Lady Moon Farm’s owner and founder Tom Beddard, an early pioneer of growing organic healthy food is supporting the movie “Organic Rising”, a documentary by acclaimed still photographer Anthony Suau, that examines the rise of organic farming across the US.
If you are reading this blog you are already aware of the importance of eating fresh and local food. As a consumer you vote three times a day with your fork. This is one of the simplest and easiest ways to support your local farmer. Not counting the nutritional values, there are many reasons to visit your local farmers market, some of those reasons are to keep our precious farmland growing food, not condos; eating healthy and seasonal fresh foods; connecting with your community and most importantly, teaching your children where food comes from.
The question still remains, “Why is it important to invest your dollars in food? Today it is cheaper to feed your family by passing through a drive through than purchasing fresh vegetables. Families spend less today on food than they did 20 years ago. It is easy in this fast pace lifestyle to satisfy hunger quickly and cheaply not really realizing the long-term health effects that it has on our body and how it threatens our country and our communities.
Science and technology has been inventing quicker ways to grow plants and animals, replacing the farmer’s role in providing food. Years ago one farm used to feed 126 people. Today only a handful of companies are supplying the 47,000 products that you find on grocery store shelves. It may also surprise you that the distance our food travels is approximately 1500 miles from farm to table, increasing our carbon footprint. We are heading towards unsustainability in one of the most basic needs of the human race, our food.
Today the CDC states that 53% of our children have chronic illness. Diabetes is at an all time high and 1 in every 5 deaths can be attributed to obesity. Corn has become one of the largest growing crops, producing many high fructose syrups. Corn and soybean combined make up a large percentage of what you can find in most prepackaged food products on the market shelf.
Together we can change the way our food is grown and made available. We have a right to know what is in our food and we are in control. Lets unite and make our voices heard. Taking care of our food and our youth needs to be the number one priority. As Tom Beddard says, “There is no stopping this train.” We cannot be swayed and knowledge is the way forward.
We invite you to help fight the fight for a better food system. Like the Facebook page Organic Rising, share information and lets get this conversation going. Donations towards this project will be well invested and remember vote every day with your fork.