A few days ago I wrote about my feelings of failure surrounding being forced to purchase conventional grain to feed the birds, bunnies and piggies on the farm. What surprised me was the folks who shared my exact feelings and contacted me privately to tell me so.
They also said they feel very bullied by local grain producers and did not want to come forward to mention anything in public, so they would not severe ties with them, since the grain was the only supply currently available for most. That really disturbed me. Why should those of us who want to farm naturally, without pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and any other chemical inputs, have to hide? There is something definitely wrong with that entire scenario.
Natural farming was the only way farming was done not that long ago.
Because farmers have been led by the big chemical companies, they are now hooked into the chemical methods of farming and believe 1. that the chemicals are harmless and 2. that there is no other profitable way. No matter what anyone tells them or what they read, their minds are not going to be easily swayed, despite tons of evidence against chemicals and their terrible effects on the world. And many of them are sick! But, us poor small minority farmers who really do want to have natural food, can not speak up or hard feelings arise. That is just plain wrong.
On the internet for every argument, there is enough information to support both sides of the question. But, I think we need to look even further. Why is it that entire countries have banned Glyphosate? Surely because it is harmless? Why is it the people living in those countries do not suffer a lot of the health issues found in North America? Is that because conventional, which NOW means with chemicals, farming is so great?
I have given my critters the last of my natural grain and in a different bowl, the sprayed grain. They will NOT eat the sprayed grains if they have a choice. I have seen it right here on my own farm. I do not want to either, nor eat the eggs from my chickens or the meat from the pigs or birds or rabbits if they are fed chemically treated grain. Do I respect the right to farm of my neighbours? Yes and NO! I want to help them, to educate them, to teach them and show them why chemicals are killers and why birth defects are so high in areas where they are used and why Alberta has one of the highest incidences of Multiple Sclerosis in the world. (http://www.health.alberta.ca/documents/The-Way-Forward-MS-Partnership.pdf), but they do not want to listen.
So, maybe I have failed. Maybe not. Maybe I should keep on plugging a little longer, like a fish swimming upstream, because behind the scenes there are followers, those who also do not want anything to do with chemical farming, but cannot come out in the open and say so in case they might offend their farmer neighbours who still believe that is the way, the only way, to farm. Maybe I need to concentrate on that group and find ways to expand the safety of discussing our needs and not concern myself with the other farmers. I wonder if the natural farmers will come out in the open then. Canada has a ban on using Glyphosate in public areas (http://www.pan-uk.org/attachments/507_Glyphosate%20restrictions%20Dec%202015.pdf) though it is not much enforced, but many countries have banned it entirely. Let's come forward and make a stand against chemical farming in the open. We do not need to hide. Right?
They also said they feel very bullied by local grain producers and did not want to come forward to mention anything in public, so they would not severe ties with them, since the grain was the only supply currently available for most. That really disturbed me. Why should those of us who want to farm naturally, without pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and any other chemical inputs, have to hide? There is something definitely wrong with that entire scenario.
Natural farming was the only way farming was done not that long ago.
Because farmers have been led by the big chemical companies, they are now hooked into the chemical methods of farming and believe 1. that the chemicals are harmless and 2. that there is no other profitable way. No matter what anyone tells them or what they read, their minds are not going to be easily swayed, despite tons of evidence against chemicals and their terrible effects on the world. And many of them are sick! But, us poor small minority farmers who really do want to have natural food, can not speak up or hard feelings arise. That is just plain wrong.
On the internet for every argument, there is enough information to support both sides of the question. But, I think we need to look even further. Why is it that entire countries have banned Glyphosate? Surely because it is harmless? Why is it the people living in those countries do not suffer a lot of the health issues found in North America? Is that because conventional, which NOW means with chemicals, farming is so great?
I have given my critters the last of my natural grain and in a different bowl, the sprayed grain. They will NOT eat the sprayed grains if they have a choice. I have seen it right here on my own farm. I do not want to either, nor eat the eggs from my chickens or the meat from the pigs or birds or rabbits if they are fed chemically treated grain. Do I respect the right to farm of my neighbours? Yes and NO! I want to help them, to educate them, to teach them and show them why chemicals are killers and why birth defects are so high in areas where they are used and why Alberta has one of the highest incidences of Multiple Sclerosis in the world. (http://www.health.alberta.ca/documents/The-Way-Forward-MS-Partnership.pdf), but they do not want to listen.
So, maybe I have failed. Maybe not. Maybe I should keep on plugging a little longer, like a fish swimming upstream, because behind the scenes there are followers, those who also do not want anything to do with chemical farming, but cannot come out in the open and say so in case they might offend their farmer neighbours who still believe that is the way, the only way, to farm. Maybe I need to concentrate on that group and find ways to expand the safety of discussing our needs and not concern myself with the other farmers. I wonder if the natural farmers will come out in the open then. Canada has a ban on using Glyphosate in public areas (http://www.pan-uk.org/attachments/507_Glyphosate%20restrictions%20Dec%202015.pdf) though it is not much enforced, but many countries have banned it entirely. Let's come forward and make a stand against chemical farming in the open. We do not need to hide. Right?
For me, and now I realize for others in this area, there is little point in raising livestock on chemically treated grain since we do not want to eat the meat that is contaminated with the chemicals.
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