CHOOSE REGENERATIVE FARMS
“A significant part of the pleasure of eating is of one’s accurate consciousness of the lives and the world from which the food comes.”
-Wendell Berry
1. Choose REGENERATIVE farms for your meat, poultry, dairy and produce purchases. You want to look for farms that are “giving back” to the soil. They can do this through less tilling of the soil, regenerative grazing of animals through the crops, growing many different types of plants in one area to support an ecosystem, crop rotation etc. Regenerative beef farms actually help the environment as opposed to hurting it with excessive carbon emissions. The earth's soil was meant to be trampled by large groups of hoofed animals, it is a symbiotic dance that needs to occur for nature to be in balance. By choosing to consume this type of meat, dairy and produce, we as individuals will be impactful in saving the environment and the earth. This is where it starts, with every small choice you make. Not to mention, the product you are getting is FAR superior to conventional, sustainable or organic products. In the Bay Area I order meat from Stemple Creek Farms and try to buy vegetables and fruit from farms on Good Eggs that I have researched. Not all of my choices can be regenerative, but I aim for at least 30-40%.
How to find regenerative farms
Use this great map to find local farms:
https://regenerationinternational.org/regenerative-farm-map#
In the drop down menus you can choose what type of food you are looking for, farm certifications like ROC (Regenerative Organic Certified) or Demeter Biodynamic, etc, and then the area you are searching within.
For example in Petaluma I found Rusty Hinges Ranch that raises pigs, sheep, goats and chickens through rotational grazing over 113 acres. Focused on soil improvements while starting new farming activities, including annual and perennial plants.
Read more about Regenerative farms HERE.