Goals Week - Reconnecting

The whole idea of a "Goals Week" on the blog comes from my own belief that there is a certain strength in the idea of a self-fulfilling prophecy.  If I tell myself, and others, that I expect to succeed in crossing the fine line and regaining enjoyment in farming at the Genuine Faux Farm, then I tend to believe I will be more likely to succeed in doing just that.

It's not magic.  It's not naive.  It's simply a calculated effort to figure out what might make us feel like we are successful and then remind ourselves of those goals as we work and make adjustments this year.  Also, if we remind ourselves that we are capable of succeeding, it will build our confidence and improve our stamina for a season that is going to have struggles.

Hey, they all do.

Connecting Production to Need

Ever since the Genuine Faux Farm was started (2004/5) we worked to serve a community of local customers by being their personal farmers.  We did what so many other small, diversified farms have done for years (and will continue to do - hopefully).  We worked hard and did our best to provide good, healthy food at a reasonable price in hopes that people would benefit from the food and the connection they got with the growers and the land.

Part of our motivation to do this came from our prior interest in gardening and growing good food for ourselves.  But, the bigger part of our motivation was the feeling that this area was under-served when it came to local foods.  With the excellent soil at the small farm we had moved to and our interest in growing, we felt we had the resources to try to be part of the solution.  There was a need and we felt we could fill some of that need.

In fact, we did our best to fill that role for more than fifteen years.

We still believe that need exists, even if the demand appeared to be faltering until the pandemic gave it a boost (and we hope that continues - the boost, not the pandemic).  However, our resources have been changing, which means we aren't in the position to fill that particular need anymore.

But, we still are called to fill needs in ways that we are able given our new realities.

New Connections from Old

From the very start, we decided that we would favor open-pollinated varieties of produce whenever it was feasible to do so.  We often favored heirloom varieties and usually sourced the seed for those varieties from Seed Savers.

The practical reason for favoring Seed Savers was that much of their seed was raised in our region, which means there is some regional adaptation that would favor our growing.  This is not to say we haven't had success from other quality seed houses such as High Mowing, Johnny's, Fedco and Territorial.  But, the first three are located in Maine and the fourth is in the Pacific Northwest.  I think it is fair to state that their growing needs do not match ours in Northeast Iowa.

The philosophical reason?  We believe that by growing heritage and open-pollinated varieties, we support seed diversity and we protect the ability of farmers to raise their own seed should they decide to do so.  Proprietary hybrid seeds limit farmer options and often put them at the mercy of larger seed producers.  And, of course, there is also the tendency of growers to all flock to the 'hottest' varieties.  When everyone grows the same thing, then everyone tends to lose it all when things go bad and there is too much of a good thing all at the same time when the season goes well.

This year, we are making a new connection for our farm based on the old connections that encouraged us to pursue open-pollinated and heritage seed.  We will be growing out Napoleon Sweet bell peppers, A&C Pickling cucumbers and Black Valentine green beans for Seed Savers in 2021.  These are all varieties we are familiar with and we know we can grow well at the Genuine Faux Farm.  

This is an exciting and energizing new option for us at our farm.  We are looking forward to the challenges that come with it and we see ourselves as filling a need with the resources we now have.  It really is a good thing when your values and your work align.

Connecting to a Specific Need

Even prior to the pandemic, Tammy and I were increasingly aware and concerned by the levels of food insecurity in our state and throughout the world.  In the past, we would donate left-over produce to the Northeast Iowa Food Bank after farmers' markets or CSA deliveries when a connection could be made.  While that's nice, we could see that there were a number of logistical issues that come from unplanned and haphazard fresh produce donations.

And, let's be honest.  While the produce was good quality, it was still the left-overs after people had selected what they wanted.  In fact, I've been thinking about this issue for many years, especially after I overheard a person at a farmers' market say, "Oh, they're those 'organic people,' their vegetables aren't for the likes of us..."

Say what?  Quality produce should be for everyone.  In fact, if we want to help people who are struggling, they may be the very people who need top quality, certified organic produce the most.

Then, I read a well-written blog (which I cannot find again - oops) by a single mother who qualifies for various helping programs.  She points out that there is a very good reason why many of these programs fail to encourage people who must eat on a shoestring to eat healthy foods.  The reason?  Many of these programs fail to put tasty, quality vegetables and fruits into the hands of their clients.  Over-ripe and bruised fruits or spinach that wouldn't sell if it were in a store because it is past prime are not good ways to make fans out of children or people who are already skeptical.

Here, eat this spinach, it's good for you.  Sorry it tastes like crap, but if you just find a way to earn a little more money you could buy the good stuff.  Honest, the premium stuff tastes good AND is good for you.  For now, just pick out the brown and slimy leaves and then go get a better job....

So, we have an opportunity.  That opportunity?  Grow out our broccoli crops, something else our farm is particularly good at, and contract with the food bank to bring fresh, organic vegetables to them when it is ripe and ready.  I apologize in advance to those who use the food bank's services that do not like broccoli.  But, maybe it's because they haven't gotten the good stuff?  Well, folks, you deserve the good stuff as much as anyone else and now we have an opportunity to bring some of it to you.

Still Connected to Community

The beauty of our CSA model was that we were able to serve as personal farmers for all sorts of wonderful people.  Many of them still buy eggs and poultry and veggies from us today.  They have given us support when we need it and have shown us grace when it was necessary.

The current trend is that many of our customers are less interested in receiving a subscription of produce on a weekly basis than they seemed to be in the past.  Feedback tells us that most people would prefer having some access to a few key items when they wanted it.  In particular, many pointed out that they relied the most on the eggs and poultry from our farm.

Rather than struggle mightily trying to continue to be what we once were, we are taking the steps to be excellent at what we can be in the future.  We proved to ourselves that we can continue with the poultry operation using the current model and we know that we can offer excess produce to people when we do have it and it will be appreciated.  It won't be ten to twelve different things every week.  It will be one and rarely two items at any given time - and sometimes none.

You know when tomato season comes, we'll have more than we can eat and we can offer heirloom tomatoes to our customers and to the food bank.  We'll grow Wapsi Peach and Jaune Flamme snack tomatoes and Tammy really won't be able to eat every one of them!  And we know the green beans will come in batches that far outstrip our own need.  

It's going to be a good year with an exciting new approach for the Genuine Faux Farm.  We're looking forward to it.