The Source of My Food
The other day I caught a few minutes of an NPR interview with Michael Pollan, who was promoting his new book, In Defense of Food, An Eater's Manifesto. One thing discussed was where one actually finds food, as opposed to processed soy or corn-derived "food products." Farmers markets were mentioned, as were the periphery of supermarkets--Fresh meat and produce are almost always located on the store's perimeter, while nearly everything in the middle aisles is canned, boxed, or packaged in some way: 'Not' Food. (just because something is FDA approved for human consumption doesn't mean you should eat it).
I drove a short three miles out to Pyramid Farms a few days ago to pick up some roles of t-tape that was being donated to G.R.U.B. While I was there owner Matthew Martin was kind enough to give me a tour to show me the true source of my some of my favorite foods.
I am a regular purchaser of Pyramid Farms beets and carrots in the winter and eggplants and sweet peppers in the summer.
To be frank, the first thing that I noticed was the weeds. Lots of weeds--Grass, bindweed, wild radish. As this is an organic farm, these are tolerated, and when necessary kept at bay by tilling, cardboard, and mowing. Also there was the smell of growing things everywhere--No chemicals, just plants and pollen and soil. Finally, there was the notable lack of massive farm machinery--I didn't see any John Deere combines with air-conditioned cabs hovering 15 feet off the ground, nothing with wheels bigger than my car. Sure, there was some farm-related equipment, but even so, I could tell this was very much a hands-on endeavor.
Nothing highlighted this more than the two greenhouses, packed with trays of individually potted tomato, eggplant, basil, and pepper starts. The tomatoes were due to be set in the ground later in the week.
Sadly, I wasn't able to divulge from Matthew the secret of his super-sweet carrots.