Should Farming Go Local, Not Global?

This article from Grist raises the question of what would happen to the economic viability of Midwest farms if they kept their neighbors as customers and dropped the far-off corporations that currently keep them afloat.

1 minute read

November 2, 2006, 9:00 AM PST

By Nate Berg

"Like other U.S. citizens, Farm Belt residents increasingly turn to the supermarket, and thus the vast and far-flung industrial networks that supply it, for their sustenance. The region's corn returns to its residents in the form of corn-syrup-sweetened Coca-Cola and corn-fed McDonald's burgers."

"Another, potentially more sustainable, solution would be to rethink what a farm is for. Currently, a typical farm in the Midwest produces inputs for industrial production. What if, instead, farms focused on growing fresh food for their neighbors?"

FULL STORY: Bread Basket Case

Wednesday, November 1, 2006 in Grist

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