In partnership with Lori Cochran-Dougall, Director of Westport Farmers' Market, we are photographing local farmers and farms to introduce them to our community.
Until very recently in human history it would have been easy to answer the question, “Who grows my food?” Land and sea have always been tightly tied to communities and the daily ritual of eating. Farm-to-table was built into the community; it wasn’t a movement! Only the last handful of decades have severed that natural bond between food and community so severely that we no longer personally know who grows what we eat. At one point, our communities could at least rely on their local grocer to know the farmers and providers, but even this is no longer true. There are many miles, businesses, carriers, processors between a farmer and a consumer.
This detachment is tough on both farmers and consumers. Many small, midsize, and even large scale farms have disappeared in these last decades, victims to demand for greater efficiencies and cheaper inputs. The cost of larger operations and the challenges associated with getting into mainstream stores has squeezed them out of the convenient places many families shop. The difficulty accessing farms and farmers more directly has also adversely affected us as consumers; in our lifetime we have seen rising health epidemics, chronic disease, allergies, and behavioral issues related to nutrition. Environmentally, we’ve seen the decline of biodiversity, increased pollution and chemicals in our waterways, and the degradation of our natural resources.
The interrelationship of earth, food, and community is a necessary component to a healthy human experience. Local food movements are working hard to rebuild the links between us and the food we eat. We are incredibly lucky that small- to medium-sized farms still exist around us in Connecticut. They work hard to survive in a system that, largely speaking, does not support them. Small farms are subject to the same local and global price pressures as larger agricultural enterprises built and scaled for efficiencies. Fortunately, evidence has shown if we know our farmers we are more likely to support them and keep them thriving. It also means we are choosing healthier food, a stronger community, and a more resilient earth.
Local food is fresher and harvested at its peak ripeness - often making it more nutrient dense. Local food tastes better and can also be safer. It goes through fewer hands before it reaches us with fewer chances of contamination. It is more reliable. When the national and international food supply chains are disrupted, be it pandemic or trade dispute, we can still go to our local farm stand.
When you know who grows your food, you have access to information. You can find out how your food was grown. How was the chicken raised? What methods did they use to control pests? What do they do to restore the land and protect the waterways? Many local farmers are proactive about stewarding their land and caring for their animals in restorative ecologically friendly ways and they are forthright about sharing that information locally as models to promote the practices and to ensure our trust.
With great respect, we introduce you to a few farms and individuals we have met so far. They are a diverse group and we are delighted to know them. They are scientists, ecologists, and environmentalists. They are leaders in their professions. They are CEOs, CFOs, COOs. They are problem-solvers. They are creatives, care-takers, collaborators, educators, students, entrepreneurs. They span generations. Whether they were born here, or arrived here, Connecticut is their home.
To know who grows your food is to restore what once was, and should be again, a meaningful community between farmers and the people at our tables.
We look forward to formally launching #WhoGrowsYourFood in Spring 2021. Until then, stay healthy and shop local!
Farms:
Copps Island Oysters, Norm Bloom and Son, Norwalk
Dirt Road Farm, Weston
Fort Hill Farm, New Milford
Gilbertie's Organics, Easton
Lost Ruby Farm, Norfolk
Ox Hollow Farm, Woodbury
Riverbank Farm, Roxbury
Sankow's Beaver Brook Farm, Lyme
Sport Hill Farm, Easton
The Hickories, Ridgefield
Wells Hill Farm, Weston
Woodland Farm, South Glastonbury