It is so easy to get caught up in the natural flow of every day life out here on the farm. It's also very easy to take pretty pictures on the farm, and as much as I love bringing you those snapshots that is not the purpose behind this blog and Facebook page.
For those of you who are new to Life on the Land, here's the reason why it exists. A very brief and simplistic overview of our world is this: the global population is exponentially increasing, the land available for producing raw products, that become food and clothing, is not currently growing (I say currently for a specific reason but that's a fanciful thought for another time). So, more people + the same viable land = a need for technology and societal understanding. The technologies will help us to utilise that land in an optimal fashion WHILE maintaining it in a sustainable fashion for generations to come. Why does the agricultural industry need the general population to understand what we do? It's simple really; the number of people needed to run farms, ranches or stations keeps decreasing as technology allows us to expand the amount of land we can manage as single enterprises. This results in a simple ratio; the number of people working at the basic level of agriculture (on the land) vs. the number of people working and living in cities. It becomes apparent that the majority of the population, that in most countries have voting power or at least governmental sway, live in an area that often disconnects them from where the products they consume start out. We need the understanding of this section of population to ensure the government helps us to continue innovating and improving agriculture without jeopardising the livelihood of the hard working providers within this industry.
I personally believe this vast population is disconnected in another way (this is purely an opinion). I believe wastage is a large issue in urban populations. On our farm we butcher our own meat and we consume the bulk of it, we vary our meals so we eat roasts, chops, racks of ribs, shanks, neck chops, riblets, flaps and so on. When you see the process of skinning and gutting, of setting the meat, of cutting the animal up and bagging off the different cuts; you attain a different appreciation for that meat. Eating every single part of that animal becomes a way to honour the fact that it's life is no longer. The disconnect is that many people pick and choose which cuts they prefer, now I don't blame them for that. I prefer to eat chops, T-bones, roasts and rump as well. However, I cannot bring myself not to eat the whole animal as I would be taking more lives, more regularly; for no reason other than my satisfaction. The amount of food I see going to waste in restaurants, in shopping centres, in the cuts that are not sold at a supermarket - it makes me sad. I am happy to grow animals for eating, as long as those who eat them honour the life that is no longer in their own way.
I believe in agriculture, I believe in providing for our human race and I believe in providing animals with the healthiest, happiest life possible. In order to keep ALL of these things happening sustainably we need people to understand and support agriculture; to honour the lives of those animals we eat. I can almost hear some of you thinking 'What if I only eat vegetables?' That's fine, that's your choice, but please understand and respect that some of us choose to eat meat. Please think about the fact that not all of the land we grow produce on can support vegetable farming and not all farms would remain profitable if mixed farming was not allowed (livestock/cropping). If what we can grow becomes limited through laws based upon a lack of understanding, much of the land we utilise currently may revert to it's natural state as opposed to growing something else.
Let's get back to the reason for this blog and Facebook page though. I would be incredibly sad if my future children did not have the opportunity to consider the agricultural industry as a profitable career path. The aim is to provide information, to answer any questions anyone may have, and to help people get back to basics. I believe that reconnecting to our roots, to the way things grow, and respecting the natural cycles of life will help curb wastage, increase the support for agriculture and therefore sustain it's viability. Life on the Land is about so much more than mass production, it's a way of life and one that needs to be preserved; for those who live that life, and for those who benefit from the produce we offer.
So if any of what I've written rings true in your heart, please share this far and wide. Without the shares I cannot reach those that are disconnected, if we work together we can change this world. We can make it a world that respects it's roots and honours the lives within it. On the other hand, if something I've written strikes you as wrong or disturbs you, please message me. I'm always open to new points of view and I'm not aiming to offend anybody in any way.
*Please bear in mind that I'm basing this overview on Australia and that I realise there are many more countries that provide raw agricultural products but I do not have firsthand knowledge of what goes on there. I am in no way an expert - just a farmer trying to make a difference.
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