New Documentary Short Shows Healthy, Local Food is the Real Bargain in Michigan
Sept. 29, 2014 Media Contact:
Gail Philbin, 312-493-2384,
gail.philbin@sierraclub.org
Lansing, Mich.— A new documentary short released today by the Less=More sustainable agriculture
coalition demonstrates how the purchase of food from local Michigan farmers who
use healthy, sustainable practices has a greater benefit to local economies,
the environment and public health than products from the conventional
industrial agriculture system.
Local, Healthy Food: The Real
Bargain, a
nine-minute short directed by Traverse City resident Kirk Rasmussen, explores
the economic, environmental and health effects of consumer shopping choices
through interviews with farmers, academic researchers and other experts in
Michigan. The film is available online at http://tinyurl.com/TheRealBargain.
“Say a
dollar is spent in a certain community, 73 cents on that dollar stays in that
community, as opposed to spending money at a non-locally owned business -- only
42 cents on a dollar stays in the community,” explains Hanna Schulze, program
and events coordinator at Local First in Grand Rapids, a non-profit that
supports local, sustainable economies. That translates to local jobs created,
money circulated and more local investment, she says.
Jill
Johnson of Crane Dance Farm, a Middleville livestock farmer interviewed in the
film, proves Schulze’s point. “We try to buy everything we can as locally as
possible because, just like our customers want to buy food from us because they
know us and trust us, we buy things from people we know and we trust. All of
our grain comes from farmers that grew it that we know.”
Schulze
notes that consumers are accustomed to thinking food should be inexpensive because
of its wide availability and a lack of understanding about what makes it is so
cheap.
“Why
should I spend $9/pound on ground beef when I can go to XYZ store and get it
for $2/pound. We’re not asking ourselves why is it $2/pound,” she says.
Local, Healthy Food: The Real
Bargain answers
Schulze’s question—economies of scale give industrial agriculture and
especially large-scale animal facilities known as factory farms a huge
advantage over small-scale, local producers using earth-friendly farming
practices. In addition, mega “farms” that confine livestock in warehouses often
for their entire lives or in crowded, open feedlots get substantial taxpayer
subsidies--often for handling animal waste-- their sustainable counterparts
don’t receive. A 2013 report issued by
Less=More offered evidence that even when poor disposal practices of the
millions of gallons of chemical- and contaminant-filled wastes Michigan factory
farms generate lead to pollution of water, land and air, and violations of
state and federal environmental laws, they still receive taxpayer support.
Less=More defines sustainable agriculture as a
system that emphasizes stewardship of natural and human resources and grounded
in the principle that we must meet our present food needs without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own. Sustainable agriculture
protects and improves the soil, conserves native biodiversity and habitats, and
provides viable farm livelihoods as a consequence of food production.
Sustainable farms are appropriate for the landscape and the local economy and
produce safe, healthy food, treat workers with respect and animals humanely,
and sustain communities.
In Local, Healthy Food: The Real Bargain,
Catherine Badgley, a University of Michigan assistant professor in ecology and
evolutionary biology, points out that buying local, sustainable food is a growing
movement in Michigan. “But it’s more expensive than the cheaply grown food produced
by industrial food system. When you think about all the different things that [buying
local is] supporting—you’re supporting the local economy, environmental
quality, better health for us, higher animal welfare, it’s really a bargain.”
The
film’s director, Kirk Rasmussen, is a student in Grand Valley State
University’s film program, who served as an intern last summer for the Sierra
Club Michigan Chapter, which is a member of
Less=More. He says he learned a great deal from making the documentary.
"I
found I really had started making the film for myself, regarding the struggles
of being constantly bombarded by indecision when it came to purchasing food on
a tight budget,” says Rasmussen. “Less=More’s mission to create change around
livestock production and local economies brought me into contact with a group
of truly inspiring people that helped me to answer these questions.”
Less=More is a sustainable agriculture coalition
tackling the inequity of Farm Bill subsidies in Michigan that favor polluting
factory farms over safe, sustainable livestock farms at the expense of the
environment and public health. In 2013, the coalition released a report, Restoring
the Balance to Michigan’s Farming Landscape, that explores the
relationship between Farm Bill subsidies and factory farm pollution in
Michigan. To download Restoring the Balance, visit: http://tinyurl.com/L-Mreport.
Less=More is comprised of national, state and
local organizations and farmers, including: Beery Farms of Michigan, the Center
for Food Safety, Crane Dance Farm, ELFCO Food Cooperative, Environmentally
Concerned Citizens of South Central Michigan, Food & Water Watch, Greater
Grand Rapids Food Systems Council, Groundswell Farm, Humane Society of the
United States, Michigan Small Farm Council, Michigan Student Sustainability
Coalition, Michigan Voices for Good Food Policy, Michigan Young Farmers
Coalition, Sierra Club Michigan Chapter and Socially Responsible Agricultural
Project.
Less=More is made possible in part by support
from the Irwin Andrew Porter Foundation.
