For a long time (and for all I know it’s still there) –- there was a lop-sided sign just off the highway as you headed north and left the urban comforts of Toronto for the countryside.
It was rough and hand-painted and said simply, “If you had something to eat today, thank a farmer”.
As a kid who grew up surrounded by farms and farmers, that sign was a constant reminder of how detached we’ve become from the land and the things our very lives depend on.
I’d bet a lot of people who live in cities have never met a farmer, let alone sat down to chew on a wheat straw and talk to one.
And farmers can tell you a lot. Not just about their daily lives and how much they care about their crops and their livestock and doing what’s best for the people who buy what they produce.
If you talk to most farmers you’ll discover their desires and concerns are not far from your own. And that they don’t put a lot of stock in all the food scares and trends that dominate the media.
One of the more interesting places to find a farmer if you don’t live near one is a website called Peterson Farm Brothers operated by three down to earth farming brothers from Kansas.
There, Greg, Nathan and Kendall Peterson, along with “honorary bro” Laura Peterson blog and engage on almost anything agricultural.
Their opinions are about as simple and basic as living on a farm. From corporate vs family farms (96% of farms are family run) to GMOs (“Over-researched”).
This is stuff that doesn’t always fit the narrative driven by the writers of Salon or the Food Network. Instead it comes straight from the horse’s mouth –- sometimes literally.
On top of all that, they sing. About farming of course. And they’re worth a listen there too.
Take a few minutes to visit the country and…
Enjoy Your Sunday.
Or – to the tune of Katy Perry’s “Roar”…
No comments:
Post a Comment