Page 12 RAIN April 1981 by Richard MerriU One of the most underrated yet vital issues raised during the 1970s was the continued ability of U.S. agriculture to provide food for domestic use and export. True, most Americans eat comparatively well, U.S. farmers continue to provide most of the world's exported grain and the U. S. food system is still one of the most sophisticated in the world in terms of distribution and food variety. But the gnawing question during t·he decade became: Yes, this may all be true ... but at what cost and for how long? For the first time in U.S. history the benefits of our modern food system became judged against a much larger concern ... the social and environmental consequences of the way we feed our society and, more importantly, the long-term sustainability of that food system. At one level mounting doubts tended to focus on seven major issues: 1. The Rapid Destruction of Our Rural Culture. Small independent farmers have moved to the cities to be replaced by energy-intensive technologies and capital. Rural lands no longer offer an opportunity In time of plenty or a social buffer in time of war and depression. Worst of all, most people view the ruination of rural America as simply an unfortunate by-product of our industrial "progress. " But for others agriculture IS a culture and, as noted by Wendell Berry, " ... a culture is a practical necessity. When a culture is destroyed it is a natural calamity. " What has, in fact, been destroyed is the fundamental purpose of agriculture, viz., to create a fulfilling culture whereby productive land can be stewarded and nurtured for future generations. In its place a new purpose has emerged: to produce food for profit at the expense of the land (i.e., culture). This new purpose has become the greatest calamity of all. The fact that modern agriculture is not commonly seen as a problem is a problem in itself. 2. The Growing Monolithic Structure of the U.S. Food System. Farm production, processing and distribution have become concentrated in the hands of fewer and fewer people. The increasing control of farmlands and food-related industries by corporations and cartels has transformed agri-culture into agri-business, has transformed traditions of stewardship into techniques of profit and much of the U.S. food system into a corporate oligarchy. 3. The Usurpation and Exploitation of Farm Workers . The recent history of the farm labor struggle in America is largely a history of the National Farm Workers Association attempting to overcome generations of racial discrimination, minority oppression and economic inequalities. Farm laborers remain one of the most oppressed labor groups in the country. 4. The Growing Ineffectiveness and Public Health Hazards of Agricultural Chemicals. In 1945 the U.S. produced about 40,000 tons of a few synthetic pesticides. Today, in spite of EPA controls, oil companies and scores of chemical firms continue to produce over 600,000 tons of over 1000 pesticide chemicals variously combined in over 50,000 registered, commercial pesticides. Over half of the 400,000 tons applied annually in the U.S. is used in cities. Each day the health of thousands of farm workers, growers, food-process workers, landscapers , foresters , urban gardeners etc. is jeopardized because NO ONE knows the long-term effects, both direct and synergistic (in combination with other chemicals), of pesticides. We may never know ... but our children probably will. Even if pesticides posed no health hazards, there is indisputable evidence that as a single strategy of long-term pest control they simply do not work. Pesticides produce resistant pests, secondary pests and damage the ecological fabric of the agro-ecosystem. Even the USDA admits their great limitations and the futility of continually inventTHE SUICIDE & REBIRTH OF AGRICULTURE Some Preliminary Thoughts on a Bioregional Food system - - Mark Anderson
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