Today's Farmers are Tomorrow's Future.
When I was a kid, I would imagine what a farmer looked like, it wasn't a very pretty picture. I would envision a middle aged man with a straw hat in overalls, covered in dirt, maybe some missing teeth and not very connected to the modern world. Now, as an adult my vision of a farmer is very different, well except for the being covered in dirt part. Today's farmers are smart, hardworking and very connected to the world around them. We are currently seeing an upswing in the people out there who want to change the world. Educated men and women are changing what they want to do in order to provide people with better food quality. Today's farmers are starting to come from all different walks of life. Some young men and women are seeking out a formal education to learn how to run a farm, while others are quitting their day jobs to head for the countryside and start a farm.
Ben Martin is no different. Ben, is a young man of 24 who recently graduated with a bachelors degree in Food and Consumer Packaged Goods Marketing. It took him a few years, but at a fairly young age, he knew what he wanted to do with his life, he wanted to not only farm but to make a difference in the community he lives in. He has started up his own small organic farm (not USDA certified organic, but still using organic practices) and business better known as "Soil Friends." Soil Friends is a small farm based out of Richland, Michigan in Kalamazoo County and their mission is simple: "We are passionate about driving sustainable innovations into farming to increase the access of nutrient dense foods." The phrase "nutrient dense" isn't something that too many people think about when they think about produce. They think "Oh well, a tomato is a tomato, right? They are all the same, right?" Wrong.
In many places across the country we are starting to see lots of food deserts, that is an abundance of food that has no nutrients, it is nutrient empty. You see, when you grow a conventional tomato in soil that has been depleted, whether its because of over farming or use of pesticides, that tomato has very little to no nutritional value. Now if you compare that to a tomato that has been grown organically or naturally in high quality soil, you are left with a product that is going to be much hgher in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants or is more nutrient dense.
Aside from creating high quality, nutrient dense food, Ben really wants to focus on growing crops that just taste good. As the father of a three year old little boy and a one year old little girl, it's important to Ben to grow good tasting food that they want to eat. Eating habits start at a young age and Ben knows that if he grows really good vegetables, his kids will grow up liking vegetables and wanting vegetables instead of the junk that a lot of other kids grow up around. I mean lets face it, if you feed a two year old a can of spinach it's probably not going to taste real great, but feed a two year old fresh spinach tossed in with a few other organic veggies then it will more than likely be a whole other story.
I am a full supporter of anyone or any business that is in business for the right reasons. Ben Martin and Soil Friends are in business for those right reasons. A small scale organic farmer that wants to give the his community high quality, nutrient dense food without causing harm to the earth sounds pretty great to me. To learn more about Ben and his farm, you can find Soil Friends on Facebook or at his website www.soilfriends.com. I strongly urge you to check it out and if you get the chance, to drive up to Michigan and buy some of his yummy produce, his tomatoes are the BEST!!!
