Movie Review: The Biggest Little Farm

A while back, I noticed a new documentary listed on Netflix.  I was both intrigued by and suspicious of the description: "Inspired by their pet dog, a Los Angeles couple raises the money to start an eight-year adventure of triumph and heartbreak in biodiverse farming."

Inspired by their pet dog?  Interesting.

Biodiverse farming?  Is that just a buzzword, something used to attack conventional agriculture?  Or do these people have a genuine understanding of this type of farming?

Los Angeles?  Please tell me this isn't another story of some city slickers managing, with minimum effort, cost, or personal sacrifice, to save the world from folks who have been farming for generations.

Eventually, the intrigue overrode the suspicion and I watched the movie.

It was...not what I expected.  At all.

"The Biggest Little Farm" takes the audience sequentially through the first seven years of John and Molly Chester's journey of turning 200 acres of dead, drought-stricken land into the thriving, healthy farm that is Apricot Lane Farms in California.  And when I say that land was dead, I mean it.  I would not want to start with soil like they had!  They achieved success through biodiverse farming, which is described by their mentor, Alan York: "Our goal is the highest level of biodiversity possible."

The level of biodiversity on this farm is one seen more often in storybooks than in real life.  Apricot Lane Farms has cows, chickens, guinea fowl, sheep, pigs, guardian dogs, ducks, several varieties of citrus and stone fruit, raspberries, blueberries, and a vegetable garden.  I've probably forgotten a few things.  The most important part is how the animals and plants all interact.  They aren't kept separate from each other.  Rather, the farm functions as an ecosystem and the Chesters talk about its "interconnected beauty."

Photo Credit: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8969332/

As a conventional farmer, some of the things the Chesters did in their journey were a bit strange to me, but others made a lot of sense.  For example, I found it strange how much they celebrated the birth of various livestock animals.  To me, that just seems like an unnecessary level of bonding.  Then again, maybe it's important to take a step back to appreciate the abundance of life.  I really liked seeing the way they used their livestock to help keep the crops healthy.  That's something that is beginning to come into conventional farming as a realistic option, though the uptake is definitely higher among those embracing alternative farming methods.

This documentary didn't sugarcoat the realities of farm life.  There was death, frustration, and even a threatening wildfire (a threat for which many farmers are now learning to prepare).  The forces of nature didn't cooperate all the time either, even in sunny California.  At one point, John talks about how farmers, in trying to save their animals, bond with the livestock that will one day be food.  He also talks about the problems they created on the farm, and the difficulties in solving those problems.

It wasn't all bad though.  The movie showed little babies, plenty of successes on the farm, and several revelations as John and Molly worked out how to "balance the needs of the farm with the needs of the wildlife."  I was particularly enthralled with their solution for a devastating snail infestation in the citrus orchard.  In the end, the Chesters reached "a manageable level of coexistence" between the crops, livestock, wildlife, and humans.

As I watched this documentary for a second time to take notes for this review, I wound up with more quotes on my paper than anything else.  My favourite is one from the very beginning: "I never dreamed we could even get to this point - to have so much to lose."  What farmer doesn't understand that?

To my surprise and delight, this really is an exceptional documentary.  The camera work is of a high quality, the perspective is balanced and honest (maybe a little too honest for some of us?), and the story frequently had me leaning in to ask, "how will they solve this problem?"  All considered, I highly recommended watching "The Biggest Little Farm."

Note: I am not receiving any incentive, financial or otherwise, for promoting this movie.  

Being an Essential Worker in a Time of Crisis

Work has been strange for the past few weeks.  Almost every day I am seeing changes in the way I do my job, both in town and on the farm.  The restrictions regarding which businesses can and cannot remain open in the wake of COVID-19 are changing how I do my jobs and how I think about what needs to be done.

My town job as a delivery worker for the local dry cleaner will not end, as we are considered an essential service, providing clean uniforms to businesses in the food production industry, like the local oat mill and grocery store.  My delivery routes are getting shorter every day, though, as more and more businesses shut down to wait out the pandemic.

On the farm, my work, in many ways, is the same as always.  Cows are calving and need to be monitored carefully.  All of the animals need to be fed - this year that means feeding extra grain, because our hay is of poor quality due to a wet summer.  Some of the hay is still in hay yards several miles away, so it needs to be hauled home.  Of course, that would require a fully functioning wagon - ours is currently stranded in a neighbour's yard, awaiting repairs.  Winter is the time for repairs, and this year we have several pieces of equipment needing work (including my car, which was damaged in an accident last month).  In short, the work on the farm isn't about to shut down for any national or international crisis.

Even during an international crisis, sick calves need individual care.

In other ways, it is becoming more difficult to get the farm work done.  Farmers aren't lone rangers.  There are many people we depend on and interact with.

I had to pick up some supplements and minerals for my cattle and some dog and cat food a little while ago.  Normally I would walk into the mill store, place my order at the counter and then move my truck around to the back and help to load the bags onto the truck.  This time, I had to call my order in and someone had to bring the debit machine out to me.  I did help load up the truck, but a few days later, the company announced they they were asking customers to simply stay in their vehicles and leave the employees to load the orders.

I have also had to pick up calving supplies from the vet and from Co-op.  Social distancing protocols have forced me to think through my supply runs more thoroughly, as I must decide if I need to get more of something to last me longer, or risk having to interact with people more frequently.

Similar situations have become normal across the agriculture industry.  Dairy farmers in some parts of the country have been told to stay back from the milk truck drivers and to not even be in the same room as them, lest they refuse to pick up the milk.  Elevators have told truckers to remain in their trucks when delivering grain.  Agricultural lending companies and grain buyers have been sending out dozens of emails telling customers to do as much business via email or phone as possible, while offices shut down.  These are such simple requests, but a few months ago they would have been utterly unimaginable, for farmers tend to be sociable, helpful, and involved.

Nonetheless, the business of agriculture must and will carry on through every crisis, as will every other essential service.  Farmers have carried on producing food around the world through other epidemics, through wars, political upheavals, economic collapses, government betrayals, and natural disasters.  Some falter under the weight of the burden (and who wouldn't?), but as a whole, the business of agriculture does indeed carry on.

So, while my friends try to fill their jobless hours or figure out how to work from home, I carry on with an almost normal work schedule, half wishing for a bit of a break and half relieved to not be working in the medical field, for those who are do are far more tired and overworked than I.

An Open Letter from a Farmer to People Who are Passionate about the Planet

Dear People Who are Passionate about the Planet,

I am a young farmer from Alberta, Canada.  I recently listened to a round table discussion pertaining to care of our planet on a Christian podcast.  It was a fairly good discussion, but there were some comments about beef, organic food, and bees that were somewhat uninformed (which is not unusual among the general population).  Normally the comments I heard would frustrate me. However, a short time ago, I attended the amazing Western Canada Conference on Soil Health and Grazing and I would love to take a few moments to share the ridiculously exciting things that are going on in the North American agriculture industry in respect to caring for and healing our environment.

I’ll begin with beef.  Many consumers have heard the claims that beef is bad for the planet.  However, there were about 500 farmers and ranchers at the conference talking about the amazing things that cattle and other livestock can do, when managed properly, to bring healing to our planet. 

We talked and learned about how beef cattle are an integral part of protecting North America’s grasslands, one of the most endangered ecosystems on the planet.  In fact, if we take the cattle away, the grasslands turn into deserts!  Instead of letting that happen, the leading farmers and ranchers are learning the best ways to manage their cattle to keep the soil healthy.  When the soil is healthy, the plants are healthy, which allows the cattle to produce nutrient-rich beef and milk!  Even more awesome, when the soil and plants are healthy, our broken water cycle gets closer to being repaired AND the carbon in the atmosphere gets sequestered in the soil through natural processes!  Farmers are using some simple principles to heal the land, the water cycle, and the air!!  How insanely cool is that?!  As for the issue of the amount of land required to produce beef, most livestock are raised on marginal land – that is, land that is unsuitable for crops in the first place.  Using that land to grow veggies instead of meat would actually do more harm than good.  I could go on about how important beef cattle and other livestock are to a healthy planet, but I’ll refrain for now.

Beef Cows on Pasture, August 2017
Photo credits: Neil Rysavy

The next topic I’ll cover is that of organic food.  Many consumers think that buying organic food is what’s best for the planet and for our health, mainly because of the lack of pesticides used in organic agriculture.  Actually, organic farmers can and do use pesticides, though their selection is more limited.  Not using pesticides and synthetic fertilizers is an important step in repairing the soil and ecosystems, but that doesn’t automatically make organic production better or healthier than conventional practices.  Organic farmers can destroy their soils just as easily as others and they can have food that is just as poor in quality as others.  I won’t stop anyone from choosing organic, but the added value may or may not be there.  Several of the keynote speakers at the conference I attended could be organic producers if they just filled out the paperwork, but they refused to do so.  I think that says something about the types of conversations farmers want to be involved in.  We want to talk about good things, not create fear of our competitors.

Moving on, I find concerns about the bees to be interesting.  Yes, bees have been having some trouble lately, and yes, some of that is from chemicals being used to treat other problems in agriculture.  However, some of the problems simply have to do with diseases that are wiping out colonies.  Other issues have to do with modern-day cropping systems which don’t provide a variety of flowering plants for the bees to visit throughout the season.  Our fields all bloom at once and then the flowers are gone and the bees have to work harder in the times before and after the big blooms to find the flowers they need.  One of the awesome things we talked about at the conference was growing poly-cultures – having several species of plants together in the field.  The diversity benefits bees and has other incredible benefits (depending on what species are planted) including carbon sequestration, pest control, improved water and nutrient cycling, additional feed for livestock after harvest, and more!  The greatest part of this, in my opinion, is that the world doesn’t need to set aside millions of acres for bee farms! 

This is an increasingly normal situation: a crop farmer plants a diversity of crops in his field.  A honey producer brings his hives to the field and the bees do their thing, benefiting both producers who require the bees’ services (pollination and honey production).  Later, the bees are removed, the farmer harvests his cash crop and a beef producer brings his cattle over to graze the crops that were planted as a companion to the cash crop.  The cattle add fertilizer to the field and convert the plants to nutrient-dense beef.  Look at all the food produced in just one field!!!  These are things that leading farmers and ranchers are doing in North America just to produce food and it just happens to be healing the soil, the water cycle, the air, the surrounding ecosystem, etc.  How incredible is it that God has granted us wisdom to find the best ways to care for our earth while going about our daily tasks!  And we get to work WITH animals instead of shunning them for being inefficient.  I think that is absolutely incredible, not to mention a fantastic fulfillment of what God has commanded us to do in Genesis 1:28 and 2:15!

I hope I haven’t ranted too much or bored you, but I was so excited to share how God has been working in the agriculture community of North America to bring healing to our planet that I just had to tell you about it!  I believe that God calls all Christians to join Him as He restores the brokenness in our world - including in creation.  These are some of the ways that farmers get to join in the work.  What is God calling you to do?

Sincerely,

A Farmer

P.S. If you want to know more about what you can do to help agriculture be a healing force instead of a harmful force, check out my post, "What You Can Do to Help a Farmer."

What You Can Do to Help a Farmer

I've been thinking lately about what the average non-farmer can do to positively influence the agriculture industry.

We all want agriculture to be a force for good in the world.  We want farmers to heal the planet, have financial and economic stability, and produce highly nutritious food.  And why not?  Those are fantastic goals!

But what can the average non-farmer do to help farmers along as they pursue those goals?

Honestly, I’m not totally sure.  But I have a few ideas.


1) Make sure your local farmers know that you are in their corner.  

Some farmers produce food for local markets and some produce food for export.  We all need to know that our community supports our efforts.  For our mental health, we need to not feel like the perpetual bad guy.  So, if you see a problem, or don't understand something, instead of getting angry and attacking the farmer, ask questions and do what you can to learn about the situation.  When we feel that consumers trust us, we can focus on doing what we know is right, rather than either defending ourselves or giving in to practices we know aren’t best.

Working with cattle is dangerous enough. 
Farmers don't want to be under attack from consumers, too.

2) Lobby the government.  

When you hear that the provincial or federal government is passing laws or making trade deals that are bad news for farmers, let your representatives know that our farmers need government to stand by them now, rather than to give them subsidies later.  And remember, Canada's dairy quota system isn't a government subsidy.  Our dairy farmers have taken a governmental beating in the last few years, so let's support them and their brilliant system that keeps them off welfare.
Lobbying doesn't have to be complicated.  Just send a letter or email to your local representative whenever you see the need.

3) Buy what you want, but don't force your purchasing habits on others.  

For example, if you want to keep buying organic, that’s okay.  Organic isn’t necessarily the best option all the time, but the demand for it does force us to seek out production methods that we might not otherwise consider.  Or if you want to buy food straight from a farmer you trust, there are ways to do that, whether it’s at farmer’s markets or on-farm stores, or even just by contacting the farmer.  There are a number of farmers who enjoy these types of direct sales and this can be another thing that draws farmers to look at their practices in a different way.  Just remember: we all have free choice and live in a free market society.  Don't make one sector the villain just because of your personal beliefs.  That doesn't help anyone, especially the farmers (refer to point 1).

4) Choose a strategic career or area of study.  

Something young people can do to support farmers is to study agriculture, soil science, plant biology, ecology, environmental conservation, or other related disciplines in college and university.  They can be the people that do the research to encourage farmers to move away from destructive practices.  I heard from a few different scientists at a conference I recently attended and the information from them is always invaluable.

5) Pray for farmers.  

Ask the Lord to grant us wisdom, strength, and courage as we try new things and as we face ridicule and discouragement from others in our attempts to find ways to produce food, sustain our families economically, and heal the land.

Do you have any other ideas?  Let me know in the comments section!

How to Talk to a Farmer in a Difficult Season

Yesterday was Sunday and I was at church.  I'm beginning to dread church.  Well, not church itself, but the conversations afterwards.  It seems like all anyone can think to ask the farmers is, "How's harvest coming?"  It's that question I dread and I'm not alone.  Yesterday a friend told me that if her husband hadn't been harvesting, he'd have skipped church anyway, just to avoid the questions.

In an average or good year a question like that isn't so bad.  It's a normal question in a farming community and farmers ask it of each other.  But in the difficult years and seasons, questions like that make us want to just walk away from conversation.

The problem isn't just that we hear the same questions or comments over and over again.  It's that we don't have the emotional capacity to keep answering the question.

This year has been rough.  In fact, the past three years have been rough in my neck of the woods, with wet planting and harvest seasons causing farmers to leave fields without crops or with unharvested crops.  This year has been even worse because haying season was also ridiculously wet, which made it almost impossible to get decent feed put up.  And let's not get into all of the trade deals and politics and environmental and animal rights activism that has targeted farmers in recent months and years.

One of the storms that rained on my hay this summer.

The farmers in my community are tired and discouraged.  We just want to get our crops harvested so we can get finished with this year and try again next year, but the rain and snow just won't stop.  I'm willing to bet that a lot of farmers are getting awfully close to having some mental health issues if this keeps up much longer.  I know I've sure been a lot grumpier than usual.

We get that our friends and acquaintances care and want to know how things are going, but having to repeat things like, "We haven't started yet.  It's been too wet.  Things aren't looking good." over and over again makes the burden just that much heavier.  We don't want to talk about it anymore.

So, if you're talking to a farmer who is having a rough harvest this fall, please consider the following advice:

Avoid

• asking how harvest is going.  Only close friends, family, and neighbours get to ask that on a need-to-know basis, and not too often.  
• offering to help if you've never worked on a farm before.  We feel bad refusing your help, but it only adds to our stress in a difficult season if we have to train someone new and then worry about your safety and the safety of our equipment in the hands of greenhorn.
• commenting on how tough the year or season has been.  We know.  We've heard it over and over and over and over again until it feels like we will implode under the weight of it.  If we need to hear it again, we'll talk about it with other farmers who really understand.

Instead, try

• asking if we've heard anything interesting on the radio lately.  Some farmers might listen to podcasts or audio books, but in general, the radio is a safe bet.
• asking if we're planning to attend any conferences or farm shows in the winter.  Those are always exciting events that we look forward to, and it helps us take our minds off the present difficulties.
• offering to babysit or take over some other task.  This will free all members of the farm family to get the farming done.  If the farmer refuses, though, please accept that.  It might simply be to overwhelming to try to coordinate people and farmers already know who they can ask for the specific help they need.

I know it's tough to think outside the box of normal conversation starters, but in times like what we're experiencing here in north central Alberta, the farmers really need you to consider our mental well-being before launching into a conversation about the weather and harvest.