The Farmer Feeds Us All

On this show, we discussed the current state of our food system--the marriage between capitalism and agriculture, aka the Agricultural Industrial Complex.  Even though the majority of farms are small family farms, the majority of acreage devoted to farming is primarily corporately owned farms.  And most family farms are either under contract to big ag to buy their products or they bring their produce to farmers markets and supplement their meager income with additional employment.  When crops are raised for profit, cash crops, such as corn, wheat and soy, dominate; corporate farms put local farmers out of business or into specialty farmer's markets; crops are raised with chemicals and land is overused; crops are shipped thousands of miles to processors and then thousands more to market; and we all lose.  We have lost our connections to the earth, to growing, harvesting and eating the harvest.

Frank Bessinger joined Albert and Barbara in the studio to talk about an alternative--growing your own as resistance to the Agricultural Industrial Complex.  Thomas Square Edible Park is a unique community garden.  All members of the community are welcomed to join in the operation, from building raised beds, planning what to plant and when, tending the beds, harvesting, and using the harvest to create delicious edibles.  And to recreate this edible commons anywhere and everywhere.  To be the farmers that feed us all.