Download or read book Farms with a Future written by Rebecca Thistlethwaite and published by Chelsea Green Publishing. This book was released on 2012 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do you want to make your farm more dynamic, profitable, and-- above all-- sustainable? Thistlethwaite introduces readers to some of the country's most innovative farmers, in order to help you build a triple-bottom-line farming business focused on economic viability, social justice, and ecological soundness.
Download or read book Farming While Black written by Leah Penniman and published by Chelsea Green Publishing. This book was released on 2018 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Farming While Black is the first comprehensive "how to" guide for aspiring African-heritage growers to reclaim their dignity as agriculturists and for all farmers to understand the distinct, technical contributions of African-heritage people to sustainable agriculture. At Soul Fire Farm, author Leah Penniman co-created the Black and Latino Farmers Immersion (BLFI) program as a container for new farmers to share growing skills in a culturally relevant and supportive environment led by people of color. Farming While Black organizes and expands upon the curriculum of the BLFI to provide readers with a concise guide to all aspects of small-scale farming, from business planning to preserving the harvest. Throughout the chapters Penniman uplifts the wisdom of the African diasporic farmers and activists whose work informs the techniques described--from whole farm planning, soil fertility, seed selection, and agroecology, to using whole foods in culturally appropriate recipes, sharing stories of ancestors, and tools for healing from the trauma associated with slavery and economic exploitation on the land. Woven throughout the book is the story of Soul Fire Farm, a national leader in the food justice movement." --
Download or read book Farming for Our Future written by PETER H.. ROSENBERG LEHNER (NATHAN A.) and published by . This book was released on 2021-12-07 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Farming for Our Future examines the policies and legal reforms necessary to accelerate the adoption of practices that can make agriculture in the United States climate-neutral or better. These proven practices will also make our food system more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Agriculture's contribution to climate change is substantial--much more so than official figures suggest--and we will not be able to achieve our overall mitigation goals unless agricultural emissions sharply decline. Fortunately, farms and ranches can be a major part of the climate solution, while protecting biodiversity, strengthening rural communities, and improving the lives of the workers who cultivate our crops and rear our animals. The importance of agricultural climate solutions can not be underestimated; it is a critical element both in ensuring our food security and limiting climate change. This book provides essential solutions to address the greatest crises of our time.
Download or read book Freedom Farmers written by Monica M. White and published by UNC Press Books. This book was released on 2018-11-06 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In May 1967, internationally renowned activist Fannie Lou Hamer purchased forty acres of land in the Mississippi Delta, launching the Freedom Farms Cooperative (FFC). A community-based rural and economic development project, FFC would grow to over 600 acres, offering a means for local sharecroppers, tenant farmers, and domestic workers to pursue community wellness, self-reliance, and political resistance. Life on the cooperative farm presented an alternative to the second wave of northern migration by African Americans--an opportunity to stay in the South, live off the land, and create a healthy community based upon building an alternative food system as a cooperative and collective effort. Freedom Farmers expands the historical narrative of the black freedom struggle to embrace the work, roles, and contributions of southern Black farmers and the organizations they formed. Whereas existing scholarship generally views agriculture as a site of oppression and exploitation of black people, this book reveals agriculture as a site of resistance and provides a historical foundation that adds meaning and context to current conversations around the resurgence of food justice/sovereignty movements in urban spaces like Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, New York City, and New Orleans.
Download or read book Bet the Farm written by Beth Hoffman and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2021-10-05 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Eloquent and detailed...It's hard to have hope, but the organized observations and plans of Hoffman and people like her give me some. Read her book -- and listen." -- Jane Smiley, The Washington Post In her late 40s, Beth Hoffman decided to upend her comfortable life as a professor and journalist to move to her husband's family ranch in Iowa--all for the dream of becoming a farmer. There was just one problem: money. Half of America's two million farms made less than $300 in 2019, and many struggle just to stay afloat. Bet the Farm chronicles this struggle through Beth's eyes. She must contend with her father-in-law, who is reluctant to hand over control of the land. Growing oats is good for the environment but ends up being very bad for the wallet. And finding somewhere, in the midst of COVID-19, to slaughter grass finished beef is a nightmare. If Beth can't make it, how can farmers who confront racism, lack access to land, or don't have other jobs to fall back on hack it? Bet the Farm is a first-hand account of the perils of farming today and a personal exploration of more just and sustainable ways of producing food.
Download or read book Improving Data Collection and Measurement of Complex Farms written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-02-21 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: America's farms and farmers are integral to the U.S. economy and, more broadly, to the nation's social and cultural fabric. A healthy agricultural sector helps ensure a safe and reliable food supply, improves energy security, and contributes to employment and economic development, traditionally in small towns and rural areas where farming serves as a nexus for related sectors from farm machinery manufacturing to food processing. The agricultural sector also plays a role in the nation's overall economic growth by providing crucial raw inputs for the production of a wide range of goods and services, including many that generate substantial export value. If the agricultural sector is to be accurately understood and the policies that affect its functioning are to remain well informed, the statistical system's data collection programs must be periodically revisited to ensure they are keeping up with current realities. This report reviews current information and makes recommendations to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) and Economic Research Service (ERS) to help identify effective methods for collecting data and reporting information about American agriculture, given increased complexity and other changes in farm business structure in recent decades.
Download or read book The Future of Family Farms written by Teresa Opheim and published by University of Iowa Press. This book was released on 2016-09 with total page 153 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A monumental transfer of farmland is occurring in the United States. The average American farmer is fifty-eight years old, and the 40 percent of farmland owners who lease their land to others are even older: sixty-six on average. Five times as many farmers are over sixty-five as are under thirty-five. What will happen to this land? Who will own it? What if one child wants to farm but can't afford to buy out the nonfarming siblings? What if keeping the farm in the family means foregoing the significant profits that could be earned from selling it? These sometimes painful and divisive questions confront many farmers and farmland owners today. How they answer them will shape their families and the land for generations to come. The Farm Legacy Letters project, developed by the member-driven nonprofit Practical Farmers of Iowa, is designed to help farmers and farmland owners think about their farm’s future and talk about it with their families. An essential complement to handbooks on business succession, this book gathers the letters and stories of midwestern families about the land they cherish—how they acquired it, what they treasure most about it, and their hopes for its future. Some of the writers descend from families who have owned a particular patch of the earth since the 1800s, while others became farmland owners more recently—one as recently as 2015. Some are no longer farmland owners at all, because—after careful thought about what mattered most to them—they sold their land to the next generation of farmers. All of these writers hope that, by sharing their farmland legacies, they will encourage others to ponder and then write about the histories, accomplishments, challenges, and hopes for their farmland for the generations who come after they are gone.
Download or read book Farming on the Edge written by John Hart and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1991 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Farming on the Edge contains a story that needs repeating throughout our land. It is a reminder that cities cannot exist without country, that farmers, neglected by society, are in fact a living heritage as important to our development as schools, music and art, to be honored and treasured. . . . It is our responsibility to sustain life on our farms, supporting farmers and a way of life that has always been the foundation and basis of culture."--Paul Hawken, Smith & Hawken "A great book! Marin County has made a wonderful start in making the Bay Area greenbelt a reality."--Larry Orman, Executive Director, Greenbelt Alliance "An unusual glimpse into a community that has succeeded in preserving its agricultural heritage."--Ralph Grossi, President, American Farmland Trust
Download or read book Street Farm written by Michael Ableman and published by Chelsea Green Publishing. This book was released on 2016-08-17 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Street Farm is the inspirational account of residents in the notorious Low Track in Vancouver, British Columbia—one of the worst urban slums in North America—who joined together to create an urban farm as a means of addressing the chronic problems in their neighborhood. It is a story of recovery, of land and food, of people, and of the power of farming and nourishing others as a way to heal our world and ourselves. During the past seven years, Sole Food Street Farms—now North America’s largest urban farm project—has transformed acres of vacant and contaminated urban land into street farms that grow artisan-quality fruits and vegetables. By providing jobs, agricultural training, and inclusion in a community of farmers and food lovers, the Sole Food project has empowered dozens of individuals with limited resources who are managing addiction and chronic mental health problems. Sole Food’s mission is to encourage small farms in every urban neighborhood so that good food can be accessible to all, and to do so in a manner that allows everyone to participate in the process. In Street Farm, author-photographer-farmer Michael Ableman chronicles the challenges, growth, and success of this groundbreaking project and presents compelling portraits of the neighborhood residents-turned-farmers whose lives have been touched by it. Throughout, he also weaves his philosophy and insights about food and farming, as well as the fundamentals that are the underpinnings of success for both rural farms and urban farms. Street Farm will inspire individuals and communities everywhere by providing a clear vision for combining innovative farming methods with concrete social goals, all of which aim to create healthier and more resilient communities.
Download or read book Compact Farms written by Josh Volk and published by Storey Publishing. This book was released on 2017-02-07 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Small is beautiful, and these 15 real farm plans show that small-scale farmers can have big-time success. Compact Farms is an illustrated guide for anyone dreaming of starting, expanding, or perfecting a profitable farming enterprise on five acres or less. The farm plans explain how to harness an area’s water supply, orientation, and geography in order to maximize efficiency and productivity while minimizing effort. Profiles of well-known farmers such as Eliot Coleman and Jean-Martin Fortier show that farming on a small scale in any region, in both urban and rural settings, can provide enough income to turn the endeavor from hobby to career. These real-life plans and down-and-dirty advice will equip you with everything you need to actually realize your farm dreams.
Download or read book Farming for Us All written by Michael Mayerfeld Bell and published by Penn State Press. This book was released on 2010-11-01 with total page 314 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Farming for Us All gives us the opportunity to explore the possibilities for social, environmental, and economic change that practical, dialogic agriculture presents.
Download or read book Farms of Tomorrow Revisited written by Trauger Groh and published by SteinerBooks. This book was released on 1998-04 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This timely sequel to the popular inspirational blueprint for Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is set to guide this rapidly growing movement to the next stage of its development. The authors provide very practical examples and information that will be of service to growers and shareholders alike without losing sight of the heart and excitement that makes CSA central to the renewal of agriculture. Added to the material from the original edition are two new essays by Trauger Groh dealing with the economic, legal and spiritual questions surrounding the CSA movement, and the role of domestic animals on CSA farms, while Steven McFadden contributes several new pieces on the context and scope of community farms. New profiles of five farms are included, and the farm "biographies" from the 1990 first edition are reprinted and updated with reports on their present situations and lessons learned during the intervening years. Expanded appendices provide suggestions for starting CSA farms, look at the issues surrounding the acquisition and holding of land, illustrate sample farm prospects and budgets, and offer lengthy lists of resources and suggestions for additional reading.
Download or read book American Farms American Food written by John C. Hudson and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2016-08-16 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers a concise interpretation of how food and agriculture are connected. The chapters treat specific crops or livestock types from the point of view of both production and consumption, highlighting the changes that have taken place in both farming strategies and food preferences over the years.
Download or read book Start Your Farm The Authoritative Guide to Becoming a Sustainable 21st Century Farmer written by Ellen Polishuk and published by The Experiment, LLC. This book was released on 2018-09-10 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A totally modern, all-purpose handbook for today’s agricultural dreamers—covering the challenges and triumphs of launching any successful farm—from two leading lights in sustainable farming Do you dream of starting your own farm but wonder where to begin? Or do you already have a farm but wish to become more sustainable to compete in today’s market? Start Your Farm, the first comprehensive business guide of its kind, covers these essential questions and more: Why be a farmer in the 21st century? Do you have what it takes? What does sustainable really mean, and how can a small (as little as one acre) to midsize farm survive alongside commodity-scale agriculture? How do you access education, land, and other needs with limited capital? How can you reap an actual profit, including a return on land investment? How do you build connections with employees, colleagues, and customers? At the end of the day, how do you measure success? (Hint: Cash your lifestyle paycheck.) More than a practical guide, Start Your Farm is a hopeful call to action for anyone who aspires to grow wholesome, environmentally sustainable food for a living. Take it from Forrest Pritchard and Ellen Polishuk: Making this dream a reality is not for the faint of heart, but it’s well within reach—and there’s no greater satisfaction under the sun!
Download or read book Family Farming written by Marty Strange and published by Bison Books. This book was released on 1989 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Americans decry the decline of family farming but stand by helplessly as industrial farming takes over. The prevailing sentiment is that family farms should survive for important social, ethical, and economics reasons. But will they? Possibly not, if current policies are not altered, say Marty Strange. This timely book exposes the biases in American farm policies that irrationally encourage expansion—a bias evident in federal commodity programs, income tax provisions, and subsidized credit services. The farm financial crisis of the 1980s is a result of this trend toward bigness. As family farms are transformed, they become more specialized, more capital-intensive, and less resilient to the inherently unstable conditions in agriculture. Financial risks are therefore greater, and public assistance to expanding farms is more frequent and costly. Family Farming also exposes internal conflicts, particularly the conflict between the private interests of individual farmers and the public interest in family farming as a whole. It challenges the assumption that bigger is better, critiques the technological base of modern agriculture, and calls for farming practices that are ethical, economical, and ecologically sound. The alternative policies discussed in this book could yet save the family farm. And the ways and means of saving it are argued here with special urgency.
Download or read book The Farm Bill written by Daniel Imhoff and published by . This book was released on 2018-12-31 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Farm Bill is one of the most important pieces of legislation the American president signs. Negotiated every five to seven years, it has tremendous implications for food production, nutrition assistance, habitat conservation, international trade, and much more. Yet at nearly 1,000 pages, it is difficult to understand for policymakers, let alone citizens. In this primer, Dan Imhoff and Christina Badaracco translate all the "legalease" and political jargon into an accessible, graphics-rich 200 pages. Readers will learn the basic elements of the bill, its origins and history, and perhaps most importantly, the battles that will determine the direction of food policy in the coming years. The authors trace how the legislation has evolved, from its first incarnation during the Great Depression, to today, when America has become the world's leading agricultural powerhouse. They explain the three main components of the bill--farm subsidies, food stamps or SNAP, and conservation programs--as well as how crucial public policies are changing. As Congress ramps up debate about the next farm bill, we all need to understand the implications of their decisions. Will there be limits on subsidies to huge agribusinesses? Can we shift toward programs that reward sustainable farming practices? Will hungry kids get the help they need? These are questions that affect not only farmers, but everyone who eats. You have a stake in the answers. The Farm Bill is your guide.
Download or read book From the Farm to the Table written by Gary H. Holthaus and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2006-12-01 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As with other areas of human industry, it has been assumed that technological progress would improve all aspects of agriculture. Technology would increase both efficiency and yield, or so we thought. The directions taken by technology may have worked for a while, but the same technologies that give us an advantage also create disadvantages. It’s now a common story in rural America: pesticides, fertilizers, “big iron” combines, and other costly advancements may increase speed but also reduce efficiency, while farmers endure debt, dangerous working conditions, and long hours to pay for the technology. Land, livelihood, and lives are lost in an effort to keep up and break even. There is more to this story that affects both the food we eat and our provisions for the future. Too many Americans eat the food on their plates with little thought to its origin and in blind faith that government regulations will protect them from danger. While many Americans might have grown up in farming families, there are fewer family-owned farms with each passing generation. Americans are becoming disconnected from understanding the sources and content of their food. The farmers interviewed in From the Farm to the Table can help reestablish that connection. Gary Holthaus illuminates the state of American agriculture today, particularly the impact of globalization, through the stories of farmers who balance traditional practices with innovative methods to meet market demands. Holthaus demonstrates how the vitality of America’s communities is bound to the successes and failures of its farmers. In From the Farm to the Table, farmers explain how their lives and communities have changed as they work to create healthy soil, healthy animals, and healthy food in a context of often inappropriate federal policy, growing competition from abroad, public misconceptions regarding government subsidies, the dangers of environmental damage and genetically modified crops, and the myths of modern economics. Rather than predicting doom and despair for small American growers, Holthaus shows their hope and the practical solutions they utilize. As these farmers tell their stories, “organic” and “sustainable” farming become real and meaningful. As they share their work and their lives, they reveal how those concepts affect the food we eat and the land on which it’s grown, and how vital farming is to the American economy.
