Most farmers whether they be conventional or organic do what they do out of love for the land, because it requires a vocation to continue on the land, we as farmers simply must have a strong desire to produce food, because without it we would quit.
The rules governing food production are tough, prices and specifications and contracts are set by contract supermarket buyers. The supermarket supply chain is mesmerising and staggering and fast, and we can be thankful in one sense for the illusion of a never ending food supply (emphasis on illusion here), but it doesn’t tie in well with the rhythm of nature. The weather is unpredictable and with climate breakdown there is no doubt it is getting more erratic and difficult to plan for. Intensification has taken over, from vegetable production to dairy production it is the first step in our disconnection from the land. If even the farmer is being disconnected from the food, they produce what chance do we as consumers have?
Yet there couldn’t be a more important time for food production and supply to be done ethically and with transparency, without the green washing and false misleading narrative of large multinational retailers, that they in some way care for you and I and the environment, they don’t. But here is the kernel of hope, they change, and they can change rapidly, because of consumer sentiment, this is an amazing thing, and it is your doing, do not underestimate the power you have,. and be reassured change is everywhere.
Yesterday I had an invigorating discussion with a man who is responsible for creating a product right here in Ireland that is helping both us organic horticulture farmers control weeds and conventional farmers use less chemicals. Matt Shine runs Samco, and he with his brother and dad, have developed a compostable biofilm manufactured from corn or potato starch that fully biodegrades in the soil.
This material is not petroleum based, it is not plastic, it is plant based. It means our 500 courgette plants can thrive in the Irish west of Ireland climate where they need all the help they can get. Right now, the first courgettes are nearly ready for harvest, the biofilm coupled with the best spring I can remember on record has helped this but we already have amazing yellow courgettes from Joe Kelly in Mayo.
And that brings me to another story, I had a long conversation with Joe during the week, and he is a grower that has been supplying us for many years, he is an individual with a passion for what he does and is driven by energy and positivity and love for a better food system, he is a true believer in the ethical production of organic food. He is a vocational small scale organic farmer, and he walks the walk, there is no green washing here.
And finally, I also had a chat with Hannah Quinn-Mulligan of Tory Hill house Farm, who is doing something truly revolutionary, bucking the trend and going against the usual dairy intensification, she loves her cows and you can see that, and is producing with the help of her mum and sister organic raw milk, yogurt and kefir.
The thing that struck me about all three people I had a pleasure of talking to this week, is that even though business is hard, and farming is hard, and even though there is all the challenges and the hard conversations, and hard decisions and work hidden from view, they love what they do and they are driven by the desire to make this world a better place though their work.
And you know what they are making a difference, and they are succeeding, and I for now am grateful through your support to have the opportunity to support them.
Thank you.
Kenneth
PS As many of you go off on holidays, we see our orders drop off. It makes it difficult to know how to manage, so if you can at all please support us next week and the weeks ahead. For those of you who received your free amazing lettuce this week I hope you enjoyed it.