Lately I have been thinking, maybe I shouldn’t think too much, but there is a great need to bring our food system back home. If you follow the news or even if you don’t you probably have heard about the Boars Head recalling 7 million pounds of meat sold throughout the country. Weir Farms in Ohio recalled millions of pounds of cucumbers, lettuce, peppers, zucchini, squash and other vegetables that are sold by Walmart, Aldi, Stop N’ Save in 20 states including New York and Connecticut. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a list of 736 food recalls right now. This is ridiculous!
Doing a quick internet search, I saw that 10 companies control all our food production with Nestle, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo leading the way. The meat industry is controlled by 4 big companies with Cargil being the biggest. This consolidation is only continuing with more acquisitions by the biggest companies. The more I learn the more I know that it is time to change to a local food system.
I have been advocating for this for many years and practicing it for longer. Through my career as a home gardener, farmer, conservationist, agriculture planner and now writer I feel we have the power to change the way we do things. It takes the will of individuals to decide on their own path but it takes a community of those individuals to enact changes. It isn’t a radical idea but one that’s time is due.
There are so many ways that we can do that. It can be as simple as going to the farmers market and buying your meat and vegetables. Or it can be joining a CSA (Consumer Supported Agriculture) farm and helping the farmer directly. To bring it home, you can start a garden and produce your own vegetables and taking it to the next level eggs and meat. If you don’t have the property join a community garden to work with other like-minded people. How about combining your landscaping with edible plants? Beauty and food! These are just a few ideas and a good start. It is only a start though. We need to modify our thinking to make this a larger movement.
By no means do I want to be preachy! Oh man, I hate that. It actually turns me off. I have talked to people who in principle I agree with. Yes, we need to use less chemicals. Yes, we need more native plants. Yes, we must… blah, blah, blah. To them there was no alternative. It was my way or no way. There needs to be a transition period, and some give and take. If you have a garden and begin to add a few native plants, I am good with it. Maybe next year you will add more. Starting a vegetable garden? If you only have time for a few 5-gallon buckets and a couple tomatoes, that’s fine. Small steps can take you along way to where you want to be.
I wrote the book, “Gardening My Way!”, because people need to know the basics and how easy gardening really can be. I believe that people with a little knowledge will do the right thing. It takes a lot to convince some people, showing sometimes is better than talking. I’d like us to take that step together. That is why I am changing the website to be more radical and hands on knowledge. We will add a blog page, videos and interactive discussions. Whole Yard Consulting will still be the business name but our direction will change. I need to be more proactive in getting people to make the changes in the simplest way possible. Lets get excited about the changes!
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