As America’s Industrial Ag. megalith continues to pump out lousy food and toxic chemicals into our bodies, the natural response to use local farming is growing like there’s no tomorrow.
From a USA Today news article here.
“The “local” movement — buying and eating food produced locally rather than shipped from thousands of miles away — has been gaining steam with the steady growth of farmers markets and a phenomenon called community-supported agriculture. CSA members purchase shares of a farmer’s crop for the season. The government doesn’t track the numbers, but Local Harvest, a nationwide directory of small farms, farmers markets and other local food sources, estimates that tens of thousands of American families belong to CSAs, and supply trails demand. The number registered with Local Harvest alone indicates how quickly CSAs have multiplied over the past decade: The directory’s listing has increased from 374 farms in 2000 to 3,660 today.”
Additionally, the Farmer’s Market phenomenon where urban areas set up local farm bazaars, normally once a week, is also growing. From the USDA this:
“Farmers markets are an integral part of the urban/farm linkage and have continued to rise in popularity, mostly due to the growing consumer interest in obtaining fresh products directly from the farm. Farmers markets allow consumers to have access to locally grown, farm fresh produce, enables farmers the opportunity to develop a personal relationship with their customers, and cultivate consumer loyalty with the farmers who grows the produce. Direct marketing of farm products through farmers markets continues to be an important sales outlet for agricultural producers nationwide. As of mid-2009, there were 5,274 farmers markets operating throughout the U.S.”
And embedded in all this is organic farming. People are searching for more wholesome foods, wherever they can be found. This can only be described as a very good trend. It not only encourages better food, but it encourages a more environmentally friendly farm.
Industrial Ag basically survives today primarily because of taxpayer subsidies. The multi billion dollar annual subsidies to mega corn growing farms has wrought tremendous damage to local farming and overall public health. But the inevitable push back by consumers could eventually lead to a reversal of these subsidies.
From Beezer’s perspective, this reversal can’t come fast enough. Now if only we can get First Lady Michelle Obama fired up, the nation would have the political spokesman for healthy food it needs desperately.
