The stock market crashes; We keep growing your food.
Coronavirus triggers city lockdowns; We keep growing your food.
You are working from home with your kids running around screaming; We keep growing your food.
Let’s talk about food security.
“Food Security: The state of having reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.” – Oxford Dictionary
With drastically changed buying behavior due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve gained a fairly rattling insight into the fragility of our food and distribution system. We may well experience further instability in the future as governments seek to slow the spread of the pandemic.
Food Security is more than a buzz word to us. It’s deeply ingrained in our purpose: Growing healthy soil, healthy food and healthy community. Food security is the lettuce we already have growing in our greenhouse. It’s our community who make it possible for us to grow food and deliver it to your door with just eight full time staff and a handful of volunteers. It’s the nerdy ways we nourish our soil so we can then give you the most nutritious food possible. Food Security is a Local Farm.
Regardless of the headlines over these last few months, every day, we get up at 4:30am. We go to our farm and carefully tend the hundreds of tender little plants that in a few months will be food for you, our community. As this unfolds we will work the fields, and we will keep growing your food.
These are uncertain times. Here’s what we’ve done to minimize the uncertainty for our farm so far:
- We’ve ordered all of our seeds and field supplies to be able to grow a years worth of food for 200 CSA families as well as grocery stores and restaurants
- We’ve asked our staff to stay home
- We have ample supplies of sanitation liquids, protective gloves and other equipment
- Our wash station is built to restaurant standards and we have increased all on farm sanitation standards
But this is also a time for honesty and transparency. We do have a few risks we aren’t able to control:
- Weather and other acts of god
- Having enough healthy staff. Without healthy staff, we will struggle to get the growing mountain of work done. If you are interested in joining our Workshare program, learn more here.
- How our community rallies to support local agriculture
This last point is where we need your help. Now is the time to invest in your food access. In food that doesn’t rely on extensive, just-in-time supply chains.
- Learn to grow your own food. Try out even just a few lettuce plants and a zucchini this year if you are getting started. For those without their own soil to plant in, grow micro-greens and herbs in your kitchen. #victorygardenthrowback
- Join a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). It’s a lot to grow all of your own food. Thankfully there are experts out there (farmers) who can help. CSA’s are weekly veggie box programs that connect you directly with local agriculture. We have a great one, other local farms do too. Find one that works for you and your loved ones. Now is the time to contribute to your local farmer to help them grow your food for this summer.
Again, in the interest of transparency: Is food through a CSA a sure thing? No. Mother Nature will always have the last say. But what is a sure thing is that we will work our tails off to grow the best food to feed you and your loved ones this year.
Fear has no place here. Now is not a time to hide. Yes, it may be a time to be physically separate. But it’s also the time to stand up and act on what we believe in: Nourishing true human connections and a supportive community. Spending our money on things we truly care about. Together, we stand.
In health and great food
Cayla & Michael Moss
Your Kilted Farmers
