Julio

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Today’s post is about Julio, the man with the most beautiful farm in the world, my good friend and co-founder of a model farm that will change the world.

The “Next Big Thing”: Bioregional Organic for international community and development

As you may know, food has been the main focus of my life now for some time. Improving the inefficiencies that exist has been a priority since my journey to Costa Rica one year ago. Tonight I had a moment unlike many others, a vision of what’s next and my role in it: a transitional role to a new market optimal.

First a brief overview, then the idea.
How conventional food systems work (I’ll use coffee for the example) is that farmers produce the crop, sell to a local intermediary who then arranges for it to be picked up, processed, and sold through various [anonymous] supply chains. Essentially, before the coffee is brought to a supermarket it is combined into some “least-common-denominator-quality” brown grind and then set into cans that can compete on lowest price (think big Maxwell House tin). The farmer gets almost nothing for his crop (while in exchange not much is expected of him) and is subject to the price variability of the free market, not to mention the mercy of nature on his plot. Unorganized producers selling to intermediaries is the worst, and has resulted in many small farmers going out of business to larger plantations. It’s simply too inefficient.

Fair Trade can be seen as a direct response to that. Its goals are to a) ensure a more constant price for farmers b) raise awareness through consumers about the product they buy, and c) encourage cooperative selling and investment among small farmers. On these scales it performs very well in providing a more just cup of coffee. Unfortunately it requires that farmers already be organized, which excludes most smallholders.

Organic production is another step up. It is certified for its a) gains to farm and crop biodiversity, b) soil health and sustainability, and c) minimized reliance on external inputs which are energy-intensive, unessential, and harm the environment. If a farmer is fair trade and organic, he gets a better price. In the US, an organic farmer is likely a happier one that sells locally. It’s also a beloved industry that has been growing 12-20% per year for its [perceived] benefits to food quality, freshness, health, and safety. Take a minute to look at these goals, until you see a farm system that is advantageous to the abomination of factory farming.

…if it’s feasible..

The Organic Development Paradox

There’s something happening in Latin America.

Somehow, our solutions for growth and trade and food have not worked for poor people.  The land is used by big foreign companies, to grow food to sell here in our supermarkets that are big and beautiful.  As plantation-factories grow bigger and more capital-intensive, there’s really not much advancement in wages for the workers!  And they’re still exposed to harsh chemicals and long daily hours of machete work.

Organic farming can be much better for farmers and the environment. Fundamentally, it denies the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and GM seeds.  What it means is that the mindset of the farmer is very different- rather than try to minimize the costs to produce as much as possible, it’s more about managing the land.  It’s more “labor intensive,” which means more skilled jobs that the family can help out with. And you can use “crop rotation,” which is just not planting the same thing every year.  The interesting part is that you can actually get a “higher yield” from this small-holder, labor-intensive, ecological agriculture.  The plants grow better when cultivated for health, beauty, and permanence surrounded by other plants of different types.  Foodfirst backgrounder on organic yields: sustainable-ag-can-feed-the-world

AND consumers are taking a liking to this more natural crop.