What we're learning

The Dark Side of Romance - Pollen Nation Farm | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep16

What happens when the passion for farming, the community built around food, and the realities of making a living from it don’t quite add up?

The Dark Side of Romance | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep16

Romance doesn't pay the bills, especially in farming. This discussion explores passion versus profit, government policy that doesn't fit new farm models, and the community holding it together. For Nathan and Amanda of Pollen Nation, the goal is keeping their leased-land apiary and restaurant alive.

The Economy of Unpaid Labour - Ottawa Valley Farm to Fork | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep15

Ottawa Valley Farm to Fork - Douglas, ON What counts as work when there isn’t a paycheque attached to it… and what happens when we stop mea

The Economy of Unpaid Labour | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep15

Ottawa Valley Farm to Fork - Douglas, ON What happens when we stop measuring a farm only by its income? In Renfrew County, a conversation a

Farmland Costs Too Much - Common Ground Food Forum | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep14

How do we decide when to pay for something or when we ask for that thing from our social circles and our community? And why do we run our economy in a way that only notices value when we pay for it, and not when we get it from our friends?

How (Agri)culture Gets Built | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep13

In Thornbury, I find a room of people who aspired to grow food — and also to grow a community and a culture around that. Their idealism is palpable, and so is the urge to act on that idealism.

Rural Farm to Urban Table - Strathcona Market | The Hands That Feed Us: On Tour - Ep12

Alvaro’s farm is possible because of direct support from his family and community. And he sells his produce directly back to them.

How to invest romantically

Despite the title, no, this post isn’t about how to find commitment with your significant other. I’m talking about financial, not emotional investment, and I’m talking about the romance of believing things into existence, not your love life.

What does romance have to do with our economy?

I believed we could build our farm together by being good at business and I didn’t realize she needed me to be good at romance.

What makes "The Farming Lifestyle" worth it?

As I've learned more about how farmers live, my thinking about the problem has shifted. I've grown. And I've realized that focusing on how much money farmers make misses the bigger picture.

How feudal are our farmers?

There's a question that haunts me when I'm lying in bed pondering what The Hands that Feed Us is really about: Are we at risk of reverting to feudalism?

Why Food Insecurity isn't a Subset of Poverty

Money may be a possible solution for starvation, but no matter how hungry you are, you still can't eat it.

Capitalism doesn't invest in farms is because capitalism for farming is broken

The cost of land is a big reason why the capitalist is necessary in the first place. In business terms, land is a capital cost: It's a big, up-front cost that has to be paid out of the farm's profits over time, but it only needs to be purchased once.

What the Stats on Farmland Prices Don't Tell You

The story I tell — that the average farmer will be dead by the time the average farm is paid for — is a classic example of lying with statistics.