatible to be aiding one of the most destructive industries mankind has managed to establish and wanting to live in unison with nature. Unfortunately bills need to be paid, that is also part of modern day existence, so you have to accept that there are downsides in life. You can only endeavour to get as close to your personal ideal as possible, but you’ll probably never reach it. Doesn’t stop me from trying, though, paradoxes and all, and from what I read it’s no different with you ;-)
It’s so funny how many parallels we’re finding :) Yes, we must all strive for those ideals though I fear we often fall short. Nice to find someone working toward the same goal!