The Biggest Little Farm

Yesterday I saw The Biggest Little Farm, starring John and Molly Chester.

John and Molly are married, living a pleasant life in the city. Molly is a personal chef; John is a documentarian. On one of his assignments, he films a home with an animal hoarder and falls in love with one of the dogs. He and Molly end up adopting said dog, Todd, and soon run into trouble because he won't stop barking. After many unsuccessful attempts to correct the dog's behavior, they're evicted from their apartment and decide to build a completely new life.

The couple buy a farm an hour north of Los Angeles and with the help of a dedicated mentor, commit themselves to reviving the land by farming using old-school methods that are kinder to the environment. This documentary chronicles their first seven years on the farm and all of the tragedy and victory that came with it. From pigs that won't eat to coyotes that murder their ducks and chickens, there's never a dull moment

Throughout the story, thankfully told chronologically, we recognize how idealistic and naive the couple were to start this venture with no previous farming experience, but also root for them because they refuse to give up regardless of the challenges they face. There is never a direct reference to climate change, but I sat there silently thanking them each time they "won" a bit of nature back (i.e. area bees returning and thriving). What they're doing all farmers should be doing.

The animals become family members, the lush landscapes provide both a peaceful retreat and an endless supply of headaches (some more dangerous than you may think) and every moment is entertaining whether you've ever had the desire to live on a farm yourself (I personally, have not).

At one point when their pig, Emma, is giving birth to what seems like an endless amount of piglets, Molly smiles with delight and says "I love our life!"

I, for one, loved watching their life.

~~~

Food, Inc.

Today I saw the Robert Kenner documentary Food, Inc.

You may want to put down that bucket of fast food chicken before you head out to the theater to see this film. I'm not saying it won't still taste good, but you'll probably regret it after the fact.

This documentary tells us all what we would already know if folks toured chicken farms as often as they do chocolate factories: some of the stuff in our food supply is bad. Real bad.

None of this came as a shock to me. As huge fan of Bill Maher, I hear him bark about high fructose corn syrup and the dangers of over-processed food on an almost weekly basis. For the past 10 years I've either driven to Canada to purchase my Coca-Cola, or picked up the Mexican version at my local Costco (our non-American friends use sugar instead of corn syrup to make their Coke, so it tastes like the good old stuff we used to get as kids). I also seldom eat trans fats, buy organic, and have greatly reduced (but I'll confess, not eliminated) my trips to fast food restaurants. I do it more for my own health than any political reason.

But is it enough?

I'm not sure. What I am sure of is that I don't agree with the way animals are being treated before they're taken to slaughter. This film shows us evidence that chickens are usually kept out of daylight for the duration of their very short lives (just over a month in most cases) and cows are fed corn when they really should subside on grass. In the early days of farming and meatpacking, when the business was smaller, the practices were actually quite decent. But when the processing plants grew larger to accommodate the rapidly successful fast food enterprises, all of the standards went out the door.

That's not to say there aren't still ethical farmers using humane methods of farming and processing, but I'm afraid they all may be in this movie. All three of them.

Really, corn is taking over the world (seriously—it's in everything from diapers to batteries) and really should just be enjoyed in its original form: on the cob.

The other big problem is the lawmakers who make special exceptions for the food industry (did you know it's a felony to trash beef in Colorado?) by neglecting to establish stricter food safety practices and not adequately labeling genetically altered food.

What can we do to turn this all around? The filmmaker says: Buy local. Buy organic. Vote with your wallet.

I think I will.