We Need Your Help...

Now that another year has come to an end...

 

Looking back... 2013 was another successful year for our small family farm thanks to our committed CSA Members and patrons.  In general its been a rough road for Texas  farmers and ranchers.  It started back in 2011 with the drought and slowing economy.  Markets across the state have been reporting a decrease in sales and traffic by 60% in some cases, which has put many producers at risk.  Our risk has been minimized each season due to our Community Supported Agriculture program.  We can boldly plant our seeds and increase our livestock knowing that our members have invested for the season.  It makes a huge difference knowing that you will have a secure income in the upcoming months.

Looking ahead... Nothing supports our community of local farmers more than the assurance of customers willing to make seasonal commitments.  Developing a multi-farm CSA has never been easy, by working with producers to supply our families with chicken, beef, eggs, artisan cheese, milk and of course our righteous veggies, benefits everyone involved as we all desire the best food possible.  Once again, we would like to encourage you to take the step necessary to help guarantee the continued supply of local food by becoming a 2014 Houston CSA Member or Brenham Market Member.  Your commitment is needed now more than ever before as we head towards our 10 year anniversary as Houston's first CSA farm.

 

Check out our January 2014 Newsletter online to learn more...

Yours in the local harvest,

Farmer Brad & Jenny Stufflebeam
Home Sweet Farm

Local Is Out... Farmer Direct Is In.

Since the renewed interest in local food over the last few years, a proliferation of farmers’ markets and popular third party distributors have worked hard to get their piece of the pie.  Still with only 1% of the food economy spent on local food, it’s a small piece to share and local farmers are getting the crumbs.

It’s common to hear farmers discuss how they used to do better business before “local” became popular.  Now many family farms have to work two or three markets to make the sales that they used to make at just one market.  The propagation of farmers markets have spread the business thin resulting in lower sales and increased expenses (fuel, booth fees, licenses, sales materials, tents, tables, etc. not to mention staffing).

Speaking of Farmers Markets!  That’s the very venue where many of the third party distributors introduced themselves.  Riding on the theme that they supported local farmers by offering a more convenient “CSA-like” delivery program, they pitched their tents and flashed their fancy trucks next to local farmers at markets whenever possible.  After wooing the public, they expand their “Whole Foods– like” delivery program with suave marketing that no small family farm could compete with.  Farmers are then forced to sell once again to the middle man who controls the market price, buying from whoever sells the cheapest.

The original intent of the “local” food movement: having a direct connection to your farmer and environment, is now void and being done away with by well-financed middle man distributors, pushing “local” produce 200+ miles and statewide.

And here we are.  “Local” is now becoming as watered down as “organic” and the local farmers and consumers are the ones who loose.  You see, the supply for local food does not fit the modern centralized distribution program and the only way to know for sure that your food is local is to buy direct from the farmer.  Farmers Markets, CSA Programs and other venues where the buyer can directly source their food from the producer is the only way to assure that your money IS supporting local farmers.

The truth of the matter is, Austin based distributors are hurting the “local” food movement.  Farmers across the state are reporting decreased sales, up to 60% losses in 2013, as the “local” food consolidators move into their communities taking over the market by promising more convenience with no commitment.  This pseudo-local food trend may level out in another year or two as the public catches on.  The question is, can small family farmers last that long?

If we want to save local food, we need to buy farmer direct.

Know your farmer.  Know your food.

Report: Houston Local Food Price Comparison - May 2013

Photo by Jared Maidenberg

A customer shared this comparison shopping report for local food delivered into Houston.  It is interesting to see how the closer you are to working with your farmers directly, the more you are going to save.  It's fresher, it's better priced and 100% of your dollar goes directly to the farmers.

BIG THANKS to our CSA Members who make it possible by committing to your local food and for sharing the risks with your farming community!  You make it all happen!

(Prices were gathered from the website of each business on May 1, 2013.)

Local products:	GREENLING DELIVERY - Statewide	FARMHOUSE DELIVERY - Statewide	HOMEsweetFARM CSA - Houston
Local Veggie  Box	$34.99	$37	$32
Start-up Membership Fee	No	$20	No
Seasonal Farm Commitment	No	No	Yes
Grass-fed Ground beef	$8.09/lb. (Bastrop Cattle Co.)	$8.50/lb. (Bastrop Cattle Co.)	$6.50/lb. (Loftis-Stevens Creek Ranch)
Pastured Eggs	$6.99/dz. (Coyote Creek, organic feed)	$6.50/dz. (HausBar Farm, organic feed)	$5.50/dz. (Taylor Farms, organic feed)
Whole Pastured chicken	$7.49/lb. (Tejas Heritage Farm)	$6.50/lb. (Oaks of Mamre Farm)	$6/lb. (Heritage Springs Farm, corn & soy free)
Cheese: Feta	$8.99 (Full Quiver Farm)	$9.00 (Wateroak Farm)	$10.75 (Blue Heron Farm)
Cheese: Raw Milk Cheddar	$8.99 (Full Quiver Farm)	$9.00 (Full Quiver Farm)	$9.00 (Veldhuizen Farm)
Cheese:  Chevre	$1.56/oz. (Blue Heron Farm)	$1.40/oz. (Pure Luck Farm)	$1.31/oz. (Blue Heron Farm)
Beverage: Kombucha	$3.99 (Kickin’ Kombucha)	$3.75 (Kickin’ Kombucha)	$3.50 (Kickin’ Kombucha)
TOTALS	$81.09	$101.65	$74.56

What's Local?

Today I took a brief break with Farmer Jenny as we ran errands in town preparing for our new HOMEsweetFARM Market in downtown Brenham which will be open in roughly 6 weeks.... oohhhh the pressure!  Not only are we busy planting for the spring, recruiting 2013 CSA Members and remodeling an old building... we still have children to raise (our most important crop).  Fortunately, the whole family is excited about our new venture and we love working together.

Know Your Local Farmer

As Farmer Jenny and I sat eating a late lunch, at a restaurant overlooking hwy 290 (unfortunately it happens sometimes, but it was happy hour), we viewed a delivery truck from a popular "local food home delivery" company out of Austin heading west at 70 mph after (one would suppose) having a successful day of doing business in Houston.

Now that got me!  There it was, right in front of my face, bypassing my small town and other rural farmers throughout the Brazos Valley delivering "fresh local" produce from an Austin warehouse to Houston, conveniently dropped at your door.  Isn't that special?

For a while now, as small farmers, we have been growing more and more concerned about the integrity of Local Food.  Just like "organic" and "sustainable", what will it morph into?  100 miles, 250 miles, 500, statewide?  Consolidated local food from farmers 250 miles from a warehouse and then delivered another 150+ miles to your door?  As more corporations jump on the CSA trend, the entire integrity of our local food community is at risk.

The local food scene in Austin, TX has been turned upside-down over the last 5 years and we suspect Houston will soon follow the trend.  With multiple new farmers markets and consolidators providing convenient home delivery, the local market has been saturated for the small farmer.  Instead of being able to focus on one or two markets and having up to a 6 year CSA waiting list, farmers are forced to sell more volume at lower wholesale prices and encouraged to get bigger to make up for the lower sales margin.  Well establish CSAs are currently struggling to meet their goals for membership.  The dry bones of unsuccessful new farms are beginning to pile up as they fail to ever get properly established.  The whole local food scene was more profitable for the farmer in Austin 10 years ago as compared to today.  However, "CSA-like" home delivery companies are blossoming and driving fancy trucks like the one we saw today, bypassing our rural town.

It's obvious that the new corporate term, "CSA" (Community Supported Agriculture) no longer means what it used to.  No longer are individuals needed to make a personal commitment to a farmer when they can order week by week online.  Sharing the risks and bounty that comes with each season is not required.  No longer is it necessary to help out on the farm or to be involved with a community of individuals each week that understand the importance and deep necessity to preserve our agricultural heritage.  It really seems that we are becoming even less concerned about the miles that our food travels, or what it really means to be local.  Now with convenient home delivery of "local and sustainable" food, you don't even need to meet your farmer or even leave the driveway.

I think it is something to be concerned about.  What is local?

Farmer Brad

www.homesweetfarm.com

"We grow righteous food"

Brenham, TX

Recipient of the 2012

Houston Mayor's Award:

Champion of Food Justice

Hunger and Food Security

"Do we really need industrial agriculture to feed the world?" 

Thoughts on Local Food Integrity

For the last 10 years I have been working on developing our CSA while also mentoring and helping new farmers. When new growers come out to our farm for a workshop or tour I'm regularly asked "why are you sharing this information with us? Aren't you concerned about competition?" My reply... how many folks do you think live in Houston/Austin/Dallas? How many people do you think one small farm can feed? Worrying about competition is thinking in the old paradigm of "get big or get out" which has resulted in the current problem that we are facing today... no local farms to feed our communities. Competition is a good thing... it pushes us to always do a better job at what we do. The new paradigm is to "stay small and stay in". What we have found is that it is necessary and rewarding for small farmers to work together. NO one farm can supply all of our needs. One may do vegetables, one does chicken, the other beef, cheese, dairy, or fruit or lamb, etc. When we can work together with marketing, distribution, purchasing materials and supplies, sharing techniques and tools, etc. we are gradually building the supportive agricultural community that used to be around 100+ years ago when neighbors helped each other bring in the harvest or build a barn or helped when the donkey fell into the well. Unfortunately, as local farmers, none of our current neighbors are farming anymore so we have had to reach out to other like minded producers which are all spread out 30 to 60 miles a part. It hasn't been easy. We are a rare breed today.

In order to survive in this market, it is essential that we get a fair price for our products and labor. Booker T. Whatley published a great book a long while back and he had 10 commandments for new farmers. One was "avoid the middleman like the plague and sale direct to your customer". I have found this to be wise. In the last five years as distributors have sprung up in the Austin market, riding on the local wagon, it has hurt the market for farmers that have been there for 20+ years. On the consumer side the prices appear to have been at the same level, however at the producers side the margins have dropped and many new farms have not been able to last more than a few years in business. Distributors are not loyal to farmers as they are price hunting each week for the cheapest products from farmers. They are going to buy from who ever has the lowest price, at lot of time this exploits farmers and drives down prices as desperate farmers compromise and dump products rather than not taking a complete loss of no sales. The lower the distributor can purchase food increases their margins/profits. Another little hint... distributors cannot find enough local food to meet the size of their business and then have the need to rely on organic wholesalers to fill their shares. When they say they offer "local and sustainable" products, "sustainable"=international organics just like what you find at wholefoods. What's sustainable about 1800 miles? I even have to ask what's sustainable about home delivery? The amount of fuel used in this distribution program is not sustainable, however it is more convenient for the customer.

Another interesting observation, as a local farmer we understand the limitation of supply. That's why a CSA farm has a waiting list because we understand that we can only supply a certain number of customers so we limit our business to the size that we can responsibly commit to serving. A distribution company on the other hand focuses more on growing their business and considers supply later. In this way they find the need to compromise what they consider local and then expand their definition. We used to call local 100 miles. Now it is 200 miles and even more. Citrus and melons from the valley. Beef from west Texas, etc. Just because it is from our great state of Texas, is it local? Farmers Markets have also increased their parameters for local as they discover that there just aren't enough local farms in their area. The demand exceeds the supply.

I encourage everyone to buy directly from the farmers. We don't need anyone peddling produce between us. Committing to local farmers and developing relationships is what builds integrity in our local food economy.

I also encourage farmers to work together to serve our community better and to see our local food supply grow.

Visit your farmer and see for yourself what you are getting into.

Farmer Brad
www.homesweetfarm.com
"We grow righteous food"
Brenham, TX

Farmer Brad talks Righteous Food with Dr. Scott

Listen to internet radio with Dr Scott Perlman on Blog Talk Radio

The Rude Food Police

Jenny got an interesting phone call today.  A gentleman calls up without introducing himself (of course we have caller I.D.) asking if we buy any seed from Monsanto (of course not, does this guy know anything about us?).  He continues to challenge Jenny saying that anyone can easily lie.  Jenny invites him to come out during the next Market Day to see the farm and to ask any questions that he has during our free farm tour.  He continues to threaten Jenny saying that he intends to buy some produce and to have it tested for GMOs, which if it tests positive he would be happy to put us out of business.  Well thanks a lot!  Everyone who knows us appreciates the fact that we operate with great transparency, besides our website, blog, facebook, workshops, volunteers, monthly farm tours, radio, newspaper and book interviews not to mention the the time we spend building relationships with our members and volunteer time working to develop sustainable agriculture across the state, its good to know that someone is out their working so diligently to ruin small family farms.

Hey, we encourage folks to ask questions and to get to know their farmer and to visit the farm, but this is the wrong attitude to have.  It's not enough to worry about the government regulations out to get small farmers, but now we have aggressive and rude public inspectors  looking to snuff us out.  So why is our family working so hard to provide righteous food to our community?  Good question.

Rather than have an aggressive attitude that the farmer is the bad guy out to deceive people, maybe you should take the time to get to know your farmer before you make that threatening phone call and accusations.  However, to make it easier for you, here is a link to a lab that tests for GMOs... http://www.genetic-id.com/
Of course you need to realize that GMO crops on the market include corn, soy, cotton, canola, papaya, zucchini, squash, alfalfa, rice, sugar beet and tobacco.  Out of these, we only grow zucchini and squash, but of course the varieties we grow are NOT GMO.  Just hope to save you some money testing our vegetables as the test runs about $500 each and our zucchini and squash will not be available for another month.

I'm glad that our members are generally exceptionally good people looking for REAL food and that we have the right to refuse to do business with such individuals as this over aggressive food policeman.  Maybe he was bored and just trying to be funny, but it is not appreciated.  One word of advise, as a local food inspector you should invest in a brixometer rather than waste money sending vegetables to a lab for GMO testing, but feel free to do both if you see local farmers as untrustworthy individuals and you got the money to waste, just please don't threaten our family farm in the future, we would prefer to do business with people who trust us and believe in the work we are doing.  Life is too short to have to deal with such rude people.

HR2749 - revote

The Food Safety Enhancement Act was barely knocked down today by 8 votes in the House! A short time later, the Rules Committee decided to do a revote the following day, suspending the rules, limiting discussion to an hour, and not allowing any amendments that could clarify who exactly would be regulated and were the generated funds via new registration fees would be spent (not assuring any additional inspections of imported food). This Bill needs to be opposed! We want REAL food safety by better regulating factory farms and inspecting imported food. The small family farmer needs to be exempt and the Feds need to keep their hands off of our local food economy.

Read the latest articles:
US House defeats sweeping reform of food safety (until Thursday's revote)
Find out if your Representative opposed the Bill... click here >>
HR2749 Nearly Passes and Spells The End of Local Food

Sign the petition!

HR2749: A Letter To My Representatives

HR2749, The Food Safety Enhancement Act, going before Congress this week does not address the underlying problems with our food supply. All previous food recalls have been traced back to industrial farming practices and/or uninspected imported food and yet HR2749 does not directly address these issues. Instead it indiscriminately challenges all food providers giving the FDA unchecked powers that will "bully" small family farms and local food artisans out of business.

I urge my representatives to include the Farr-Kaptur amendments that would exempt small-scale on-farm processors selling directly to consumers, require FDA to coordinate with USDA and to consult with the National Organic Program, exempt farms selling directly to businesses from the traceability requirements, and establish a sliding scale for the registration fees.

In Addition to these amendments we need to limit the bill to food being shipped interstate, and explicitly exempt all farms and food processors who are selling only intrastate from all provisions of the bill. We also need to provide an exemption for farms and food processors selling directly to consumers within a local "foodshed", since those who live near a state boundary often have local markets on the other side of that boundary.

Please do the right thing by exempting our few remaining small farms and by specifically regulating the real threat to food safety: the imported and industrial food industry.

Sign the petition!

The Food Safety Enhancement Act - HR2749

Farmer Brad is a special guest on the "Natural Way" with Howard Garrett, the Dirt Dr. Learn about this fast moving bill that may jeopardize our local food supply and organic farming across America.

Market Growers Symposium, Feb 26 & 27

Market Growers Symposium

February 26 & 27, 2009 Brenham, TX

Hosted by: HOMEsweetFARM

Join us for this two-day event designed to help new and experienced market growers get the job done. Network and meet with experts in the field for technical discussions and then experience hands-on farm tours and training to deepen your understanding. Lunch includes seasonal surprises prepared by some of the leading Texas chefs promoting local food…

Dr. Joe Novak Dr. Steven King Bill Adams

Carol Ann Sayle Marla Camp Tatum Evans Ben Godfrey

Suzanne Santos Brad & Jenny Stufflebeam Zach Griffin

Morning sessions are in a classroom setting with technical discussions on diversified vegetable farming, disease and pest controls, grafting, marketing, variety selection and more.

Afternoon sessions will be in the field at HOMEsweetFARM, a 22 acre diversified CSA vegetable farm serving the Houston area. Hands-on applications covering horse power on the farm, greenhouse production, bed preparation, soil amendments, cover crops, rotational grazing, irrigation, equipment, planting techniques, distribution, customer care and much more.

Includes a local/organic lunch filled with seasonal surprises prepared by

Chef Joe Apa of T’afia, Houston and Chef Jesse Griffiths of Dai Due, Austin

Do not miss this unique event!

For more information and to register online visit www.homesweetfarm.com

Call 979-251-9922 Email info@homesweetfarm.com