Small Farms

AngelaOston
AngelaOston Posts: 249 ✭✭✭

Good to see the news Recognize in small way the importance of small farms. And the unsustainably of corporate agriculture.

https://apple.news/AZPj5BxRGQd2hDHoRITN3mQ

Comments

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @AngelaOston It makes a lot more sense top me to see the return of small farms.

    I live what they call the rustbelt. I remember when the roadI grew up on were all small farms. One farmer did very well but we all mad a living, added to the family produce and just enjoyed a more laid back lifestyle.

    My cousin has a huge farm, commercial and it pains me to look at tehr soil. Its dead from chemicals and I hate to think what it has done to the environment

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    My father in law said years ago that there would come a day when large farms would collapse & small ones would once again become a thing. Some of this he based on past observance, & some of it having to do with sizes of farm equipment going big or small depending on what was in demand at the time & the general environment (political, environmental, etc.) of certain periods of time.

    We wondered about his thoughts. They made sense, but everything we kept seeing was the big guys (and foreign investors who were interested only in the money end of farming) just getting larger & larger and the prices of land getting unwieldy overpriced. It is currently still not appropriately priced for purchase by young nor wanna-be farmers...just big investors, big farmers & the rich city dwellers.

    You know that the big investors who gobble land up won't go down without a fight.

  • Tave
    Tave Posts: 952 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Most of my family had to get a job in the city to feed their family as huge commercial farmers took over. The ones that stayed work two jobs, the one that pays and farming. Every time I visit them, I appreciate the hard work they do and how they have stuck it out.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Small farmers do an amazing job and thier value should be realized. IOts a difficult job dealing with mother nature and out culture but its also rewarding.

    Growing up on top of a hill surrounded by 5 farmers we had a great childhood. All but one farmer had to hold a second job But we always had food on the table and seemed to value ther small things

    @LaurieLovesLearning I agree I do believe ther small farms will re- emerge but its will still take a little more time and maybe happen is stages

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Denise Grant But there is one more factor at play though, in the transfer of land from giant corporate to small (like, truly small, not a few sections being "small" as it is now), that didn't exist before.

    Some developers have snatched up good farmland to either develop into mini communities/small acreages with large yards (restrictions in place through zoning or local bylaws for those types of places), or sell to city folks who want to escape the city or have recreational property only. Some retiring farmers are also selling their yards off as acreages often for the same price or way more than the quarter, taking a piece out of a whole quarter (most farmers don't want to have the hassle of a piece out of their farmland). These acreages are the same price as an average place in the city. Some people will buy a full quarter for a place for a house (if it is sold as a whole quarter) & not care to use the land.

    We know city people who bought a whole (and beautiful) quarter solely for hunting purposes. They have absolutely no intention of ever living there nor using it for anything else. They laughed when we asked, even though to us as country people, it is a very legitimate question.

    We have neighbors who bought 25 acres. They do not care to use their property in any way but to play on their noisy toys. That was their purpose for buying it. It is a huge waste, imo. What we would do with a whole 25 acres...it would over double what we have at our disposal.

    This practice is wasting a lot of good land and forever taking it out of commission. There are many people at this point who want to escape living in the city, but are willing to commute in but don't care to utilize the land in a productive way. There are also those that are now able to work from home remotely, so there is potential for this wasteful trend to grow even larger.

    It is frustrating and sad.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning We have the same issues here. Much of the land was bought up for housing developments, to wait to get the biggest price possible or just for people who like to own land - for what ever reason. Its sits abandoned with no improvements or purpose.

    We have about 8 people in our area that just buy up land, thousands of acres. When you go looking for land its not available or overpriced. One recently died and all that land went up to the highest bidder. One area was most of a small town.

    The neighbors across ther land have 115 acres. Thye use it for 4 wheelers, hunting and cutting trees. Thyetook out all tehr heirloom apple trees. Its very sad.

    Wouldn't it be nice if they taught (real) farming and farm values in school and colleges?

    I did work landscaping for a city couple that came here, tore down an old farm and built a mansion. I do give them credit - They rent out the land, baord horse and joined a farm related program to improve the property. They are actually quite fun to watch

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Denise Grant Yes, that would be nice, but you know who holds the purse strings.

  • water2world
    water2world Posts: 1,177 ✭✭✭✭

    My hubby's grandfather started out with a small farm, and they would buy another etc. There is now over 400 acres and each one is still referred to as the _________ farm (the people it was purchased from) He had 2 daughters and the land was divided between them. No chemicals used---mainly used for cattle and rotating hay fields--almost a 100 year old farm. I love going out there, and not seeing anything but cows! lol We want to make sure that the land stays there, not sold off to developers, and stays chemical free!