Wooo hooo! Summer is coming and we're holding our inaugural spring plant sale pop up event the first two Saturdays in May from 10am - 2pm at Polks Folly Farm Market in Cedar Crest. See details in the flyer image.

We hear this question a lot at Farmers Market and through social media and it's a great question--whether we're talking plant sales or produce sales.
But. This question actually brings forth more questions than answers.

A quick internet search for the definition of "organic" as it applies to farming and food turns up many variations of this one (found at merriam-webster.com):
Adjective - "of, relating to, yielding, or involving the use of food produced with the use of feed or fertilizer of plant or animal origin without employment of chemically formulated fertilizers, growth stimulants, antibiotics, or pesticides". This seems easy to understand, fair and accurate.

BUT. In the USA--the USDA determines the legal definition of "organic" and who may use that word for selling plants, produce, food, etc.

From the New Mexico Farmers Marketing Association page: Organic Rules https://www.newmexicofma.org/food_processing_permits.php
Q: Who can use the word "Organic" to sell their products?
A: Only farmers and gardeners who are certified by a USDA-accredited certifier may legally use the term "certified organic" to describe their product. Producers who gross less than $5,000/year are exempt from certification and may use the term "organic" as long as they follow organic growing practices.

To be clear, we make no accusation against any person, group of persons, agency or agencies. We simply offer food for thought. We encourage our friends, families, neighbors and communities to become informed. And we're not being dramatic when we say it really is a matter of life and death.

Let's just use our common sense. We can even set aside the multitude of opportunities for payoffs, corruption, mishandling, mislabeling, negligence, fraud, etc. I mean, here's one article, here's another, and here's another...of the many that can be found very easily. You can read and decide about all that for yourself.

So, setting all that aside, let's think seriously about this for a moment. There is NO absolute way to 100% verify if any crop has been grown "organically" no matter what any label says.  The label may be accurate, or it may not. How do we really know? We don't. What we do know is that the process to become certified organic is fairly invasive, time consuming and costly (every year).  Depending on the farmer's "free time" and excess cash (I don't know many small operation, non-subsidized farms with excess cash, do you?), this virtually eliminates new farmers and smaller operations from participating in the organic certification process. That's convenient for often subsidized "corporate" farms who can afford to pay (thanks to being subsidized) as it eliminates much of their potential competition.

Lest you think it's all the small farmers getting subsidies, please do an internet search for "Who Benefits Most From Farm Subsidies." The reality is that farm subsidies help high-income corporations, not poor rural farmers. Most of the money is directed toward large agribusinesses. Think about the implications of that. It seems the "organic" label is in and of itself nothing more than an illusion.

Further, we are also left wondering about the producers that sell less than $5K gross per year who are exempt from the certification process and may use the term as long as they follow organic growing practices. There is no indication that anyone (or any agency) checks or regulates that. So. Are they really organic? Maybe. Maybe not. How do we really know? We don't.

What's the answer?
We believe getting to know your local farmers and establishing relationships directly with them IS the answer. Ask questions. Find out why they are farming and ask about their practices. Most local farmers care about their communities. Most local, small scale farmers *ARE* actually invested in the health and well being of their families, friends, neighbors and communities. Are there occasionally bad apples to be found? Of course there are in any group. BUT when we're talking life & death health matters (food safety), WHO would you rather risk trusting? The USDA (federal government agency) and federally subsidized corporate farms? Or local farmers you can actually meet face to face, develop a relationship, support and enjoy mutual benefit in your own community? Food for thought, to be sure. Pun intended.

SOW...what about SowThankful Farm?

• Our farm is not certified organic and we have no interest in paying to be part of a system that is clearly so broken, unconcerned with transparency and seemingly fraught with apparent corruption.
  
• Our growing practices are way beyond "organic". We are a no till/no dig, regenerative farm. We believe building natural, healthy soil is the way to grow healthy vegetables, flowers & fruit. Ohhhh I wish you could see the red wigglers in our soil!
• We DO NOT use any synthetic chemical pesticides.
• We DO NOT use any synthetic chemical fertilizers.
• We DO NOT use or knowingly grow GMOs.
• We DO NOT use synthetic or artificial stimulants, hormones, antibiotics, etc.
• For liability reasons (because we must keep costs down) as well as bio security and zoning reasons, we do not offer any "on farm sales" at this time.
• We do vend at the Cedar Crest Farmers Market seasonally.
• We are looking forward to offering a couple pop-up events this year (2023) and a selection of our produce is also available at Polk's Folly Market in Cedar Crest and Lantern Ridge Farm Market in Sandia Park.

We sincerely hope you will come out to the Market this year and meet us and other local farmers face to face. Ask questions. It's important. We'd love to get to know you and tell you why we do what we do.