Has the sun gone to my head? Possibly…

by Kenneth Keavey

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

Chemical kale, and some amazing news….

by Kenneth Keavey

Our food is probably one of the most valuable investments we can make, and our decisions affect us deeply, and over time they take their toll. Look at the rise of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic inflammatory disease.

The long-term impact of consuming too much sugar, or ultra processed foods is clear, but what is less clear is the cumulative impact of the pesticides and herbicides that are endemic in our food, the hidden extras that we never see.

What is the impact of the small amounts of pesticides we consume in our food daily, the cocktail effect of these chemicals over a period of years can be profound.

What if our organic kale was just kale, and the conventional chemical sprayed kale had to be called “chemical kale” ? Our impression of food would change our realisation that our food is grown with chemicals would be clear.  We may then consider their impact on our health, or how our food choices impact biodiversity.

At the moment our kale fields are bursting with flowers, and bees and biodiversity.  They are also covered in aphids, as the kale is at the end of the season they are doing little harm. These aphids in conventional systems only a few years ago would have been treated with neonicotinoid chemicals, these systemic chemicals were shown to kill bees.  The chemical industry denied and lobbied against groups that wanted them banned, knowing full well they were killing the bees. Thankfully these chemicals are now banned.

We have just been designated as a conservation area for the native Irish honey bee, the bee hives that Gerry manages on our farm are native Irish honey bees and these bees are, as all bees are under threat from habitat destruction, the relentless intensification of agriculture, the loss of biodiversity and the overuse of chemicals in our food chain. The Irish honey bee is unique to Ireland and it needs to be protected. Our food choices directly impact Gerry’s honey bees, in this case in a very positive way, and they are thriving on our farm.

Not only do our food choices, impact our food, but it seems they also impact the quality of our drinking water. Irish water this week announced that they have found 66 exceedances of what they deem is the safe limit of pesticides in our water. I would argue that the only safe limit is a zero-tolerance limit. A senior manager said:

“We want to remind users to be mindful of water sources when using pesticides, as one drop of pesticide can be detected in a stream up to 30km away.”

Chemicals found included MCPA (used to kill rushes),   2,4-D (this was a chemical found in the notorious agent orange concoction sprayed to defoliate forests during the Vietnam war).  And of course glyphosate, the main ingredient in all-purpose Roundup makes a star appearance, which is no surprise.

But as with Gerry’s bees, our food choices really do matter, they drive a different type of food production, they change the laws of the land, they get chemicals banned. So, the next time you are choosing food, if there is an organic option, maybe if you can choose that, it really matters.

As always thank you for your support,

Kenneth