Tommy Martino, Bob Quinn and Liz Carlisle (left) on the Grain by Grain book tour 2019.
As an organic farmer at home in Montana of over 30 years, I see firsthand the bounty created from tending to the land in an organic manner. Butterflies, bees, ladybugs, birds, and countless other creatures are drawn to the land tended organically. Those who work on the soil every day can feel its soft, supple nature underneath their boots. The palpable feeling of health and vitality pouring out of an organic farm is unmatched. That said, there is also science to stand behind the claim that organic is a more sustainable, climate-smart approach to our food system, pieced together in the beautiful Roadmap to an Organic California: Benefits Report.
Iu2019ve traveled all over the world promoting organic agriculture, and just returned from Europe, where a model of smart agriculture is played out across their entire food system. Organic and biodynamic agriculture is now found on 16 percent of Europeu2019s total farmland, and California is on its way toward a similar share of organic acreage through CCOFu2019s Roadmap to an Organic California: Policy Report.
You see, itu2019s easy enough to say, u201cHereu2019s why organic agriculture makes a difference,u201d but itu2019s quite another to make vetted suggestions to Californiau2019s state legislature. Given how much demand there is for organic product, and how many households are purchasing organic every time they go shopping (89 percent), California is wise to start adopting policies that support its organic farmers and farmland so that more of the organic food eaten in California is produced in the state rather than being supplied by exports. We are moving toward solutions, together. I have deep ties to California since I spent seven years of my life here, mostly attending graduate school at the University of California, Davis and have longed appreciated the role CCOF has played in the organic movement in California and throughout the nation.
I encourage you to make a donation to the CCOF Foundation in support of the next phase of the Roadmap to an Organic California project. The Benefits Report and Policy Report have been created, and now it is time to coalesce and use organic as a solution to fight climate chaos, restore economic stability to our farms and rural areas, reduce chemical pollution in our nation, and release the grip of chronic disease on our people. Thank you for investing in a stable future for those who grow and eat the food born out of this beautiful California soil.
Your friend,
Big Sandy, Montana
All donations to the CCOF Foundation are tax-deductible. The CCOF Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization (tax ID #30-0106255).