Eric Herm’s book, Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth, was reviewed in Sunday’s, January 9th, edition of the San Antonio Express-News.  The review is by Ed Conroy.  I’ve enclosed the review below:

“Eric Herm, a fourth generation cotton farmer currently working on the family farm near the West Texas town of Ackerly eloquently offers a cautionary tale in his important first book for those of us who take for granted plentiful, relatively inexpensive food at the supermarket.
He succinctly sums up the message of the first half of his book on Page 15, saying “If we persist in following the model of commercial agriculture, we are destined to fail.”
In three engagingly written and well-researched opening chapters dealing successively with the issues farmers face with seed, soil, rain and water, Herm produces a powerful critique of the problems caused by a model of agriculture increasingly reliant upon genetically modified organisms and pesticides.
He also tells the reader a lot about what the world looks like to a 36-year-old man who got off the farm to get an education in journalism, traveled the world, worked as a sports broadcaster, and decided to return to the farm with a new wife (and now a son), where his father and mother still work and live.
In short, he argues that “commercial agriculture” is slowly ruining vital resources to the point where another American Dust Bowl and other farming disasters — such as the continued collapse of commercial bee colonies — are not inconceivable.
Herm offers a wealth of information about growing practices known as permaculture, alternative ways to deal with insect pests, and rainwater harvesting, together with long lists of related books and websites that open up a multitude of possibilities for farmers and gardeners alike.
Having taken the reader to the point where it appears reasonable to have serious concerns about commercial agriculture, Herm launches into a series of prescriptions for curing what ails not only the farm but American society as a whole.
In his book’s second half, Herm leaves the terra firma he knows so well to tackle questions of money, government and social organization and what he foresees as the inevitable end of a petroleum-based economy.
It is here that some of his prescriptions lack the same kind of fact-based research and historical perspective as his analysis and critique of American agriculture.
Rather than analyzing in depth current federal agricultural policies and offering specific alternatives to them, including incentives for getting more young people involved in farming, Herm provides a 10-point guide to the American farmer that centers on disengaging from the mainstream economy and “getting smaller.”
He doesn’t quite say how to do so without going out of business.
On the other hand, his advocacy for cultivation of hemp (not the psychoactive kind) as a source of energy, food and clothing makes a lot of sense.
One does not have to agree with Eric Herm’s prognostications and prescriptions to see that his analysis of American agriculture’s problems is trenchant and troubling.
We can hope this book will add to the consciousness of the need for good food as the key to good health already being encouraged by Michael Pollan, Bill McKibben and many other writers — and spark a healthy debate about the future of the American farm.”

Ed Conroy is a San Antonio writer and critic.

Eric Herm, author of Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth was interviewed yesterday on The Leonard Lopate Show.

Listen to the interview here.

Theodore Poulis, Dreamriver Press publisher, was recently interviewed by the Green Bus Tour. The Green Bus Tour is a group of sustainability experts, musicians, artists, yogis & healers on a mission to inspire a culture of conscious living. Green Bus will reach millions of people through live events, online media and collaborative commerce. Visit the Green Bus Tour website to find out more: www.greenbustour.com

See the interview below.

Monday – November 22nd, 7:00 pm
The Commons, 388 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217

What is the current state of commercial agriculture? How to build a healthy and sustainable future, that interconnects farming and community.


Join us along with:

Eric Herm, 4th generation farmer from Western Texas, and author of Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth (Dreamriver Press).

Judith LaBelle, President of Glynwood, which empowers communities in the North East to support farming and save farmland.

Dan Miner, longtime peak oil activist, volunteer organizer with Post Carbon Institute and 350.org, and past Chair of Sierra Club NYC.

Cheryl Rogowski, farmer, The Rogowski Farm, Pine Island, NY.

Co-sponsored by:
Brooklyn Food Coalition
Slow Food NYC
TriState Food Not Lawns
Neighborhood Energy Network

Suggested donation: $ 5

Subway – Train:
Hoyt-Schermerhorn; A, C and G
Bergen Street; F
Atlantic-Pacific; B, M, Q, R, 2, 3, 4 and 5
Flatbush Avenue; LIRR

Bus: B63 and B65

For more information call 718-715-4365. Connect to this event on Facebook.

Eric Herm, author of Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth will be a guest on Blue Planet Almanac radio on Monday, July 26th, at 11:00 am ET. Listen the show live on HealthyLive.net.

Eric will be interviewed by host, Mike Austin. The program will include two other guests. As stated on Blue Planet Almanac’s site:

“Sustainability is cross-disciplinary. From anywhere you stand you could pick up a figurative pebble or rock, toss it as lightly or hard and you like, and strike a subject which involves environmentalism, its law, policy, farming, food, water or a myriad other important things. Environmental lawyer Bruce Rich, American farmer Eric Herm, and personal development wizard Mick Quinn will explain the interactions of those things for us.”

For a more detailed description please visit the Blue Planet Almanac website. It should an interesting and very informative show.

Since recently reading one of my favorite Author’s articles on the exact same topic of Happy Cows, I thought I’d put my thoughts down on the subject as well.  Since the swindlers are advertising Milk now as well as Cheese in Happy Cow, California …. (actually those commercials are filmed in New Zealand). I am a little bit more frustrated about this entire fabrication.

Happy Cows come from California

The television commercial, “Happy Cows come from California” airs on National television at least daily, in several different scenarios. The central commercial is depicting female milk cows in a beautiful pasture scene talking about how wonderful their lives are in California, sometimes introducing a new cow from another state raving about the weather and how beautiful it is there. The ad goes on to claim “Great cheese comes from happy cows. Happy cows come from California” portrayed in big bold words on your screen.

Surveys have proven the effectiveness of the inclusion of animals into an advertisement, photo or commercial. (Think Geico/gecko or the Aflac duck).  It draws the viewers’ attention to the ad by using a subject that creates an emotional response, as most people love animals. This ad is also playing on the heartstrings of people who are concerned with animal welfare but who are unaware of the reality of the dairy business. The industry that is spending billions of dollars on these advertisements appears to be trying to influence people into believing that their production of dairy is humane and safe. This could not be further from the truth. A huge percentage of people eat cheese, so their target audience is the general consumer, i.e. anyone who shops for and consumes food. This ad is also making an effort to ease consumers’ concern for ethics in dairy production practices.

The commercial is focused on an idyllic scene of cows in a grassy green pasture with rolling hills, a few oak trees scattered around for shade, a sunny day and blue sky with white puffy clouds and a red, old-fashioned barn in the background – typical of a Norman Rockwell painting. The cows are smiling and seemingly happy. All of the cows pictured are Holstein bred cows (black and white), which are the most common milk cow used today. They are exceptionally clean and give the impression of being well fed, both physically and emotionally, and appear to be living a life of bliss.

The Milk Advisory Board paying for these commercials is obviously trying to thwart any notion of abuse or misuse of these beautiful and peaceful creatures because evidence has proven otherwise. (1) This ad also appears to be a reaction to the many lawsuits filed against the industry for inhumane treatment by the groups attempting to hold them accountable for their actions. (2) This ad also appears to be a huge endeavor to keep afloat in a seriously drowning industry. The milk industry is experiencing a downturn in business as more and more dairy farms are closing regularly. (3) It seems that keeping cows alive and well enough to produce 100 times the milk that would naturally be produced for their offspring, with added antibiotics, bovine growth hormones and all the other foreign garbage they feed them is costing them a fortune. Cows continue to die prematurely at an alarming rate as a consequence of their maltreatment and the industries profits die right along with them.

False advertising is a crime, however, considering that the bovine sensibilities and pain thresholds are difficult to prove since they cannot speak, the milk industry, since winning one arm of the lawsuit brought to them by PETA, has the OK from the legal system to continue to air these commercials. The Milk Advisory Board is trying to appeal to their viewers sense of ethics and morals by relieving consciences for the consumption of inhumane animal products in an effort to help the industry look beautiful, kind, loving and oh-so responsible. Their appeal to consumers is an attempt to provide proof – via these commercials – that their dairies and products are safe and nutritious. That most consumers cannot live without the protein or outstanding health benefits they supply. Unfortunately they have reached deep into their pockets to put out some of the most blatant lies ever aired on television.

The fact that advertisers in all facets of our lives try to ‘trick’ us into buying their products by appealing to some deeply seeded need or deceptive emotional requirement is absolutely unethical. What is even more astonishing is that a large percentage of consumers fall for the ads. We all purchase products without further research, trusting that these companies deliver what they are selling. We as consumers have to learn that not a single ad on television in newspapers or magazines can be trusted.

The illegal ad practice known as  “failure to inform” is what is being used in the “Happy Cow” commercials; however, there are probably a few others not identified. False advertising has become big business and a consumer nightmare.

The point is that it is shameful that this type of deceit exists at all.  Most people like myself are easily fooled when it comes to merchandise that promises to make us look and feel younger, thinner, grow more hair, even have better sex.  Most of these things tempt customers to purchase based on the premise that these products will work.  Why?  Because the advertisement stated that it would. I think as consumers, we have to realize that there is a heck of a lot of deception going on out there in the marketing and advertising industry.

What the Happy Cow commercials are selling is good clean dairy food, namely cheese. Dairy is a food that is very detrimental to the human body.  The Milk Advisory Board knows this; they have all seen the reports, statistics and the evidence of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and a host of other ailments that their products cause. (4) But ethics and responsibility fly out the window when the bottom line is money. How much money can they make with these contemptible commercials? How many more people can they fool into purchasing their products? Plenty. Their ads are effective and their tactics are working. In researching some comments on this ad from Happy Cow websites, most people who comment state they “just love” these commercials. Some even believe that this is the life cows lead in dairy farms. Most don’t even get up or change the television channel when the ad airs. They think the cows and the scenarios are adorable and the ad is appealing to the audiences’ pathos and in many cases logos.

I think we must become smarter and wiser than succumbing to these deceptive advertisements. That is the bottom line in fighting this trickery, not buying the products that do not project truth, which fuels their pockets to do more of the same.

1.            Advocacy for Animals;

2007 The big Business of Dairy Farming; Big trouble for cows

http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2007/06/dairy-farming/

Unhappy cows come from California:

(http://tinyurl.com/yaj854o) or (http://www.unhappycows.com/)

2        UnhappyCows.com: 2010 PETA Takes “Happy Cows” Lawsuit to Higher                                                             Court. www.peta.org/feat/caldairy/index.html

3      Burnett, John – NPR

2009 Independent Farmers feel Squeezed by Milk Cartel

http://tinyurl.com/ncnalq

4.            Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM)

2010 Health Concerns about Dairy Products

http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/dairy.html

Thelma and Beauty

The animals I am lucky enough to share my life with – never cease to amaze me with the kindness they show to one another.  Of course there is the occasional misunderstanding, or pecking order disagreement, but generally the chickens, turkeys, ducks, peacocks and all of the others are simply amazing in the love and kindness, even empathy – shown to one another.

The photo that is attached shows Thelma, one of the turkey’s I have adopted, and Beauty, an older Rhode Island Red chicken who has been with me her entire life…

Beauty is getting old by chicken standards, and it shows it in her walk -  a slight limp and a very slow methodical manner of getting around is what can be seen from the outside.  She is very trusting and sweet, and comes to humans for pets on occasion.  She sometimes gets picked on by the younger chickens.  But, Thelma is having none of that.  She actually sits next to Beauty, sometimes covering her with a wing in a protective pose and when anyone comes around to touch Beauty’s food or thinks about picking on her, Thelma puts herself between Beauty and the other animal.   When I see this, it displays love in a fashion that I wish I knew more of in this world.

Thelma passes up some of the treats I throw outside, something that most fowl will never do, in order to stay close to Beauty.  It is astonishing how kind and gentle turkeys are, it took me awhile to realize they were such loving, kind and gentle beings.  They have always been aloof, even to me, who raised them as babies,  but to take on an older chicken to protect is beyond any kindness or empathy I would’ve imagined from a turkey.  One of the “labeled”  creatures for being the least intelligent.  There is no stupidity in any turkey I have ever known. In fact, I’ve known more unintelligent human beings.

I am continually amazed at turkeys.  They move in a slow and steady manner, never getting ruffled or excited, unless threatened by a peacock or an aggressive rooster, and even then, they perk up their feathers, show a little strength, and go on their merry way.  Not ever have I seen a turkey actually attack or try to harm another animal who lives on this farm.

In the mornings when I open the pen to allow them their freedom, they are graceful and excited to be free and enthusiastically run toward the feeding area making excited cooing sounds…they usually spend their days dust bathing, picking at plants and grass and are peaceful and quiet creatures.

I cannot imagine ever doing any harm to any of these loving birds.  I rescue them, but I would never consider eating them.  I imagine what their brothers and sisters, OUR brothers and sisters for that matter are enduring in factory farms and slaughterhouses.  These gentle birds constantly suffering makes me very sad.  That someone could do harm to another creature who by nature protects older chickens – sickens me.  I wish I could save them all.

Instead, I plea to others who do not have the opportunity to know turkeys the way that I do, to take my word – and to please help them too.  Start by not eating them.  Our food industry is consumer driven.  The more of us that refrain from purchasing these beloved animals in those plastic wrapped packages, the more our voices will ring out that we don’t agree with the lives these animals lead.

Interesting ideas on transitioning to local economic models. Find out more by visiting Transition Culture.