Farming in America is funny business. We have all heard the statistics time and again - it is about 60 years old, it is mostly male, it is mostly white. And it is big - be it fruit or vegetables, cattle ranches or dairies, corn or soy. It is many, many acres. It is machines. In fact, our statistics tell us that here in the USA it is often a 60 year old white man, sitting in a big machine, on a big huge farm. However, if we broaden our scope just a bit - that is, to the whole world, outside of this All American Bubble - things begin to look different. They start to look female. They often look smaller scale.
There is often even some form of community. While in the United States men dominate the farming sector, globally, women produce about half of the food. Most of this food - most of the food that feeds the world - is produced on small farms. Small-scale farmers, herders and fisherfolk are the providers, the foundation of the community.
As small-scale farmers we are up against a lot here in the United States. This is to say nothing of how incredibly hard the work is - I am confident saying that there is literal blood, sweat, and tears on all of the small farms I've been on (and hopefully a pre-emptive tetanus shot). There are long hours, exhausting days, sunburns and low pay. On the bootstrap operations that don't come fully funded from a lucrative past life, we are forced to be the thinkers and doers. The growers, the marketers, the bankers, the bookkeepers. We are the social media wizards, the photographers, the troubleshooters and the brainstormers. We hoe the row and we peddle our wares. It is work.
But aside from how tangibly hard this work is, the challenge also comes from the fact that this work bucks against most clear and easy pathways set up in this American system. It challenges the rules and regulations and forces reconsideration and reconstruction - and (sigh) usually reregulation. But what makes it so very challenging is that it 1) seeks to change the cultural norms and expectations around food in this country and 2) strives for success in a system where there is little institutional support for us, and tons of institutional support for them. The big guys.
There is often even some form of community. While in the United States men dominate the farming sector, globally, women produce about half of the food. Most of this food - most of the food that feeds the world - is produced on small farms. Small-scale farmers, herders and fisherfolk are the providers, the foundation of the community.
As small-scale farmers we are up against a lot here in the United States. This is to say nothing of how incredibly hard the work is - I am confident saying that there is literal blood, sweat, and tears on all of the small farms I've been on (and hopefully a pre-emptive tetanus shot). There are long hours, exhausting days, sunburns and low pay. On the bootstrap operations that don't come fully funded from a lucrative past life, we are forced to be the thinkers and doers. The growers, the marketers, the bankers, the bookkeepers. We are the social media wizards, the photographers, the troubleshooters and the brainstormers. We hoe the row and we peddle our wares. It is work.
But aside from how tangibly hard this work is, the challenge also comes from the fact that this work bucks against most clear and easy pathways set up in this American system. It challenges the rules and regulations and forces reconsideration and reconstruction - and (sigh) usually reregulation. But what makes it so very challenging is that it 1) seeks to change the cultural norms and expectations around food in this country and 2) strives for success in a system where there is little institutional support for us, and tons of institutional support for them. The big guys.
So, in true grassroots form, small-scale farmers across this country have found ways to create our own networks of support. The CSA model - if the government wont give us support come rain or shine....or in case of sleet or hail and utter crop failure....then perhaps our community will. The growth of food hubs and locally focused distribution chains - if the institutions need bulk, we'll find a way to combine forces and give them bulk. And for me, this year, the Nancy Skall Scholarship.
Recently I was awarded the inaugural scholarship for farm improvements from a fund that was created by the family of the late Nancy Skall, a woman farmer who had been kicking *** in Healdsburg for several decades. The funds provided will afford me 25 more yards of compost this year than I can normally budget for, helping continue the transition of my farm into a no-till operation, a process I began two years ago. For more on no-till at Red H Farm, check out The How and Why of No-Till at Red H Farm.
The development of this scholarship - and in my opinion, the awarding of the inaugural funds to a woman farmer essentially from a woman farmer - is a clear and tangible way that the Skall family is helping to create a farming community in Sonoma County. Now, I don't know what Nancy's opinions were or if she gave a hoot about strengthening the position of women or not - I don't presume to know her perspective and do not mean for my thoughts to be taken as hers. In fact, I doubt my being a woman was not even a factor in the award process - I'm quite certain it had more to do with the timing of my application and the worthiness of my project. However, to me, the development of a community-based resource that will help young or new farmers find success is huge. The awarding of this first scholarship to a female farmer is meaningful. It will take a long time and a lot of hard work to change the cultural norms around food in this country.
It will take just as much work to develop systems of institutional support for these new farmers and these new norms. But slowly and surely we are changing the statistics. We look to our colleagues around the globe and we find ways to build community-based systems of support. We are farmers helping farmers, and in this case we are women holding up women. We will continue to face adversity, but our chance of success will be stronger if we do it together.
-Caiti Hachmyer, Red H Farm
Recently I was awarded the inaugural scholarship for farm improvements from a fund that was created by the family of the late Nancy Skall, a woman farmer who had been kicking *** in Healdsburg for several decades. The funds provided will afford me 25 more yards of compost this year than I can normally budget for, helping continue the transition of my farm into a no-till operation, a process I began two years ago. For more on no-till at Red H Farm, check out The How and Why of No-Till at Red H Farm.
The development of this scholarship - and in my opinion, the awarding of the inaugural funds to a woman farmer essentially from a woman farmer - is a clear and tangible way that the Skall family is helping to create a farming community in Sonoma County. Now, I don't know what Nancy's opinions were or if she gave a hoot about strengthening the position of women or not - I don't presume to know her perspective and do not mean for my thoughts to be taken as hers. In fact, I doubt my being a woman was not even a factor in the award process - I'm quite certain it had more to do with the timing of my application and the worthiness of my project. However, to me, the development of a community-based resource that will help young or new farmers find success is huge. The awarding of this first scholarship to a female farmer is meaningful. It will take a long time and a lot of hard work to change the cultural norms around food in this country.
It will take just as much work to develop systems of institutional support for these new farmers and these new norms. But slowly and surely we are changing the statistics. We look to our colleagues around the globe and we find ways to build community-based systems of support. We are farmers helping farmers, and in this case we are women holding up women. We will continue to face adversity, but our chance of success will be stronger if we do it together.
-Caiti Hachmyer, Red H Farm
RSS Feed
