Why False Organic Claims Matter

If the product is raised on pasture, locally, by farmers I know, fed feed from a local mill and sold at my farmer's market, what difference does it make if the organic claim is legitimate or not?

A lot.

There are a few key factors involved in this somewhat loaded question and I'd be lying if I didn't admit that this particular entry is inspired by some serious (and repeated) false organic claims made by La Ferme Springbrook, based very near to where I grew up.  The Times & Transcript (Moncton, NB daily newspaper) recently featured a piece on the farm, with pictures of their chickens including a claim of certified organic status and even a statement from Paul, the owner, suggesting that he was organic before organic was even a 'thing'. 
I've never been to the farm, and when I looked them up online, I was struck by how similar many of their pictures look to ours.  They've got meat birds out on pasture in movable pens similar to ours, and layer hens running around in the grass.  They've got lambs with long tails and some very pretty landscape shots.  It looks like a great little farm, trying to do all the right things.
It has come to my attention before, that at their stand at Dieppe Farmers Market, there are visible organic claims and nothing to substantiate it.  So when I was at a meeting this summer and happened to be sitting across from Paul, I took the opportunity to ask him about his organic claims.  He gave me a quick well-heeled explanation of how they do things 'naturally' and that it really is organic, but they don't have the certificate. 
"So where do you source your grain and feed?"
"Miramichi Feeds.  It's a good mill."
"And would contain a fair bit of soybean and corn I suspect, right?"
"Yes."
"So those would be GMO, right Paul?"
"Well, I don't know about that."
"Ok, well, let me confirm for you, that unless it's organic feed, which I know Miramichi Feeds don't make, that it is with certainty, GMO feed."
stutter, briefly, " It is good, local feed, I have bought from them for years and years. I've never had a problem."
I am still unsure as to whether he really didn't understand the concept of GMO's or whether he was dodging a reality here, but either way, I feel the need to clear up just exactly why this deception doesn't just hurt the organic community, it hurts agriculture and in particular the buy local movement.

1)the cost of grain is without a doubt, the #1 prohibitive reason for people considering livestock, organic or not.  Organic grain continues to be considerably more expensive than conventional and those who make the effort, pay the big bucks and suffer the challenges of supply, sourcing and paperwork have earned the extra level of credibility.  They have taken the extra step in ensuring that the nutrition they are providing for their livestock is confidently, GMO-FREE!  Be it for ethical reasons, scientific reasons, marketing reasons or personal reasons, they have chosen to bear the burden of the extra cost and likely hope to recoup some of that cost by marketing their product as legitimately, truthfully, certified organic. 

2)Consumers want to do what's best for them and their families.  If they are making the effort to come to the farmer's market they are already a step ahead, a demographic concerned about the sources of their food and wanting to support a good, local product.  They WANT to believe that friendly looking face behind the counter and to take that trust for granted, by deliberately telling mis-truths hurts every other farmer out there.  I don't have a problem with local, not-organic food.  If you can trust your farmer and you are happy with the product you're buying, at the price you're paying, then please enjoy and consider those producers each time you cook whatever it is you've purchased.  I WANT people to have their own farmer, just like they lay claim to a doctor or a hairdresser.  I WANT there to be a trust between those who grow our food and those who eat it.  But I'm struggling with creating a trust over a product whose label doesn't live up to reality.

3)Not everyone who learns the truth will care.  Many won't.  But some will.  And those who will, will understandably have a difficult time trusting another farmer again.  Be they organic or not.  And not just the farmer, but logo, the standard, the label, ruining it not just for another organic farmer at that market, but for organic food across the country.  CFIA is supposed to be the body responsible for investigating false claims, but with spotty (read:none in most cases) provincial regulations and fewer and fewer resources, it's simply not something that gets done as often as we'd all like.  So it comes down to organic inspectors (who only inspect organic farms) and the individual consumer. It simply isn't a fair way to treat people who are your bread and butter.

There is growing interest over "GMO-free feeds and products", which is to say they are not organic, so don't necessarily hold the other standards of animal welfare, environmental impact, etc. etc., but THAT is a fair claim in my eyes. Once again, the farmer is making the extra effort and paying the extra money to source a product outside of the conventional, GMO system and although they may not be certified, it doesn't matter, because THEY'RE NOT CLAIMING TO BE.


If Paul's ignorance about the significance of GMO's is truly based on just that; ignorance, then I guess it is up to his customers to demand a change.  As far as I am concerned, in this day of national organic standards and a public who is generally aware of what that means, it is absolutely, undoubtedly unacceptable to be feeding a prohibited substance as part of the daily diet of livestock and unabashedly use the certified organic claim. 

In one way, I hate being the bearer of news like this, because if even one of Paul's happy customers read this and actually care, then I've just been the carrier of the confusion and mistrust.  I just laid the trail of evidence which leads to someone potentially turning their back on local agriculture at all, and returning to the anonymous grocery store shelves.  Or maybe I've just cleared up some questions and caused someone to think, "Hmmm...well, I guess next time I'll ask for an up to date organic certificate, or ask that farmer about what she feeds her animals and won't take a vague, pretty sounding explanation in response."
Probably not, but if there's even a small chance, then it was worthwhile potentially alienating someone with this entry.  This thing wouldn't be much fun for anyone if I couldn't be honest, would it?

I am getting really excited about the ACORN conference coming up.  If you're at all interested in anything organic, you should really check out the program, which is jam-packed with awesomeness.  Although it is guaranteed to be a busy time for Mark and I, I always look forward to that feeling I come away with of assuredness in what we're doing and confidence that this is the right track.  And soooo many ideas.   And for the first time we're bringing the kids to much of it and I'm kind of excited for their first hotel experience (it helps that it has a pool).  
 http://acornconference.org/

I had a bit of trouble today for the first time, with pregnancy toxemia in a ewe, who I don't think is going to make it, despite a very pricey visit from the vet on a holiday Remembrance Day.  It has given me pause and is probably the unfortunate wake up I needed to re-prioritize a few things.  Lambing is due to start in the next week or two and will likely hold off until Mark and I have been trucked down to Ch'town for our week-long National Outstanding Young Farmers event.  I have been losing sleep over this single fact for a few nights now, but at this point there is very little I can do, so I'll just cross my fingers and hope they all go overdue and wait until December.

I hope this finds you anticipating a long, snowy winter, full of cozy warm drinks and perhaps pretty seed magazines to browse.  Ah, sounds like heaven right now.

-Sally

Winter Clean Up

 

It's the time of year when things start to wrap up and we begin to look at the upcoming season of meetings and try to make life easier for those who might be doing chores while we're gone.  Today we shipped Toot and Puddle off and a couple lambs.  It surprised me how sentimental I got about those crazy pigs and Lucy had a particularly hard time, despite having talked about it for a while now.  Just last week we were talking about how much better the bacon will be as we filled the wheelbarrow with windfall apples from the orchard.  I guess it sort of really hits home when you're going through the stress of loading them after such a stress-free summer of mud and treats.  It makes me yearn for a time when butchering your own livestock was not a lost skill or considered a time-eating, money-waster and something we all did without thinking about it. 

 We've also been trying to decide what to do with a couple other 'extras' we have around the farm these days.  There's Rhubarb, who needs to go.  Somewhere.  She's still got her horns, which is a real hassle for a lot of people but were a good lesson for us to not put it off next time.  She should grow up to be a great milker, but she's a bit away from that yet.  She's sure come a long way from this picture though! haha.

Finally, we've got Duncan to attend to.  He's our old ram who needs to go.  Again, somewhere.  Likely to Truro sale, but we've got to find someone heading to the sale on a Thursday and send him along as it's hard to justify a trip across for one old looking ram.  He just had one great last season with the ewes, but he looks to be in less-than-ideal condition and I'm certain he's blind. He also loses his cud often (likely a contributing factor to his condition), but he's been a friendly favorite, and effective ram, so I hate to just do him in (or get Mark to do him in).

The roosters have been doing their own winter clean up by fighting to a bloody mess for flock supremacy.  The two main dudes seem to have agreed upon having their own respective harems and trot around with their ladies behind them, staying away from the other group.  Bev, Roosti is holding his own after his first rough day, and I think he's one of the head coop bosses now, so you can rest easy. :)


Ah, the joys of owning livestock.
In more renewing news, the lambs are due to start coming any day and there are a few ewes looking especially...er...large.  :)

I am feeling overwhelmed with a few things outside of the farm these days, so am REALLY looking forward to December, which is thus far, promising to be a slow, low-key time of family, fun and traditions.  I have already turned down one request for my musical assistance, so that's a nice first I'm proud of.  We'll see how long I can hold out.

I've got something to say about the current trend in agriculture to deal with the symptom and not the problem, but not today.  Perhaps in December.  haha. 

I was sent this quotation the other day and I think it is really truly beautiful.  Here's hoping you think the same:
 "May the coyotes be struck blind at you chicken pens, may your earth worms be well fed, may your cows be well bred, may your house be a home, and may your children rise up and call you blessed." Joel Salatin

That Joel Salatin is a clever dude.

-Sally 

Skinamarink-ee-dink-ee-MINK!

Well, we had our first encounter with a mink at the farm.  And it has what is possibly the best ending that could be. (Well, not for the mink, but...)
Anyway, we were gone to NB for Thanksgiving and left poor Wendell in charge of the chickens. I had just moved the sheep, so they had fresh pasture.  And the cow and calf were together on their pasture so no one needed to do anything with them.  The pigs had grain and the meat birds were all in the freezer, so all that was left was to let out the layers and shut them in at night.  We were gone for two nights.
We have two pens of chickens right now, since our last batch of layers was too young and getting beat up by the older girls, so they've got the executive suite with Roosti (who we figured would kill our other roosters, or at least get aggresive, if we put them together).  Anyway, until they get a little bigger, they're not let out yet.
Apparently at noon on Sunday Wendell went into the coop to get the eggs and checked on the young ones' feed, to discover a bunch of beat up hens and a bloody rooster.  He initially assumed that Roosti must have gotten aggressive with the hens and had beat them up, so he took Roosti out and put him in his own little cage for the time being.
Later on, Mark's sister and brother-in-law were down visiting and Wendell mentioned it to them.  They said that there's no way the rooster would have turned on the hens suddenly, so Wendell took Jamie out to prove it.  As they approached the chicken house door, who was standing there to greet them but little Billy Mink, apparently unafraid.  After a tussel involving a 2x4 and a couple shovels Mr. Mink was no more and Roosti returned to his pen, heralded as the saviour of the four remaining, terrified hens.

  

me and a survivor.

On a somewhat unrelated note, our garbage collector left a hand-written note that he does not accept chicken carcasses in the compost bin.
No word on mink carasses.

 

buckwheat being swathed.

We are waiting on dry weather to finish up harvest this year.  There is buckwheat laying in swaths waiting to be picked up and soybeans standing the field waiting to dry up.  Other than that our lives have been somewhat taken over by the upcoming season of meetings and conferences.  We are speaking at a couple different workshops at the ACORN Conference (in Ch'town this year) and are working on our stuff for the Outstanding Young Farmers event following that.  I'm also organizing the roller derby awards gala this year and the open house which will hopefully inspire our next round of fresh meaters.  I've also taken on the tall order of trying to instill some sense of direction to the nursery at church, but it's proving trickier than I imagined, with a tiny space and a wide variety of ages.  Anyway, a nice on-going challenge.

My part-time job is nearly finished up for the season as well, which will mean more time at home and less running around. I say part-time, but it was really only two mornings a week, yet it's amazing how two little mornings away from the house can lead to such chaos for the whole week.  My food purchasing, preparing and enjoying went downhill pretty solidly and I think we all noticed it.  I don't think I realized how many meals I make that require longer cooking or prep times. Besides chicken, I can hardly remember the last roast I've cooked.  And 'tis definitely the season for warm roasts and stews with these chilly days!
And speaking of roast chicken- we're sold out!  It was a great year of learning new skills and testing the market in some new ways, but overall, another good one.  We're really excited for next year!  This is a picture of the freezer we use when we do our urban drop-offs.  Cute eh? :)

I realize I haven't posted any pictures in quite a while, so here's a brief picture catch-up of a few highlights from the last part of our summer shenanigans.

 

We finally made it to Panmure Island one Sunday (down off the southeastern corner of PEI) and it was beautiful!  Here we are enjoying lunch at the lighthouse with the beautiful draft horses in the background (who did not like raisins much to the Thayne`s chagrin). (And yes, as a livestock producer I see the danger of strange kids feeding strange foods to strange animals.  But I was actually curious too.)

 

Hard to believe this was one month ago!

 On one our trips `home`to NB, our last stop before heading back was a visit with Uncle Grant and Aunt Diane, who were kind enough to load up everyone with some sugary ice cream cones.  You can see they were a big hit and a much approved `bed lunch`choice.  :)

 This is what I call a real merry maid.

 

 This is probably one of the nicest shots I have of the three of them.  Of course it had to be in the barn, on the chicken wagon, water tank behind.  But I think their smiles trump the background anyway.

 

And of course it wouldn`t be summer without my trip to the Expo Kent for the sheep show.  Here is a picture of Mom receiving the trophy for her get-of-sire class, with her handsome assistants, Dad and grandson, Isaac.  

Happy Organic Week!

It is becoming a too common trend for me to start these blogs with some elaborate excuse for my lengthy absence, but I'm giving that up in favour of actual content that you care about, or maybe you don't, but at least you don't have to put up with my guilt.
Just in case you didn't know, this past week was Organic Week in Canada!  We celebrated a few different ways:

First, we rented land RIGHT in the heart of potato country, surrounded by Cavendish Farms.  This isn't the first time we've been asked  by land owners who want their fields farmed organically, but it's the first time it's been close enough to consider and although it needs a little tender lovin' care, will be a great, reasonable expansion of what we're currently doing.  The landowner is very keen as well and was open to our ideas.  Mark has it cut down and ready for turn over very soon.

Second, we attended the PEI Certified Organic Producers CoOp annual Harvest Meal.  It was good. Well, they ran out of our chicken, and chocolate cake before we got any, and it didn't say it was our chicken anywhere, and the photo slideshow showed only non-organic livestock in a barn, but it was good.  The entertainment was Patrick Ledwell, a local comedian who was hilarious!  My face hurt, I laughed so much.  So funny.

Third, we killed the last of our chickens.  Thanks (in HUGE part) to a family of very resourceful kids up the road, we have refined our processing line to a point where we feel pretty confident that next year we won't have to take any to the abbatoir.  We also got in a shipment of the shrink wrap bags in time for the latest killing and what a difference!  They look like store-bought little treasures, only better because they're pasture-raised and organic-fed! haha!

Fourth, I made some friggin amazing pumpkin pies with pumpkin from Jen and Derek's Farm (where, conveniently I work two mornings a week).  This actually has nothing to do with organic week, but I feel the need to brag about the best pies I've ever made.  It's the first time I used a proper 'pie pumpkin', rather than an ol' jack-o-lantern and I can't believe the difference. There was no water to drain off and it roasted up like a dream!  Combined with some super fresh, rich raw whipped cream, and I'm in heaven.

Lastly, our new batch of chickens celebrated organic week by kicking it in gear and started laying, which is good, since last year's ladies seem to be taking a bit of a vacation.  So for all you egg customers who have been frustrated with our hit and miss egg availability this summer, COME BACK!  They're small right now, but in the next couple months, will be ramping up into insanity.

In other news, Mark is lined up at the start line ready to tackle our first-ever crop of buckwheat that is laid out ready for pick up, as well as the beans which apparently just need "a couple nice days".  Finally the weeds have started to die in my own garden so it's that wonderful time of year when the fruits of my (planting only) labour is revealed! haha.  I lost my tomatoes pretty early on to blight, so I am excited to see my big squash yield, as if that somehow makes up for a lack of tomatoes.  I think next year I'll stick to a couple bean plants, some corn, a row of potatoes and a lot of carrots, squash and peppers.  Working for Jen this summer caused a real downturn in my enthusiasm for my own comparatively pathetic garden compared to the organized Eden she maintains.  Thankfully, a bonus to working there is unlimited veggies as well, so I've been able to fuel my newfound love of kale all season!  That's right! Kale! Whodathunkit!?

The growing season might be winding down, but that just means that meeting season is winding up.  Mark and I are busy trying to meet the various deadlines that come with the national Outstanding Young Farmers event in November.  It's probably for the best that there are deadlines requiring us to work on it now, otherwise, we'd just keep pushing it aside in favour of other speaking engagements that will be here first.  Namely, the ACORN Conference is here on PEI in November as well, and is taking full advantage of our 'knowledge' (and time) ha!!

On top of that, our roller derby bouting season might be over, but tis the season for training Fresh Meat and planning awards galas, so there's a bit of that going on as well.

Abby, I will do my best to post some photos for you this week. (Miss you, but LOVIN' that blog!)  Maybe I'll see if Lucy wants to contribute to the blog with her own entry.  I'm sure she has some interesting perspectives for what goes on around here.  Or at least, a good ol' knock knock joke, which never grow old, if you're to believe the frequency of them around here.

Hope this finds you sleeping with the windows open and heavy quilts.

-Sally

Studying studies

It had been a while since the media folks had any reason to stir up the organic vs. conventional 'issue' so I figured it was only a matter of time and they never let me down!  Yesterday, a study out of Stanford University (which must make it super awesome right?) came out, actually in favour of organics, but the media managed to swing it quite nicely the other way with some rather exaggerated headlines that grabbed the requisite attention of both sides.  The 'meta-study' (which is just a study of other studies (I'll take chicken gutting over studying other studies anyday!)) was first picked up by the New York Times so if you want to search it, that's one of the first sources of the article.

Of course, you knew I'd have a response.  And I have a variety of responses, but my biggest beef with the whole thing is the word 'healthier', which is what is emphasized because the study looked specifically at the nutrient content and deemed it to not be superior in organic food.  So that's the headline that was grabbed. "Organics is not healthier than conventionally grown food." 

This is my response:

If there were ever terms more subjective than “healthier” and “better”, I’m yet to run into them.  I will not question the merit of the recent meta-study out of Stanford to look at the nutritional benefits of organic food.  I will question the funding for all of the studies that they studied, since they didn’t actually look at organic food themselves and more accurately compiled the results of over 200 other studies.  How many of those studies were funded by multi-national chemical companies and how many fairly evaluated ones supporting organics could not receive funding to publish due to the content?   

But let’s assume for a minute that the world is a naive and beautiful utopia where money doesn’t influence any of our information or how we receive it.  Let’s assume that all of the studies that the researchers studied, were fair, objective and correct.

As a consumer of (nearly exclusively) organic foods, health is the only reason I buy it.  My physical health is better because my food choices are reflected in how I treat myself and my family and given that I have prioritized my spending on organics, I am more likely to be active and encourage activity with my partner and children.  My mental health is better when I know the steak I’m eating has lived on pasture, rather than a feedlot, or that my chicken has actually seen the light of day.  My emotional health is better when I don’t have to wonder how the pesticides in my celery will affect my children.  My reproductive health is better when I don’t have to wonder if the GMO’s in my breakfast cereal will affect me, like they are affecting herds of dairy cattle fed high-GMO diets.  The health of my environment is better when I know my organic farmer is using a longer and more varied crop rotation, letting the soil organisms do their work and building a soil that is better able to withstand drought or flood.   The health of my rivers is better when the fish aren’t washing up on shore as a result of a rainfall, full of freshly sprayed chemicals or fertilizer.   The health of my economy is better when I am buying meat from my local organic farmer who grows their own (non-GMO) grain and spends my money in our community, not exporting it to monopolies who could care less about our region. 

So, is organic healthier? You decide.

Re-Run

I was recently reminded of a post I wrote around this time last year about agricultural fairs (those endangered but important events!) and when I re-read it, decided I'd post it again. Quite a cheater move really, but it's still relevant and it made me quite excited to go home this week to 'my fair'. 
Enjoy, second-time 'round.

 http://barnyardorganics.blogspot.ca/2011/08/why-you-should-go-to-county.html

What I Did On my Summer Vacation

ha!  Vacation is a funny funny word.
I've got a mouth full of canker sores which I haven't had since highschool and Dr. Google tells me the cause is stress and exhaustion.  The weather this summer has been perfect for a vacation but I can't say I'm  going to be sad to see the trees turn colour and a chilly wind roll in.  That's one of the things I love about living in the Maritimes and a temperate climate- the seasons are just the right length.

Anyway, overall it HAS been a fantastic summer thus far and it's not over.  I just finally made a spare minute to throw some pictures on here for one of my very favorite nieces who happens to be on a bit of an adventure in Korea and sent specific instructions to update this.

I've been busy with a pile of things, but I will admit that my blog time has probably been eaten up by my rekindled love of fiction. I've always loved reading and I've always had a book on the go, but I decided this summer to catch up on many of the page-turning bestsellers I had skipped over the past few years.  It has been to the detriment of my 'spare time' and has caused me to spend many an evening neglecting more important duties (like chatting with my husband, catching up on farm bookkeeping, etc. to his great annoyance on both accounts), with my face in a book.  It has been rather fun to get lost in a great book again.  It's made me consider the purchase of a Kobo as well so I am looking for feedback from anyone who owns one.

I have been also preparing for a few speaking engagements this summer which are always fun.  My next one is at ACORN's Beginning Farmer Symposium at Mount Allison, August 20th.  I am looking forward to that one more than most.  I actually have a topic and it should be interesting-I'm speaking on organic livestock.  (I will leave out the part where I am considering getting out of sheep due to my hate of marketing/selling.)
Finally, my brain at the moment is totally preoccupied with preparing our church's Vacation Bible School. I feel like it is that thing that looms over a summer and life can only begin after it is over and 'out of the way'.  I am actually looking forward to it and have a GREAT bunch of kid registered, so I know it'll be a ball, but I will be glad when I can empty out that drawer in my brain.

So here's a few pictures from the last few weeks.

 It's possible I posted this one before, since it was so long ago (and I'm too lazy right now to check), but it's from the Sheep Classic in Truro and it's of my Dad showing one of thier entries (a handsome North Country Cheviot).  The kids thoroughly enjoyed their first (and surely not last!!) livestock auction.

 Dug up an old SlipNSlide from the 80s.  Super fun!

 This is a great shot of me and my siblings and parents.  Not a bad looking bunch I'd say!

This one cracks me up because I think she looks like one of those french canadian characters that used to be on 22 Minutes.  That toque is hilarious to me.

Anyway, in farm related news-it's been a pretty good season, if not too dry.  The hay crop was dissapointing and we're prayin on a good second cut, although it's pretty well stopped growing at this point.  Not sure what the plan is there.  Sell sheep quick?  The straw, on the other hand is great!  Mark (along with the other Mark) got the winter wheat cut last weekend and finished it up yesterday, with the straw all baled up today.  It was a great crop and one of the cleanest fields we've had in years.  Fall-seeded crops are an organic farmers dream (at least relatively speaking-although our spring wheat looks good too).

The soybeans are looking the healthiest they've ever done (dark dark green and lush), but are a bit weedier than we'd hoped.  We finally got the new cultivator (if not too late for this year), so next year we've got HIGH hopes for weed control.

I'm increasingly stunned at GMO's and am at a bit of a loss to explain why the dairy industry isn't more concerned about GMO alfalfa.  Given the evidence showing increased problems in reproduction of dairy herds fed high-GMO diets and the fact that alfalfa makes up a pretty hefty part of many dairy cows diets...it seems a no-brainer to me for someone to be setting off alarm bells.  Why do we want a GMO alfalfa anyway?!  Are people spraying alfalfa for something I'm not aware of?  The last I heard, diversity in forage-based diets is actually a good thing, but let's just keep pouring Round Up into our soil and see how long we can survive.  I want to come back as an earwig because I think those damn things will survive any apocolypse.  yuck.

It almost rained here tonight and I felt like a plant standing in the yard, guiding Mark in the tractor with the wagon full of straw into the barn.  The few drops were a teaser and I could almost feel my skin and the earth opening up, waiting, hoping, panting for more. 

Hope this finds you eating tomatoes from the garden that are so good they make you vow to never bother buying tomatoes in the winter again.

-Sally