Look ahead, not back
John Schlageck
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Some proponents of organic, labor-intensive farming contend we should go back to the days when every family owned 40 acres, farmed with hay burners (horses) and applied no chemicals.
You remember the good old days when people were self sufficient, owned a couple milk cows, tilled a garden and butchered 40 or 50 fryers each spring.
Some of these zealots propose each nation should also strive for self sufficiency. No imports. No exports.
Should such events occur, you may want to prepare yourself for milking each morning instead of enjoying that piping hot mug of coffee. Forget about sliced bananas on your bowl of corn flakes. These goodies we import into this country, and a lot more, won’t be on the kitchen table any more. Count on it.
God forbid we adopt these policies. If we cave in to those who spread hysteria about unsafe food and giant farms, be prepared to do without the services of all the non-agricultural types. This includes carpenters, painters, nurses, doctors, teachers, writers, musicians, etc. In case you haven’t heard, labor-intensive farming doesn’t permit time for many other pursuits. Neither does production agriculture.
Farmers run non-stop, from early morning to late at night, planting and harvesting crops, tilling the soil, feeding and caring for livestock. Their work seldom ends. It’s foolish to assume everyone would want to leave his or her jobs in the city to move to the farm. It ain’t all “Green Acres” out there folks.
And who’s to say all these people from other professions would become productive farmers?
A city friend remarked to me that he does not want to be a farmer. He contends he couldn’t feed himself, much less the rest of the country or world.
“I’d starve to death and so would the rest of us,” he told me. “If you want to till the soil, go for it. But that doesn’t mean the rest of us want to, thank you.”
If we return to a system where everyone farms, brace yourself for even more uncertain economic times. Manual labor and animal power could spell the return of food shortages and famine. A nation of farmers translates to a nation even more vulnerable to depressions and hunger. A drought, plague of insects or disease could trigger such tragedies because we’d have no chemicals to fight them with.
Today’s mechanized farmer provides us with the safest, most abundant food in the world. He works closely with crop consultants when applying herbicides, insecticides and fertilizers. He has cut his uses significantly in recent years - up to 50 percent in some cases.
Farmers work years to leave a legacy of beneficial soil practices. Most of the farmers I know would give up farming rather than ruin their land. They are proud of the crops they grow and the land they work.
Farmers continue to work to conserve water, plug abandoned wells, watch their grassland grazing and continue to adopt sound techniques that will ensure preservation of the land. Urban residents should also look at new ways to protect the environment where they live.
There’s an old saying that rings true today. “You can never go home.” Yes, we can never return to the good old days. Besides, were they really all that good?
• John Schlageck is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas. Born and raised on a diversified farm in northwestern Kansas, his writing reflects a lifetime of experience, knowledge and passion.
create (anonymous) says...
Consider for a moment one Donald Mathews of El Campo, Texas. He's not a farmer, but...
"...under a federal agriculture program approved by Congress, his 18-acre suburban lot receives about $1,300 in annual "direct payments," because years ago the land was used to grow rice."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/...
January 4, 2009 at 9:13 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ZaneRokklyn (anonymous) says...
Um, I don't know how far back you're looking, Mr. Schlageck, but organic farming was the norm until the 1950s, non-mechanized farming was the norm until the 1920s, and globalization of agriculture didn't begin until the 1970s. Do you really expect us to believe that there were no "carpenters, painters, nurses, doctors, teachers, writers, musicians, etc." for 99.999% of human history, because they were all milking cows? Last I knew, most of the famous figures in all of those fields lived and died before mechanized agriculture took hold.
Your argument makes as much sense as arguing that life would be impossible or unbearable without the Segway scooter. Thanks anyway!
January 4, 2009 at 9:32 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
alfalfa (anonymous) says...
I didn't know anyone was advocating going back to farming 40 acres. I am a farmer, but I look on with alot of dismay at some of the things happening in agriculture, namely the mega farms. I am not comfortable at all with 5000 milk cows on one operation, or 10000 hogs for alot of reasons, yet I don't advocate going back to everyone milking one cow and having 2 sows. I would think that one thing our economic crisis should be proving is that big business is not always the most efficient, sometimes the books just get cooked to make it look that way. I used to think what made America great was the independant farmer, storekeeper, etc, those people who benefited directly from the profits of their labor and reinvested into their businesses and communities. When everyone works for "ACME INC" and all businesses are controlled by one or two giant corporations, we will be about the same as the old USSR we fought so long and hard to defeat.
January 4, 2009 at 11:13 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Shep (anonymous) says...
Mr. Schlageck's article might pass for tongue-in-cheek humor on a late night comedy show. It's hard to take him seriously.
The author is unwilling or unable to name these mysterious "zealouts" and proponents of organic farming who have so upset his apple cart. Methinks he has perhaps created these gremlins from his own imagination. He shadow boxes well, flailing the air with his punches at targets that are not there, except as "straw man" foes.
I am a 6th generation farmer who has been farming organically for over three decades. I have attended numerous farm conferences and organic seminars. I am well read on the subject, and I have yet to read or hear from anyone who thinks "everyone" (including city folks) should go back to farming 40 acres, horses, and no imports or exports.
Mr. Schlageck has exaggerated and extrapolated himself into fantasy land. His mocking shot at historical models of self-sufficiency is curious. Apparently, that is not something he sees as a virtue. I wonder what his grandparents would think of his insolence? He vaguely refers to unnamed "policies" that are threatening to usher in more food shortages and another depression - as if organic farming was being legislated and taking over the country like a terrorist plot, bent on the destruction of food and the economy. What gives?
I know plenty of organic farmers who are raising good food, more efficiently on small acreage (even some with horses), providing more jobs in their communities, and making 50-100 times the income per acre than industrial farming, and who have real convictions about safe food, and good stewardship of the land.
Like Mr. Schlageck, I too was raised on a diversified farm in rural Kansas, and my writing also reflects a lifetime of experience, knowledge, and passion. I suggest Mr. Schlageck document his sources or debate his points using facts instead of hysteria based propaganda. His conclusions are absurd, laughable, and reflect profound ignorance. Hopefully, no one in their right mind is paying this man for his opinions. If so, they should ask for their money back.
January 5, 2009 at 10:40 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )