GardenSpotlight

We've seen the movies on public television about factory farming.  Maybe we've gone to a showing of a local film about farming, but do we really know what's happening with the backbone of agriculture?  How do our smaller family farms stack up against those giant corporations and what is "corporate concentration?" Simply put, corporate concentration is the amount of control that a few large corporations have over the food sector in our country.  As a matter of fact, corporate concentration in United States agriculture is quite high, affecting everything from how farmers grow our food to how its marketed to the consumer.  This trend has forced many families off their farms and even out of the farming business.  What does this mean for you, the consumer?  It leads to higher food prices and less choice at the market.  USDA data shows that the cost of food to the consumer has risen steadily over the past twenty years. ...

Did you know that purchasing your food locally has many benefits, not only to you, but to your community as well?   Here is a short list of the benefits of buying food directly from the farmer: 1.        Produce and other products are much more fresh and nutritious because they have been recently harvested, usually within 24 hours. 2.        It strengthens your local economy. 3.        It benefits the farming family. 4.        It helps provide food to underserved communities. 5.        You learn about how and where your food is raised by getting to know the farmers. That being said, there are many ways you can purchase local food fresh.   One is by going directly to the farm.   The majority of farms in this county are family owned and operated and the growing trend for smaller farms is marketing directly to the consumer, ...

It's 8:00am and I am home now. I just dropped our daughter off to school and she'll be home before I know it...the days go by so quickly, don't they? I've been wanting to write about what it's like here on the farm for so long. Nothing like the present. My daughter reminds me of that every so often by saying things like, "I'll be driving soon Mom!" Mind you, she's only 10 and she's been saying that since she was 8! Don't rush it kid! That's my advice..enjoy childhood while it lasts. My husband has been driving since forever...that's what it's like on a farm. The boys learn how to drive the tractors....probably as soon as they hit double digits, maybe even before that. And the farm trucks too...but only on the farm. So I think they are able to do that just because they are boys! Our daughter has not learned yet how to do those things. She knows how to drive the quad, but she's only allowed on it with an adult. She always tell...