Two polytunnels destroyed in storm Isha….

by Kenneth Keavey

January has been the warmest January on record, and the season has kicked off with spectacular ferocity. We have already lost 2 polytunnels and 14 polytunnel doors to storms, our fields are under water and there is no sign of that changing any time soon. The remaining parsnip crop is waterlogged and machine digging or any digging for that matter is impossible.

This has followed on from a 2023 which in my recent meanderings into this world of farming over the last 20 years, has been without any doubt our worst growing season. The early drought that caused poor and erratic germination of seed crops such as parsnips and carrots, was followed by excessively wet weather for the rest of the season which meant it was nearly impossible to get crops to grow and to control weeds.

I believe it was no easier for conventional growers, as their herbicides, were immediately washed off the plants they were meant to kill. Ironic that we were on a more even footing as a result of the weather for a change.

We too are blessed (and cursed, it is tremendously hard work) as we do a lot of our harvesting by hand which meant during the wet months we could continue to harvest.

But as the season wore on and we wore out, it was with much desperation that we looked to the events unfolding around the rest of the world, with wildfires and droughts making it the worst year on record for olive oil production amongst many other climate related emergencies.Last year was the warmest year on record in Ireland (and globally having breached the important 1.5C threshold each month continuously since Feb 2023) and one of the wettest. Summer saw the warmest June on record on land and at sea; the wettest July on record with 17 stations here in Ireland having over 200 per cent of their average monthly rainfall.

An “unheard of” marine heatwave – a period of persistent anomalously warm ocean temperatures – was recorded off the coast of Ireland and the UK, raising sea temperatures by a scarcely believable 4-5°C.“Johnny Ward” for the ‘Currency’ interviewed me amongst many others for an article on climate change and its impact on Irish agriculture.

His article is comprehensive and well researched and made me stop and think about what kind of future we want for ourselves and our children.

So, as we embark on another growing season, we are wondering want to expect. We know for sure we need to be smarter in our growing choices, we know we need to tackle our sowing and harvest in different ways, we know we need to drop some crops in favour of others that are more tolerant to the changing weather conditions and are more suitable to our farm. We know to expect the unexpected. We know that seasons mean very little anymore as they all blur into one long mix of wet mild windy conditions with the occasion severe drought thrown into the mix for good measure.

But as we pass the 1.5C threshold of warming (Read this recent report from the BBC) set as the critical limit by the Paris agreement in 2015 we face an uncertain future. We certainly know we must adapt and change what we grow and how we grow it and we need to do this for ourselves and also for the biodiversity we share this planet with.

With your support we will.Thank you,

Kenneth

PS: We start harvesting our own kale again next week after a break for January, and still have an amazing array of Irish organic produce, such as McArdles chestnut mushrooms, Beechlawn organic farm leeks, red cabbage and savoy cabbage, Battlemountain organic farm potatoes, Philip Dreaper’s organic beetroot and carrots, our own kale, parnsips, swede and soon purple sprouting broccoli, lovely parsley from Millhouse farm, and of course the amazing organic milk, cheese and yogurt from Mossfield organic farm and organic eggs from Butlers organic farm. You can find all our fresh Irish organic produce here.

Through pain, we learn to grow….

by Kenneth Keavey

Nature is precious, and we are all called on to protect it. We share this planet with a vast diversity of living beings, and it is our obligation to thread softly and nurture the land.

Of course, as gardeners and farmers we need to produce food, but at what cost? Surely it is possible to create healthy food that fills our bodies with energy and vitality without hurting biodiversity and our planet?

“We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the earth as other creatures do” Barbara Ward.

Our current food system is broken, a new study predicted (Click here to read this very insightful research, and a big thank you to the customer who sent this my way) a business-as-usual approach would leave 640 million people underweight by 2050, while obesity would increase by 70%, if this is not truly the definition of madness, I don’t know what is.Not only that but our current food system is responsible for a third of all global carbon emissions, more than all the transport emissions in the world. The retailers and the big global food corporations’ profit from our and our planet’s pain. It is in their interests that the status quo is maintained.

This same report has demonstrated that the hidden costs of what we grow, what we eat and how it is grown is over €10 trillion (these are the quantifiable hidden costs of destroying nature and our health), a saving that could be made if we transition to a more sustainable model of production. Our current agricultural system is underpinned by a payment support system that here in Europe consumes one third of the bloc’s entire budget. Everybody knows it has got to change, but there is a real danger here, as we can see with the farming protests right across Europe, that any change which is not managed with care will cause great hardship to both farmers and consumers.But Change must come, if it is not change we initiate, it will unfortunately be change that is forced on us by climate breakdown

.There is no doubt that change is painful, but it is also through pain that we learn to grow, and in this case, I believe we have an opportunity to evolve a new food system that can nourish our health and our planet and truly be a force for positive change.

This fledgling food system is already alive and growing, it is developing on the edges of our conventional retail and production systems and is just waiting for it’s time, I have to believe it’s time is now. We have the power to change it, we really do.

As Margaret Meade said :“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.

”What we eat and how it is produced can be an amazing force for good, enhancing our health, providing decent jobs, rather than being an exploitative race to the bottom. It has never been clearer to me (and I have been talking about this for 20 years) that now is the time we need to change what we eat and how it is produced.

Your support means we are changing the food system together! Stick with us on this journey for there can be no greater achievement that leaving our planet in a better state than that which we found it in.

Your support means we can breathe a little, it means we can plant trees, it means we can rest the ground and allow it to recover between crops, it means we can support biodiversity on our farm. It means we can give the attention to producing healthy happy food for you.It means we have got each other.

Thank you for allowing us to be there for you.

Kenneth

PS: Did you know that systemic chemicals, are chemicals that are sprayed on our food (not our food, but conventional food) that are absorbed into the plant and reside in the tissue of the plant that we eat. We will never ever spray our food, and all the food that we source is chemical free and certified organic, so you can rest assured you are getting the very best safe sustainable produce dropped directly to your door!

Yellow fields, St. Brigid, Hope and Cocktails?!?

by Kenneth Keavey

As the official start of spring approaches, I wonder what St. Brigid would think of agriculture in our country today. Brigid’s cross as tradition would have it, was supposed to protect you from illness and bad things happening, it is certainly something we could use in our food system right now.

Our organic farm is situated in rural Ireland, and it is beautiful in its own way, as Spring evolves its vibrancy is defined by a myriad of greens, and flowers and it is overflowing with life.

Once upon a time, flowers and mushrooms were commonplace in fields of grass around our lovely country, not so anymore. I don’t know about you, but the sight of a cowslip flower transports me back to a time when the fields next to our family home were full of these beautiful flowers.

Sadly, today, these flowers are not to be found in most farm grasslands, they have all but disappeared (as have the button mushrooms that also used to be commonly found in meadows).

The reason sadly: the common use of artificial fertiliser and herbicides. Many of these fields are sprayed to remove anything that is not grass, depriving the land of variety, variety being the cornerstone of all life. Such is the way of much of our production systems these days, large monocultures, engineered to produce at all costs.

The one common theme that can be found in all of these food systems generally starts with an application of the chemical glyphosate.

Glyphosate was approved for another 10 years of use in November of 2023, Ireland was one of the countries that voted in favour of keeping it.

Have you ever been driving and noticed fields that have an iridescent yellow hue? These fields have been sprayed with glyphosate, this sickly bright yellow/orange tinge of chemical intoxication has destroyed all life, all the plants are dead, all the bees are gone, all the insects are gone, and all the birds are gone.

For me this is the polar opposite of how our land  should be.

This is the reality for how most conventional crops begin and this is just the start of the story, most crops will receive several applications of different chemicals as they are grown. This of course makes life easier for weed control, for disease control and for pest control, at least in the short term. For example, as many as 20 different chemicals can be applied to wheat.

When we look the impact of all of these chemicals that are used on our food system as single parts, we may not be seeing the whole story, there is also an argument that is gaining more traction now and makes a lot of sense called the “cocktail effect”.

This is the combined effect of multiple chemicals that is greater (or in this case worse) than each chemical taken in isolation. So, for instance the impact of glyphosate and other chemicals applied to fields can have a combined increased negative impact on biodiversity and on our health.  To read an interesting and detailed report on what exact chemical residues are to be found in our food and the impact of the cocktail effect click here.  (It makes for interesting and sobering reading)

But there is a another way. Organic production tips the scales in favour of thriving biodiversity and of food that enhances our health and well-being chemical free sustainable food. 

So, as we look forward to the year ahead, and finalise our planning and rotations, and wildflower and clover plantings, as we fix our tunnels that have the damage by storm Isha over last weekend, and as wait patiently for the land to dry out, we are thankful for your support which allows us to grow healthy sustainable food and for the opportunity to return something to nature.

Thank you,

Kenneth.

No more olive oil…?

by Kenneth Keavey

A couple of days ago, I had a very interesting conversation with Nicolas who supplies us with amazing, single estate organic Greek olive oil. He came to tell me due to the impact of climate change his farmers do not have any oil for him for the rest of this year, and olive oil could become extremely scarce as the year progresses. This was to be his last delivery to us. 

 
He also advised that we try and source some oil now from a reputable supplier as the price has inflated so much that there will be sleights of hand in the olive oil industry, and what we think we are getting may not be what we are actually getting.

Our food system has become so convoluted, and as climate change puts more pressure on our production systems, more and more corners will be cut as retailers and farmer get equally desperate to survive. 

Pressure to change our food system is coming and must come, but just this week gone by, we have seen protests in Germany from farmers who are not happy with the pushing of an environmental agenda. I feel their pain, for years governments and the food industry has been encouraging a certain way of doing business, and now that must change. 

This change is inevitable, but it will require a very steady hand on the tiller, and a fundamental change in mindset when it comes to primary food production. An agenda no politician will touch.  Who wants to be the advocate for paying a little more for our food, when our whole system is based on the lowest possible price and not value, because low price does not always mean value.  

There, is no question that the supermarket model devalues fresh food. 

We have just finished the planning for the year ahead and looking at the performance of the farm in 2023 has been a depressing affair. 

I feel we may not have paid ourselves a fair price for the food we sell.  If we do pay our farm more, we will not make enough to run our retail business, as we must keep our prices as low as we can to try and compete with supermarkets, it is a tough space to be in.

But there is no question now in my mind as we head into 2024 with fresh purpose that our farm needs to be fairly compensated for the food it grows. There is a cost to produce high value food.

But there is also a very real, unseen cost attached to the selling of 1 Litre of olive for less than €4. This is the unseen, disconnected cost, the price of a level of agricultural industrialisation reliant on chemicals and ultra processing that removes any remnants of the original olives from the olive oil, all the goodness that was once there is gone.  This is the price we pay for our modern-day food system.

As climate breakdown amplifies, we may find ourselves increasingly seeing empty supermarket shelves where we expect the food to be.

Of course, there is a different path we can thread here, one that is brighter, better, filled with wholesome, chemical free nutrition, one that protects, enhances, helps and does right by our people, health, and planet. That is the course we are holding steady to.

Thank you for being with us on this one.

Kenneth

50 today and I wonder what my grandad would say ?

by Kenneth Keavey

Today I am 50, and because of the day that is in it and because we have many new people here that may not know our story, I thought I would share it again.

The story of our farm began three generations ago, with my Grandad who was the head Gardener at the local castle.  This farm came to life in 1923, with the land act that allowed Irish tenant farmers to buy their own land for the first time.

It must have been a remarkable feeling, for the first time my granddad owned his own plot of land.  Up until then he had worked as head Gardener for the Blake family that owned Cregg castle.

He worked in the walled garden and by all counts had green fingers. He did not have access to chemicals or plastic. He grew amazing fresh organic produce for the Blake’s and for his own family. This was a time before everything was available all year round. It was a time when the first fresh new season produce was anticipated with much relish.

There is still a whisper of that anticipation left in our society today, at least for a short period that attends on the arrival of the first new season potatoes. A beautiful tradition handed down by the needs of our ancestors.

I remember my grandad growing peas, and rhubarb and apples, carrots and potatoes, turnips and cabbage all from a relatively small kitchen garden here on this farm.

My dad too had green fingers and he grew much of the food we ate in the early years. Drying onions on the roof of our shed, I remember being up there on the galvanise turning the onions in the beating sun so they would cure, before bringing them into the shed for the winter.

My interest in continuing this family tradition of growing food was not to be realised for some time. A defining moment of thinning mangles with plastic bags wrapped around my knees tied with bailing twine sent me as far as you could possibly get from muck, clay and growing food.

But something inside must have been stirred and disillusionment with a career in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry lead me back to the land. 18 years ago we embarked on this journey of sustainable food production.  

I wonder sometimes what my grandad would say seeing the fancy machines we use today to keep crops weed free.

I wonder what he would say about how growing food in this country has been devalued to the point of extinction.

Or about the cheap imports, of questionable ethical and sustainable origins and exploitative labour practices which mean the Irish farmer cannot ever hope to compete.

I wonder what he would say about the reliance on plastic and chemicals. Chemicals that mean the bees are dying; our biodiversity is disappearing; and our water ways once clean, pristine, and brimming with fish are polluted with chemicals and stifled with growth of toxic algae due to soluble fertiliser run off.

He would surely be dazzled by the choice and convenience of produce available 365 days of the year.

But I wonder would he think it was all worth it, to get food at the cheapest possible price?  I would like to think he would say not.

So, in that first year, as myself, Jenny my wife and my dad Michael packed our first boxes on some pallets supported by empty Guinness barrels I wonder would he have thought we were mad?

Probably, most others did.  But I have a sneaking suspicion that he would have been proud and happy to see the farm being used to grow sustainable local food and respected in the same way as it was in his time.

Thank you, granddad, and thank you dad, without their hard work and belief none of this would have been possible.

Kenneth

Have you heard of “Forever chemicals”?

by Kenneth Keavey

Have you heard of “Forever chemicals”? They are what they say they are, chemicals that never go away. I watched a film over Christmas called “Dark Waters” which was enlightening and based on real events.

More and more research is demonstrating that these chemicals are present in all of us and in everything. These chemicals are called per or polyfluorinated alkyl substances.

They are used for nonstick coatings on pans and on all sorts of other things to make them waterproof. They are also used in agriculture and are sprayed on our food, flufenacet is one such herbicide in common usage..

The film was very interesting and apart from the shocking nature of the lawyer’s findings, a key learning was that these large agribusinesses are generally self-regulating.We all know what this means. When an industry that is making billions of dollars from selling something and in the process is poisoning people and the planet is left to self-regulate, we know the result is probably not going to be one that brings peace, happiness, and prosperity to all. It is hard to see how there can be any other way other than self-regulation. As with clinical trials the cost of measuring and understanding the implications of widespread use of synthetic chemicals in our food chain would be too much of a burden for any public body to shoulder.

So, accountability and full transparency of the results of the testing must be released into the public domain, and this is not always the case it seems. In the end the truth always comes out, but at what cost? In the case for a class of chemicals called the neonicotinoids it was nearly too late for the bees.In the early 1990s a class of chemicals called the neonicotinoids were released; they went on to be the most widely used insecticides in the world. They were banned in the EU in 2018 due to their acute toxicity to bees. But the manufacturers knew from the outset that they displayed toxicity towards bees. see ref here (1)

A recent piece of research carried out right here in Ireland by DCU discovered that these chemicals banned since 2018 were still found in the soil on farms across Ireland. see ref here (2) The group says their presence in the fields demonstrates how hard it is to decontaminate farms once chemicals accumulate in the soil. Some of the chemicals are so persistent, they are expected to linger in the soil for over 20 years

.These chemicals are extremely harmful to bees, attacking the nervous system and affecting memory and foraging abilities so they cannot feed effectively, and residues were still being reported in Irish honey last year, the researchers reported.

Whilst 20 years doesn’t constitute a forever chemical, it is still a very substantial period of time. It seems that self-regulation around the neonicotinoid chemicals did not work. Even when it was clearly scientifically proven that their chemicals were toxic to bees, the manufacturers denied the fact and continued to lobby and push for more sales. So, whose interests were they protecting? Certainly not the bees, certainly not you and I as consumers, certainly not the farmers, and definitely not the planet, leaves only themselves I guess?

Organic farming requires land to undergo two years of a detox before plants grown their can be sold as organic. Late last year we had a sample of kale tested for more than 870 chemicals and it came back 100% clean. Organic is not a perfect system, but it certainly aims to keep the chemicals out of our food and off our planet.

Happy new year

Kenneth

PS: Our Farm shop is back open tomorrow Sat the 6th of Jan. Hope you are all back on board for a healthy happy, chemical free new year. We are fully back to normal next week, and we hope you can join us too. Thanks for your support. You can order now to get all our lovely fresh produce dropped to your door next week.

We need a food revolution this year……

by Kenneth Keavey

It seems as I get older years are passing faster than ever, and questions of why we continue doing what we do become more relevant and that little bit more urgent and yet that little bit harder to keep doing. I don’t know if anybody else experiences that, or am I just showing my age?

When we were on the cusp many years ago of taking on a lease for another farm, a friend and a professional agronomist who advises us and some of the biggest conventional veg farms in the country told me: ‘there is no money to be made in veg, don’t do it!’.He was right. We never got into veg growing and selling for the money, that would have been pure madness. We took on the farm, not heeding his advice, expanded our production and 6 years later discovered we had to get smaller to survive.

The fact remains the same today, it is very difficult to make money growing and selling vegetables. But what about the modest aim of breaking even, of making enough of a profit to reinvest in the farm and business? I think that is a fair and reasonable goal, don’t you? A goal that is necessary to survive.But when the playing field is not level for all players then it becomes very difficult to compete.

When the larger sellers (Aka the supermarkets) have a monopoly and control the selling prices and the prices given to growers then it gets difficult. When those players decide to loss lead and sell fresh produce for next to nothing that leaves the growers and other independent retailers with nothing.

As I was planning our farm for the year ahead, I did a little calculation on cucumbers.We grow cucumbers ourselves, and we also buy between 400-600 cucumbers per week to supplement our own crop from other Irish organic cucumber growers.

But here’s the deal, please bear with me.If a cucumber plant generally produces from end of June to end of September (if you are lucky and the weather is with you) and if you harvest on average 1.5 cucumbers per plant per week, that works out at about 18 cucumbers per plant per season. Now if you factor in that the cost of raising a good plant is about €3, this plant then needs to be planted into a polytunnel, the ground needs to be fertilised and prepped, it needs to be dug, and the plant needs to be supported throughout the growing season, and it needs to be pulled out and composted at the end. Each week, it needs to be side shooted, watered and managed, and harvested, I have budgeted here maybe 1.5 hour in total per plant over the 3 months.

Between fertility and labour, you are looking at approx. €22 per plant, so in total 18 cucumbers are costing us €25, and that is the best we can do, or €1.40 per cucumber. That is before we store it in a cold room, quality check it, allow for wastage and pack it into boxes and deliver it to your doors.

Now Cucumbers in supermarkets are generally sold for say €0.49. How does this add up? Based on my rough back of an envelope calculation; it doesn’t. It can’t. But it conveys a very powerful message, it tells us as consumers that fresh produce is not worth anything, it is cheap, and it should always be cheap.

What does this do for a business like ours, apart from feeling undermined and at times wondering why on earth do we continue, it makes it very difficult to survive. People often say this is madness and ask what can be done, should there be more grants for food production?

Why should one of the most important things we part with money for, one that has a profound impact on our health and on our planet, be sold as cheaply as possible? My take on it is simple, pay a fair price for the food the farmer produces. Pay enough so they can reinvest into the business and into the farm. Pay enough to allow them to pay their suppliers and their people fairly, then we can have a fair and sustainable food system that is not always under immense pressure to cut costs and hence cut corners. We need a food revolution.Your support brings that food revolution one step nearer, thank you and happy new year.

Kenneth.

PS: Our Farm shop is closed tomorrow Sat the 30th of Dec. It reopens on Sat the 6th of Jan. Even though we are closed on Monday we will be delivering as normal apart from our delivery run to Mayo on Tuesday which will move to Wednesday. The deadline for orders for Dublin Wednesday delivery and Mayo/Galway Tuesday delivery will change to 11 and 10am respectively on Tuesday the 2nd.

You can order now to get all our lovely fresh produce dropped to your door next week.

Small is beautiful and HAPPY CHRISTMAS…

by Kenneth Keavey

Many years ago, I had the good fortune to come across the book “Small is beautiful: A study of economics as if people mattered” by E.F. Schumacher.

A key quote from the book: “Modern man does not experience himself as a part of nature but as an outside force destined to dominate and conquer it” epitomises the reason we are facing the challenges we currently face on planet earth.

There is no greater urgency, or greater need than reversing the damage we have inflicted on our beautiful planet. The time for deliberation has come and gone, now we need action.

Schumacher goes onto say that we are rapidly consuming the capital our lives are built on whilst all the time focusing on the income. The idea that our planet is finite is a law that most self-respecting scientists accept and yet the business of retail and production is based on ever expanding consumption seemingly assuming the law does not apply to them.

Protection of our capital in this case our home planet earth must be given as much weighing as the income we derive from it, otherwise we may find sooner than we would like that the goose who lays the golden eggs is gone.

This is heavy going for the final letter before Christmas, but I think it may be justified.

I know that it is difficult to make the choice to spend more on food, so thank you.

I know that you have chosen to do just that. You have made a conscious choice and invested effort to source your produce from us. We may not always get it right and there is always more to be done, but we have never wavered in our commitment to protect our planet no matter what else comes our way.

So, thank you for your continued support, for your good will, for you cheer and encouragement, for spending your hard-earned euros with us.

We have had the busiest Christmas in our history as a farm and business, and for that we are eternally grateful. There have and continue to be plenty of challenges but at least for now for another while we can keep going. We have planned our planting season for the year ahead we look forward as we always do to a new growing season, and we hope that we can get more things right that we get wrong.

Thank you so much, you may not really feel it, or realise it, but you truly are making a positive difference to our world.

We hope you have a lovely, happy, peaceful and healthy Christmas 

Kenneth and all the team at Green Earth Organics

PS:  Our Farm shop is open tomorrow Saturday the 23rd from 10am-5pm, H91 F9C5, and there is still time to get all your Christmas produce. 

We are closed all next week, there will be no deliveries and our office will be closed.  Our new box contents are already live on our website and you can place your orders at any time over the next week for delivery week commencing Tues the 2nd of January

You really need to read this one…

by Kenneth Keavey

GMOs in our food, no thanks. 

“Just because we can do something, doesn’t mean we should”.

We all have a right to know how our food is grown, what is in and on it, and more fundamentally whether the genetics of the plants and food we are eating have been messed with in a lab.

The idea of modifying food for the betterment of society is a good one and in principle it seems straight forward.  But the promised results from genetically modified crops have not been realised, such as crops resistant to drought or pests.

The long-term impact of eating genetically modified plants is not well understood, nor is the impact on the environment. But setting that aside, it is the greed and the desire to patent and control our food system that tells us all we need to know to make the right decision when it comes to GMOs. In my view the right decision is to keep genetically modified crops out of our food system.

It is clear that the driving force for genetically modifying our food is driven by the desire of a handful of giant agri-corporations to control our food chain.  Manipulation of the genetic makeup of crops allows these corporation to patent “their” crops and hence own a piece of our food system whilst making billions of dollars in the process. (as has already happened around the world with “Roundup Ready Soya”)

To think that we can replicate the careful complex modification of plants, through thousands of years of evolution by nature, in a lab, in the space of months, by splicing pieces of foreign DNA or modifying the plants own DNA is ambitious and/or insanely arrogant.

Apart from conferring increased resistance to a toxic weedkiller, the promised benefits have not yet been demonstrated and there are large safety concerns about releasing untested genetically modified crops into nature.

The release of these plants into nature then becomes an uncontrolled experiment and one that may be difficult to roll back if the outcome is not as we would like.

Up to this point genetic engineering has in the main, been used to confer herbicide resistance to a few key commodity crops, hence allowing larger amounts of Roundup to be applied, adding to the toxic load in our food and on our planet.

There is no argument that can justify owning the rights to our food system, end of story.

There are currently strict EU rules on the authorisation and labelling of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). They allow farmers, food producers and consumers to choose and to opt for GMO-free food.

However, the European Commission wants to scrap this legislation and allow a new generation of GMOs, to enter our food system, without any labelling or safety checks. Essentially, they will be treating these “New genomic technique” modified crops the same as conventional crops.

I for one like to know what is in and on my food, I like to know its origin and I want to know that the food I am eating has not been genetically modified, if you are of a similar opinion then please sign this petition to help the EU politicians to take the right decision in this case and continue the ban of GMOs in our foodchain.

Thank you for supporting a sustainable food system.

Kenneth

PS It’s been a busy week, and we are ramping up for a manic packing and delivery week, next week. Thank you to all who have placed an order, and if you still have not there is plenty of time.

Please get your orders in over the weekend, but you will have up to your normal delivery deadline to get you orders in, if you are unsure of when that is you can click here to find out.

ALL DELIVERY DAYS AND DEADLINES REMAIN THE SAME FOR THE WEEK AHEAD! THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT, IT KEEPS US IN OUR JOBS AND KEEPS OUR FARM AND OTHER IRISH ORGANIC FARM’S FUTURE SAFE.

PLACE YOUR CHRISTMAS ORDER NOW FOR DELIVERY NEXT WEEK

MAKE YOUR CHRISTMAS MEAL A SEASONAL LOCAL ORGANIC ONE! 

The Dirty Dozen and a special Christmas nudge…

by Kenneth Keavey

We like our veg dirty, we harvest them fresh from the ground and we leave the dirt on.

This dirt, good clean dirt we think is amazing, it is a natural preservative, none of those artificial waxes or fungicides required here. But there is other dirt hidden in/on conventional food that we don’t think is that amazing.

The dirty dozen is a list which is compiled both in the  UK and the US each year based on measured chemical residues in and on conventional crops. It is a resource to allow us as consumers to make informed decisions about foods to potentially avoid or buy organically if possible.

It is a no brainer that removing synthetic pesticides and herbicides from our diet can only be a positive. 

There are certain crops that seem to make the list each year, you may be surprised to learn that apples regularly feature on the list. In 2020 according to the PAN (pesticide action network report) 67% of samples had pesticide residue and one sample had 13 different types of residues!)  This is I guess a little disturbing as apples are one of the most consumed fruits in the world.

Right here in Ireland based on a report by the dept of ag in 2014 (the most recent data I could get), the chemical Captan, which is a fungicide and classified as a probable human carcinogen was applied to 252 Hectares of land, and over 1.2 tonnes of the stuff was sprayed on apple trees.

For the life of me I can’t understand how kale makes it onto this list (in the US).  Kale of all the crops is hardy and tough and at least in our experience on our organic farm performs amazingly well. In fact, if we leave our brassica crops uncovered (we cover our crops with netting to prevent birds eating them) then the pigeons will eat everything else before they have a go at the kale!

Maybe it’s the healthy organic matter rich soil, maybe it’s the lack of forced nitrogen nutrition that pushes growth of crops on and can cause them to be soft and disease prone, maybe we are just lucky. Whatever it is we are grateful and happy that we have amazing crops that rarely suffer from pest or disease affliction. 

Spinach another relatively hardy green features regularly in the UK and the US list.  

When all is said and done, the production of food is hard, and the pressure to produce food at rock bottom prices, controlled and forced on farmers by the supermarkets will always lead to compromises, such as intensification and the use of chemicals.

It is a pity that the supermarkets are so concerned with how our food looks, rather than with how it is produced and what goodness is on the inside. Take a look at just how shiny some of the conventional apples are next time you are in a supermarket; many are coated in a shellac and/or carnauba wax to prevent them drying out or rotting.

We are lucky that we have a fantastic supply of organic apples from Richard Galvin, from Waterford, grown right here in Ireland without the use of chemicals, again proving the point that indeed it can be done, the apples are amazing, fresh with no coatings and no chemicals!

Thank you for supporting a food system without chemicals.

Kenneth

PS We are in full Christmas mode now.  Please get your order in next week to guarantee delivery the week after.

We are excited for all the lovely Irish produce that is jammed into our Christmas boxes, such as Battlemount organic farm potatoes (Kildare), Philip Dreaper’s organic carrots and Beetroot (Offaly), Beechlawn organic farm’s brussel sprouts, red cabbage and savoy cabbage (Galway), Mcardles amazing chestnut and portobello, mushrooms (Antrim), Leeks, parsnips, Celeriac, swede and Kale (right here on our own farm); apples from Richard Galvin (Waterford) and finally our very own handmade organic Cranberry sauce (with fresh organic cranberries) made by Rachel in Dunmore! PLACE YOUR CHRISTMAS ORDER NOW

 The Christmas is meal is the ultimate seasonal meal and we have definitely got you covered on this one, so please get your orders in soon!