‘Good Farmers’ as Reflexive Producers: an Examination of Family Organic Farmers in the US Midwest

Abstract

In the wake of an explosion in the organic food sector, it is vital to differentiate, not only between conventional and organic producers, but between types of organic producers. By exploring a network of family organic farmers in the US Midwest through participant observation and interviews we can better understand the inherent overlap between the categorisations of producer and consumer through the lenses of identity and the reflexive producer. By studying a small network of organic food producers, I illustrate the emergence of a small, but important category of reflexive producers that shed light on the alternative ideology and actions of family organic farmers concerned with protecting the environment and the health of their customers and people in general. Furthermore, reflexive farmers illustrate the moral care associated with good farming. A s the growing season nears an end in late September, farmers prepare their land for the long winter ahead. Conventional notions advocate plowing under the crop just harvested. Others advocate no-till techniques allowing the remaining crop to replenish the soil and prevent erosion. And even more alternative techniques involve cover cropping. Farmers, typically organic, cover their just harvested crops with nitrogen rich crops like hairy vetch, wheat or oats to help replenish the nutrients that were transferred to the crop. 1,2 I watch Brian pick up a large bucket and put it in the crook of his left elbow, put his right hand in the bucket, pull a handful out and swing his arm up and to the right, releasing an even, pointillistic rainbow of seed, reminiscent of Seurat's work. After his arm comes down, he flings it back across his body to the left in a similar, but somewhat awkward motion. The tosses are in time with the steps; half steps, really, and continue to be repeated up and down the rows. He says to me, as I begin to follow with a different type of seed, 'There is a rhythm to it: you won't get it in one afternoon'. And I didn't.As my initial research experiences indicate, agriculture, in all its shapes and sizes, involves different techniques, styles, philosophies, judgments and justifications, leading to a continuum of sizes, types and motivations of farmers -organic or not

Incorporating agri-environment schemes into farm development pathways: A temporal analysis of farmer motivations

“…The i te est i se u i g the fa il fa s future by both agreement and non-agreement holders is supported by other studies revealing the significance of farm continuity to decision-making (Johnsen 2003;Stock, 2007). The sentiments are generally expressed in terms of wanting to pass the farm on to the next generation.…”

“…In an effort to widen understandings of motivation and accommodate the heterogeneity of farmer preferences, researchers have also demonstrated the influence of cultural norms, identity, social and cultural context; values, goals, objectives and principles; and worldviews or personal philosophy (Ahnström et al, 2009;Burton et al, 2004b;Fish et al, 2003;Gasson 1973, Harrison et al, 1998 Schoon and Grotehuis, 2000;Siebert et al, 2006;Stock, 2007). However, the dynamic nature of motivations affecting participation decisions has rarely been accommodated in previous studies.…”

Creating culturally sustainable agri-environmental schemes

“…People who possess field appropriate cultural capital are both able to act in appropriate ways within social networks, and possess knowledge, skills, and culturally/economically important objects that make their inclusion within social networks desirable. In farming, the most desirable social relationships (in terms of their utility) are those with other 'good farmers' (Burton, 2004;Stock, 2007) e for example, those who are the best at managing their farms, selecting livestock for breeding, selecting the optimal seed varieties, taking care of animals, ensuring machinery is working effectively, reading and targeting markets, and so on. Thus, we argue, the cultural capital lost or gained in changing farming activity contributes to the overall capital loss of the farmer.…”

“…literature and the arts) is of concern, cultural capital can consist of, for example, "owning a luxury car or a large house" (a modern tractor or well kept farmyard), being a good citizen (being a "good farmer" -e.g. Stock, 2007), having scientific expertise (knowing how to treat crop problems and set machinery) and "knowing how to send signals of one's own competence" ('roadside farming', see Seabrook and Higgins, 1988;Burton, 2004).…”

Some problems and possibilities of caring

“…Wells and Gradwell (2001) have characterized Community Supported Agriculture, one form of Alternative Food Network, as "caring-practice" in terms of the treatment of the natural environment, resources, other growers and shareholder members and this can be true also of other methods of food production. Similarly, in his discussion of organic growers in the US Midwest, Stock (2007) draws attention to the notion of stewardship, in the sense of caring for the land and thus for the people affected by its health. The farmers he worked with demonstrated an "inherent understanding of their role as protecting and ensuring the health of human beings, including family members, community customers and, in a larger, global sense, the world, by trying to work towards the education of new farmers and customers" (Stock 2007 p95).…”