It would certainly be much easier to farm with chemicals, apply some herbicides for the weeds, a pesticide or two to deal with the aphids and other mealy bugs, and a fungicide here and there to deal with the different fungal diseases. For good measure maybe throw in a growth inhibitor and a chemical wax coating to literally seal the deal and we have our food system all sown up.
This unfortunately is the reality of our modern-day food system. There is little doubt that the illusion of healthy food fostering great happy farmers, and a vibrant diverse landscape is very neatly packed in shiny plastic packaging on supermarket shelves. It looks lovely and shiny and clean and perfect.It is more challenging to grow food organically, you cannot reach for a bottle of chemicals to deal with every problem
When an inspector came to our farm and took a sample of kale to test for chemicals, they tested for 870 chemicals to be exact, the kale came back completely clean, but it was shocking that they tested for this many active pesticides.That is a lot of chemicals that are floating around that could potentially be used on our food. Farming with nature, protecting biodiversity, producing good clean healthy food is important to us. As I was walking up from creating this video I saw a black bird eating a worm. It struck me that if we were using chemicals on our farm then that worm would have consumed chemicals in the soil and the blackbird would then also be consuming chemicals and the cycle would go on. The lovely picture-perfect produce wrapped in plastic on the supermarket shelves is hiding so much. It is hiding how that food was produced; what chemicals were applied to the food, whether nature was harmed, whether the people producing the food were treated with respect. We can’t think about all of that, the world is too crazy, and we are too busy. The question is how did we arrive at a place where these are questions we must associate with our food? They shouldn’t be. Of course there are MRLs, (maximum residue limits) these are limits that restrict the amount of chemical allowed in a food. But not all foods are tested and when they are a scary 54% of conventional food have chemicals in them (read the report here). Now I think it would be preferable if we didn’t have to consume any toxic chemicals with our food, especially chemicals we are getting without our knowledge.
But our journey is not about fear; it’s about empowerment. By choosing organic farming methods and supporting others who do the same, we are cultivating a relationship with the land that prioritizes health and sustainability. Our commitment to nurture the earth and provide nourishing food for you our community, can only continue through your support. After a tough year, now more than ever we could do with your support
.Thank you.
Kenneth
PS thank you to everybody who has placed a Christmas order already, we are very grateful for your support, and we hope you will be delighted with the produce and groceries that you receive for Christmas. If you haven’t done so already, please have a look now on our website and remember of course you can order a Christmas box, but also you can choose whatever you need for Christmas and we will deliver that too!
Link to the report
https://www.pcs.agriculture.gov.ie/media/pesticides/content/foodsafety/pesticideresiduesinfoodfrom2020/2021AnnualReportPesticideResiduesinFood060923.pdf