With the sun beating down and the tractor leaving plumes of dust in its wake, you would be forgiven for thinking we are in Spain, or some other such hot country. But no, this is the west of Ireland, the weather is better in the last few weeks than cumulatively over the last two years, or maybe I have just been traumatised by all the rain and cannot remember the rare glimpses of sunshine we must have had.
We are for the first time in our near 20 years of veg production ahead of schedule, the amazing farm team and the fantastic weather and thankfully for once the machines obeying the rule of man are all working nicely together. I am not naive enough to think this synergy will last, but maybe it will. I will embrace the poor me a little here, we are due a break. I think this could finally be our year, or maybe it takes 20 years to learn how to do it, how to grow 20 different types of vegetables on a commercial scale and do it organically.
2 weeks ago, I spoke with Nina Carberry an MEP and Darina Allen, and we had a conversation about food and our future. Here is one of the fundamental facts in relation to our global food system, of which we are but a tiny piece, (In terms of general agricultural exports we are definitely punching above our weight, but this is a terminal, short term outlook. When it comes to sustainability, we are sacrificing the good of our land for agricultural intensification and beef and dairy exports)
But here is the thing, the way we farm must change, global agriculture is the leading driver of biodiversity loss on our planet, it contributes 30% of all global greenhouse gas emissions. The science is clear, burning fossil fuels and cutting down rainforests to grow more soya to feed cows is going to burn our planet, it also consumes 70% of all our fresh water supplies.
This needs to change, but here is the thing, global government agricultural subsidies are now standing a staggering $540 billion, and are on track to soar to $1.8 trillion by 2030. Not only that but the majority of these subsidies fund agricultural practices and therefore food products that are laying our land bare. Think also of the intensive use of pesticides in GMO crops to grow the feed that ultimately funds this huge factory farmed animal industry.
So effectively our taxes go toward subsidising a food system, that keeps unhealthy food cheap (think ultraprocessed products) and therefore fresh food more expensive. If more of these subsidises were funnelled toward fresh local organic production, then this would certainly even the playing field when it comes to price.
You might think that all the sun has gone to my head, well that may well be the case, and madness was probably creeping in many years ago for who in their right mind would have embarked on this endeavour otherwise, but things are moving in the right direction.
So, the question remains what can we do about it? Well as it turns out we can do a lot, we really can, and this is the best part about all of this, when it comes to our food, we as consumers have power, real power, the power to choose wisely, the power to decide what food to purchase and where to purchase it. Our decisions and choices really do matter, and they send a powerful message and can effect real change.
We can take definite action for change today; Visit a farmer’s market, support us, grow a little yourself, look at the country of origin in the supermarket, choose fresh local organic produce where you can, add more vegetables and less meat to your plate. It is all within our power.
As always thank you for your support
Kenneth