Island Farmers

"Eloquent and detailed...It's hard to have hope, but the organized observations and plans of Hoffman and people like her give me some. Read her book -- and listen." -- Jane Smiley, The Washington Post In her late 40s, Beth Hoffman decided to upend her comfortable life as a professor and journalist to move to her husband's family ranch in Iowa--all for the dream of becoming a farmer. There was just one problem: money. Half of America's two million farms made less than $300 in 2019, and many struggle just to stay afloat. Bet the Farm chronicles this struggle through Beth's eyes. She must contend with her father-in-law, who is reluctant to hand over control of the land. Growing oats is good for the environment but ends up being very bad for the wallet. And finding somewhere, in the midst of COVID-19, to slaughter grass finished beef is a nightmare. If Beth can't make it, how can farmers who confront racism, lack access to land, or don't have other jobs to fall back on hack it? Bet the Farm is a first-hand account of the perils of farming today and a personal exploration of more just and sustainable ways of producing food.

Who grows the food we eat? How important is it that family farms are viable in Canada today and in the future? How do viable family farms help determine the safety, diversity and sustainability of Canada’s food systems? Why is this important to those of us who do not farm? Frontline Farmers introduces readers to the National Farmers Union (NFU). For over fifty years, the NFU has been on the frontlines of our food system. From fighting against transnational corporations that seek to control our food system by imposing genetically modified organisms into our food, to protecting seeds, maintaining orderly marketing, saving the prison farms, keeping the land in the hands of family farmers, farming ecologically and building food sovereignty, the NFU has been front and centre of farm and food activism. This book collects the voices of NFU members who tell the stories of the key struggles of the progressive farm movement in Canada: fighting to build viable rural communities, protecting the family farm and creating socially just and ecologically sustainable food systems. Frontline Farmers reveals that the stakes for controlling our food in Canada have never been higher. The book was made possible with support from the Canada Research Chair Program. For an updated, corrected list of the protagonists from Frontline Farmers, please click here.

Throughout their bountiful history, Vashon Island farmers have faced weevils, frost, hailstorms, war, internment, and other catastrophes by turning adversity to advantage. They survived to pass down a legacy of exciting oral history to coming generations. Now for the first time ever, their stories have been collected into a book by Seattle writer Pamela J. Woodroffe. Read what these farmers say about the following: —the urgency to produce healthy food —leading the standards for raising strawberries, chickens, roses, and fruit trees—losing farms to war and prejudice—the peaceful work ethic of life on a farm—the history and future of sustainable agriculture on a tiny isle in Puget Sound, Washington “Residents of Vashon Island should count themselves lucky to have this painstaking oral history of their agricultural heritage.” Michael Pollan, author of The Botony of Desire: A Plants-Eye View of the World. “A very instructional piece on the history of agriculture and the major changes that agriculture has encountered on Vashon Island over the last several decades.” Eric K. Nelson, King County Agriculture Program Coordinator. “It's good to hear the stories of the new generation of Island farmers who are carrying on the tradition of connecting their community with the land.” Mark Musick, a founder of the Tilth Association, Farmer Liaison with Seattle’s Pike Place Market.