By Brian Fassett on May 1, 2009

35 Years on a Small Organic Farm

A slice of Edible Heaven

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Nowhere is this truer than on a small organic farm deep in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas. On Earth Day last week I craved a reality check, so I called my friends Rusty and Sue Nuffer, who have spent most of the past four decades with their hands deep in the dirt. When I called, Sue picked up the phone out in the packing shed. She was laughing watching Rusty across the field hefting irrigation pipes high against a tree to scare out any sleeping rodents about to be drowned. Sue had been planting rows of tomatoes in a new soil cocktail they’ve cooked up.  Each year they grow an ever-changing and wide variety of exotic gourmet vegetables.  It’s been over ten years since my last visit to their little slice of edible heaven, yet the picture they painted is just as I remembered it. Meanwhile the business of organic farming has changed dramatically over the years, with many of those changes – good and bad – coming recently and rapidly on the wings of technology. Sue and Rusty took some time out from under the spring sun to talk to me about the life of a small organic farmer in 2009.

“When we first started out, our goal was just self-sufficiency,” Rusty said. “We wanted to get out of the cities, live close to the earth.” Like so many others, they were burned-out on the 60’s and wanted to get off the grid, disengage from the system. “We were disgusted trying to do social change.” The back-to-land movement was happening all over the country and Rusty and Sue, from Michigan and Ohio, were part of a group that found cheap land in the remote Ozarks. “I paid ten grand for an old 80-acre hill farm that had been unused for years.” Rusty said.  The beautiful spot is surrounded by State Forest and to this day is still 20 miles from the nearest blacktop. Sue and her family were on another farm a few miles away. “We all became expert in gardening because we were growing our own food. It was instinctual,” said Sue, “we didn’t think to grow to sell. Everything was barter.”

Over the next decade, some of the homesteaders drifted back to the ‘burbs, leaving devoted earthies like Rusty and Sue to hang in for the long haul. Famous back-to-land pioneers Helen and Scott Nearing once told them the two simple rules to succeed: Find good land and find a good partner. You can’t do it alone. Each previously married with kids, Rusty and Sue were a perfect match. “We’re so fortunate we work together so well.” And work they do: for much of the year, it’s sun up to sundown, 6 or 7 days a week. “Bug infestation on the potatoes. No rain. Broken machine. It’s always something and you never get ahead of it.” Sue adds: “It’s like having 10,000 children and they all want attention.”

Making a Living

Their first taste of wide distribution came with Sue’s blueberries. “At that time, if you had an organic product, you could sell it – as long as you could get it shipped,” she said.  It was the early 80’s and organic distribution was still a quaint affair. “We organized 20 farms to sell together so we could get a truck to stop through Arkansas from one of the big national buyers.”

Then sometime in the late 80’s things began to change. The big boys saw mega green in their futures and started moving into organics. These corporate growers pushed for weak certification laws.  In California, for example, a farmer at the time only needed to stop spraying chemicals for a single year in order to be certified organic. “One year we’re getting $18 for a box of green peppers. The next year they’re coming out of California at $6.” Said Rusty. “The box alone cost us a dollar! All the big growers were selling below cost to knock out all us small producers.” The little fish continued to struggle under the price-war tsunami throughout the nineties. Many went belly up. “That’s when we started going to the farmers market.”

By the late nineties, organics had tipped into the mainstream. A feedback loop escalated between public interest and business, with Whole Foods leading the way. The company was on a Pac-Man roll, gobbling up Mom&Pop stores across the country. But many of the most devoted customers missed the intimacy and transparency of the old ways. Farmers Markets sprang up across the country so people could shake their farmer’s hand.  And for growers like Rusty and Sue, Farmers Markets became popular just in time.  Most Saturdays for about ten years they got up at 3am and drove two hours to the River Market in Little Rock. “It was like a rock and roll tour. Except our curtain went up at sunrise,” says Rusty. “We kicked butt down there.”  They hired extra help to deal with the crowds three and four deep at their long tables. “We had colors of things no one had ever seen. Five colors of carrots. People would take pictures” The duo became famous as ‘the potato people’ because of their exotic spuds – one year they grew 28 varieties. Some of the top restaurants in the area became devoted customers. They both speak fondly of their years at the market, and it’s about much more than money. “The people were just fantastic. We met so many good friends there. It was so satisfying to get the personal reaction when people love your food.”

But eventually the brutal schedule took a toll and Rusty and Sue had to fold up the tables and tent for good. “We weren’t much good on sundays, and we can’t afford to be dragging. We started burning out.”

Virtual Farmers Markets

In the handful of years since giving up the Farmer’s Markets, Rusty and Sue have had to innovate once again to reach customers. “We’re at a real disadvantage being so remote,” says Sue, “we’ve never been able to ship directly to customer and we can’t do the CSA thing.” Community Supported Agriculture is a big trend now. Customers are like shareholders. Paying a flat annual fee entitles them to drop by their farm each week and pick up a box of whatever happens to be harvesting. Despite their popularity, they aren’t ideal for consumer choice.

Enter the internet. Until last month, Armstead Mountain Farm was tethered to the brave new world by a raggedy dial-up connection that worked sporadically at best. They used it mostly to email their grown kids scattered across the globe. The Nuffers are not exactly techies anyway. Until a few years ago, Rusty loved plowing with his prized draft horses, even as a tractor sat nearby. They’d rather have the glow of sun on their faces than a flickering screen. But even this down-to-earth duo has found salvation in the web. They splurged on a satellite dish last month and it’s opened up a new world for their business.

Several years ago, a farmer and techno geek in Athens, Georgia put up a community site called locallygrown.net to help farmers and customers connect. In a short time it has grown to over serve 800 growers in 50 networks nationwide, with many more coming online this season. Last year Rusty and Sue gave it a try and helped create their local network. They also joined two other smaller online networks.  “We love it. It’s perfect for us,” says Sue. “On Sunday night we post what we’ll have for the week.  Buyers log on Monday through Wednesday and place orders.” Late in the week, they drive their orders to drop-off points manned by volunteers. “We pay a 10% fee to help maintain the network, but compared to the cost of gas and renting the booth at the real Farmer’s Market, it’s a bargain.” One familiar casualty of this virtual market, however, is the personal touch. “We really do miss the one-on-one connection. We get feedback through the volunteers, but it’s not the same as seeing the smile on their face.” Rusty and Sue feel better knowing that their carbon footprint has been drastically reduced now that they’re not driving all the way to Little Rock.

Staying Alive

I asked if it’s easier or harder to get into this game now compared to when they started.  Rusty said, “It was actually much more possible in the early days because things were cheap. Nowadays about the only way for young people to get started is to inherit some land.” While Rusty and Sue are too busy to follow every detail of the politics and policy of food, they do stay well-informed and activist.  They use the internet more and more to stay up to date. “The upcoming regulations are a little scary. It depends how it’s enforced,” says Rusty, “the most important thing to keep in mind is scalability.”  Indeed, what works for the little guy is not the same as what works for the big guy, and small farmers are carefully watching the legislation for signs of big-business power.

After the USDA took over the organic certification process, many small farmers, including Rusty and Sue, just couldn’t afford to use the label. “You have to keep so many records for every crop. That’s fine for the guy with one crop on two hundred acres. It’s a killer for us with fifty crops on four acres.” Of the dozen or so farmers in their locallygrown.net network, only one carries the USDA Organic seal – even though Rusty and Sue have actually always far surpassed the standards. “It didn’t make a bit of difference at the Farmer’s Market because everyone knew us. Now, with the online thing, it would probably help to get certified again.”

There are other roadblocks. The Whole Foods in Little Rock won’t buy from local farmers unless they have a one million dollar liability insurance policy. “I guess that’s in case somebody chokes on our carrot,” said Sue.  And so, not surprisingly, big trucks with California license plates dominate the store’s loading docks.

But despite the challenges, Rusty and Sue remain optimistic. “It depends which pages of the newspaper you read. There’s plenty of good news in between plenty of bad news.” They’re very encouraged to see so many people interested in their way of life and the role of food in caring about the planet. The Obama’s vegetable garden was something they never thought they’d see, and Sue was delighted that the White House involved local school kids. “Right now the average age for a farmer is 51.” But she’s seeing a whole new wave of enthusiastic, idealistic young people that reminds her of their early days all over again. Rusty’s daughter Rose is following in his footsteps, working on farms across England for an organization called WWOOF, World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms.

Rusty and Sue have been living sustainably since long before terms like carbon footprint, localvore, and slow food became bandwagon buzzwords. But they’re not the least bit tempted to gloat now that the rest of the world has caught up on the path they’ve blazed by gut intuition for years.  In an era when green-washing threatens to consumerize and water down the movement, the simplicity and beauty of the Nuffer’s daily lives are a rich reality check. “This year we’re excited about a new potato we’re trying. It’s called ‘purple majesty’ and it tests higher than any other food ever for one important anti-oxidant,” says Sue. Their world centers around the soil. They’re forever experimenting with new methods to enrich and re-mineralize mother earth. Lately Rusty’s been exploring an ancient Amazonian technique known as Terra Preta, where high-potency charcoal is carefully introduced over many years.

“We’re just pretty dang lucky, that’s all,” says Rusty. It’s their favorite thing to say when you praise them too much. “The perks are that you work in the freshest restaurant in the world!” Sue said, “and just being close to nature all the time – taking care of the planet is spiritual.”

So before I went back to my keyboard and they to their dirt, I asked what they did for Earth Day. They nearly forgot the date. “Every day is Earth Day,” said Rusty, “Earth Month. Earth Year…. It’s an Earth Life, I guess. That’s what it needs to be. Keep that awareness all the time.”

Further Reading:
Locally Grown.net
WWOOF
Helen and Scott Nearing
Terra Preta
Sue’s recommended gardening book:
John Jeavons’ How to Grow More Vegetables and Fruits (and Fruits, Nuts, Berries, Grains, and Other Crops) Than You Ever Thought Possible on Less Land Than You Can Imagine

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By Guest Blogger on April 14, 2009

Green Down There

As the editor-in-chief of Eco to the People, I am constantly thinking about ways that I can live a greener lifestyle. I had switched to clean makeup, started bringing my own bags to the grocery store and changed all of my lightbulbs to compact fluorescents but there was one, ahem, area that still needed some work.

One of the first truly staggering statistics I came across when I started researching green living concerned conventional cotton and how bad it is for the environment. According to the Organic Trade Association, traditionally grown cotton uses approximately 25 percent of the world’s insecticides and more than 10 percent of the pesticides (including herbicides, insecticides, and defoliants), more than any other crop.

After I read this, it dawned on me exactly how much cotton is in my home. My sheets, my clothing, hell, even my tampons are made out of cotton, all of which has been sprayed with chemicals and God-knows-what-else.

Wait a minute, I thought. My tampons have been sprayed with chemicals? And I am putting them in my hoo ha? Gross, right?

According to my research, even tampons that aren’t made of cotton (some are made of synthetics, like rayon, or blends of cotton and rayon) are chlorine-bleached. Dioxin, a toxic carcinogen, is a by-product of all chlorine bleaching methods and is also found throughout the environment in varying levels as a by-product of pesticide spraying and pollution from incinerators.

Dioxin has been found to collect in the fatty tissues of animals, including humans and should, therefore, be a real concern for women. I don’t know about you but I have plenty of fatty tissue for dioxin to camp out in and considering a woman may use as many as 11,000 tampons in her lifetime, she may be subjecting herself to additional dioxin exposure.

While everyone is walking around with some chemicals in their blood stream – known as a “body burden” – thanks to pollution and other sources, women are uniquely vulnerable. Certain substances, including environmental estrogens, can affect hormonal activity. Further, some toxic chemicals that are linked to birth defects are being found at alarming levels in women of childbearing age. I don’t know about you but if I am going to pollute my body it should be with something more fun than a tampon!

I am proud to say that my vagina is now completely eco-friendly. I switch from OB to Natracare tampons, which are made from 100 percent certified organic cotton and which claim to be the only fully certified organic cotton tampons available in the world today, though I can’t vouch for that. Seventh Generation, which may be more readily available, also makes a line of organic feminine hygiene products, as does Trader Joe’s. I picked Natracare up at my local health food store and they cost $3.39 for a box of 10, cheaper than the conventional tampons I used to buy.

Here are some other products I use on my eco-friendly lady parts. Making some or all of these changes will benefit your health. If it could talk, your vagina would thank you.

1. There’s nothing eco-friendly about most vibrators. The ideal vibrator is free of phthalates, a deadly chemical found in some plastics that can absorb into your skin upon contact. Although phthalates are banned in sex toys abroad, these play things aren’t regulated by the government here because vibrators are considered novelty items in the U.S.

Some gals with real common sense over at Good Vibrations made the decision to sell only plastic vibrators that are labeled phthalates-free and are safe for close contact with the body. Besides being harmful to the skin, these chemicals aren’t biodegradable, but then – while they may be a healthier, better buzz – neither are all the phthalates-free vibrators whose motors have conked out. Close your eyes and make a mental picture of how many vibrators are clogging up landfills right now simply because of a dead motor. The image would be funny if it weren’t so scary.

Jimmyjane solves that conundrum: its vibrators come with a replacement motor guarantee, making them one of the first eco-conscious sex toy companies. At $125, the Little Chroma is especially sweet. It is nearly silent when on but still strong, waterproof to up to five times the depth of your bathtub and – to top it all off – is dishwasher safe. A motor replacement costs about $35.

2. If part of your eco-friendly efforts include reducing the amount of trash you create, switching from tampons to the Diva Cup is a great alternative. The soft, latex-free cup is inserted into the vagina and to collect menstrual blood. The soft, latex-free cup is inserted into the vagina to collect menstrual blood. The cup is then emptied, rinsed and reinserted. It sounds gross but the product works really well, and since it only needs to be emptied twice a day, is very convenient. I like to use mine at night to prevent leaks.

3. On the same vein, I love the washable panty liners by Lunapad. The pads are designed for light to very heavy menstrual flow, as well as light or stress incontinence. The Liner-on-top design allows you to change liners quickly and easily throughout the day without having to change your entire pad. Toss them into the wash and you have a brand new set of pads and have created no new trash.

4. Diva Wash is made specially for cleaning the Diva Cup or it can be used as a body wash. The botanically-based, all natural formula is contained the essense of sweet orange and is naturally deodorizing. The wash is free from sulfates and harmful chemicals and it 100% vegetable-based.

5. Like with tampons, it dawned on me that using lubricant made with chemicals was probably not the best idea. Collective Wellbeing and Yes both make organic personal lubricants that work just as well as the chemical brands.

6. If you have the yeasties, which can happen from taking certain medications, try Boiron Homeopathic Yeastaway Suppositories, which will relieve symptoms of vaginal yeast infection, such as minor itching, burning and discomfort using all-natural ingredients.

7. When my kitty feels like getting fancy, I use Moom Classic Organic Hair Remover. The hair remover is chemical-free, wax-free and resin-free and conditions your skin with chamomile and healing tea tree oil.

Before founding Eco to the People, a blog dedicated to green living, Heather worked as the managing editor of a beauty trade magazine; as a copy editor for an online tech magazine; as the associate editor of a city magazine and as a newspaper reporter and columnist. Most recently Heather served as the senior editor at the popular online newsletter ecofabulous.

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By Guest Blogger on April 7, 2009

Passover, Vegan Style!

When Passover comes to mind I immediately find myself closing off my nostrils and breathing through my mouth. This innate physical reaction is due to trauma – gefilte fish trauma. I think of the beautiful traditions associated with Passover, like the Four Questions, and leaning to the left in our seats to eat the way royalty used to eat. But I personally find myself leaning left to avoid the dinner guest next to me with the gefilte fish breath, who is all hopped up on Manischewitz and wants to give me a loving embrace. That is no way to enjoy a Seder.

Last year, word got out to the family that my sister and I had recently started our own vegan food company, so of course they said that if we wanted our Passover to be animal-free, we would be cooking – for all 40 of us! We couldn’t slide by anymore with our own veggie side dish. It was time for some action. We knew there would be a few skeptics in the crowd, so we had to act strategically, with everyone’s food preferences in mind.

In planning the menu the first thing I did was make some changes to the Seder plate. We said no thanks on the lamb shank. Instead, we used a beet grown in a friend’s garden. Not only are beets used to symbolize the color of the blood that lamb shanks represent, but their high iron content can revitalize our own blood. I don’t want us to be too selfish, but let’s get the most out of our Seder experience. Beets have other amazing nutritional benefits, including detoxifying the liver. After guzzling four cups of White Concord Grape Manischewitz (my personal fave), who wouldn’t appreciate that?

Instead of the hard-boiled egg, we used fresh flowers. Flowers are symbols of spring and new growth. They are beautiful and they smell a million times better than their hard-boiled counterparts. You can also go the extra step to get some roses, pansies or other edible flowers for the Seder plate. Eating flowers with loved ones is sure to make your Passover more memorable, and roses are known to be a powerful antioxidant. Click here to learn more about edible flowers.

My sister and I knew we had to do something about the gefilte situation, so we decided to make fresh spring rolls instead of gefilte fish for our first course. Spring rolls have the same shape, and, oddly enough, similar color to gefilte fish, so they do the trick. The whole family was elated to try something deliciously different.

Below is my recipe for Passover Spring Rolls. The recipe is not too traditional, but when tradition involves opening a jar of compressed fish in a jelly and letting it thump out of the glass, I don’t feel bad about breaking tradition. If your Jewish family is like mine, as long as something is wrapped in some sort of doughy wrapper, with a little sauce, everyone will be happy. Involve friends or family in rolling these guys if you have a big party. They do take a little time and effort. Note that these spring rolls do include rice ingredients. While Sephardic Seders permit rice, you may want to consult your Ashkenazi relatives if you think it will be a problem for them.

The lesson that I learned in treating my family to a vegan Passover is that the most important traditions are those of tempting smells, new experiences, and good karma all the way from the Seder plate to the meal. There is so much love and thoughtful preparation that goes into creating a Passover dinner that it only seems fitting to make it cruelty-free.

As an end note, though it may be a pain in the tuchas to cook food for the entire family just to prove to them how right we are for being vegetarian, you kind of have to because even if you only make food for yourself, everyone else will want a bite anyway when all of your food smells the best. That is why the recipe below is portioned to feed ten hungry Jews. Double the recipe for bigger parties or really hungry Jews.

Fresh Spring Rolls
Yields 10 servings

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp roasted hot sesame oil
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp agave
2 cups thin rice noodles, or bean sprouts
2 cucumber, peeled and sliced into thin strips
6-8 shiitake mushrooms
2 avocados, sliced into strips
1 cup shredded carrots
8-10 rice wrappers
*Optional ½ cup pine nuts

Procedure:

1. Bring a quart of water to a boil and cook the rice noodles as directed. Set aside when finished. Add sesame oil, rice vinegar and agave to the noodles. If using bean sprouts instead, blanche the bean sprouts and toss with the sesame oil, rice vinegar and agave.
2. Place the sliced pre-cooked rice noodles, cucumber, avocado, shredded carrot, and in separate bowls or plates, like an assembly line.
3. When you are ready to roll your fresh rolls, soak each rice wrapper in water until slightly softened. This should only take about 10 seconds. Place the wrapper on a flat working surface and fill with a line of your choice of the fillings, beginning with about 2 tablespoons of rice noodles or bean sprouts.
4. Begin by folding the bottom flap over your filling. Bring the two sides over the folded bottom flap and then bring the remaining side over the entire roll, to create a burrito shape. The trick is to not overfill the spring roll. This will make it much easier to wrap.

Almond Sauce:

½ cup almond butter
¼ cup hot water
1/4 cup organic tamari
3 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Rice vinegar
2 Tbsp sesame oil (with or without chilies)
Juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
* optional: 2 Tbsp Red pepper flakes

Procedure:
In a medium pot, add almond butter and hot water. Whisk until the almond butter is thin. Add remaining almond sauce ingredients. Whisk until uniform and creamy. Add water if the sauce is too thick.

Spork Foods is a Los Angeles-based gourmet vegan food company owned and operated by sisters Jenny and Heather Goldberg. Our delicious, innovative cuisine emphasizes organic, local, and seasonal ingredients. We offer cooking classes, In-home healthy eating consultations, and small scale catering.

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