A Fresh Look at Agriculture

The other night I went to a viewing of the movie, Fresh. Our county sustainability group paid for the screening and there were about 65 people at the show. Best I could tell, I was the only supporter of modern agriculture in the audience.

The film's creator, Ana Sofia Joanes, is an exceptional documentary film maker. The film follows three main characters, each a champion of sustainable agriculture practices. It is, without question, a very compelling piece.

As expected, however, the underlying theme was anti-modern agriculture. It talked about the use of antibiotics necessitated by animal confinement and high-energy nutrition. It denigrated the use of agricultural chemicals perpetuated by a monoculture of grains that allowed the growth of weeds and harmful insects. It quoted research that claims organic agriculture can feed the world and there were undercover videos of animal-handling atrocities.

Interestingly, the typical depiction of animals in modern agricultural settings was very acceptable to me: The animals were clean, their eyes were clear and their ears perked up. No snotty noses. Of course to a non-ag person this still represented a prison of sorts.

Long story short, I'm an advocate of local sustainable agriculture programs. I prefer the produce at our local farmer's market. If I could, I'd buy beef locally as well, but not because it's safer, or because of how it's raised. I'd buy it because I was raised to believe that the best-tasting beef is from the cattle across one's own yard.

Which is exactly what we had every Sunday.

Where I deviate from some supporters of local sustainable agriculture is that I am entirely convinced that we cannot feed a growing world population without modern agriculture and its related technologies.

The local farmers who don't sell their wares at farmers market need our support, too.