"Open space."
"Less pavement."
I am in an strategic planning session. A group of very smart people from as many different backgrounds and occupations as there are people gather in this big room and discuss what can be done to improve the outlook for fruit and vegetable growers in the Mid-Atlantic. For today's purposes, Mid-Atlantic ranges from New York to Virginia. This small subset of the bigger group, some 60 of them, talks about how do fruit and vegetable farmers and the surrounding industry improve the environment and benefit from their positive environmental impact.
I've been at this work of talking with and helping farmers of every sort for almost 20 years now.
Something feels different about this time. Somehow, all this attention being paid to where food comes from has people ready to listen to farmers and buy from and find ways to connect with the land and these stewards of the land.
In fact, in this little group, farmers are heros. They are feeding us and saving the earth, going at that carbon reduction that will slow global warming and make a commitment to a future that none of us will enjoy, but our children and grandchildren may.
Food miles. That's an idea thrown out from a farmer. Let's get people talking about and understanding food miles and our carbon footprint. What does it all mean? How far does your food travel. What does that mean? Somehow, we all know, that closer is better. That food from a farmer who is keeping that field across the street productive and alive is better than a field across the street from someone else far, far away. It's a more complicated issue than that. But, at least people are paying attention now to where their food comes from.
This is a good time to be alive and digging this.
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