Fifty years ago, farming was very different. Mixed faming, along with purebred Heifer cattle maintained a good standard of living for a family of six. A large garden, the pride of my Mom’s kept us going through the summer and winter and also shared with others if their gardens did poorly.
After my Dad’s death, the farm equipment and cattle were sold. My brother has gradually developed the farm again and proudly as a certified organic farm.
This picture is taken 50 years later in the same field that I took a picture of my Dad and that year’s harvest.
Last weekend driving through the Okanagan and spending some time in the Penticton Farmer’s market to see an abundance of local products and vendors. 10 years ago had this same market had few vendors. This explosion of organic farmers and selling products directly to costumers has done away with the middle man and the prices were on par with the supermarkets. I walked away with 10 pounds of organic apples, two different varieties and pears all for 10 dollars! Slices of apples and pears were sliced with a paring knife for tasting; fingers were weathered and stained with black soil! Yes, this was a farmer selling me his products!
This trend in organic farming is also shown by Agriculture Canada, while the total number of farms in Canada decreased by 17% between 2001 and 2011, the national number of organic farms increased by 66%.
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