This was a piece I was asked to write for the Sunday Times last weekend:

The start of a new growing season is upon us, and it always fills me with a sense of hope for the future. The plants will grow, and in a few short months we will be harvesting some of Ireland’s finest bounty. As with many growers, and food producers up and down the country this is a key time, but this year it feels different; the costs of producing food are skyrocketing, there is a sense of nervousness, the price of inputs are up and at the same time there is a squeeze on prices to meet the demands of the big retailers. And sometimes the sums just do not add up.

What does all this mean for a little country that is intensely reliant on food imports for its survival? As a food producing nation it seems we actually produce relatively little of what we eat, importing a staggering 77% of our food. We have been concentrating and focusing for many years now on developing an intensive and export driven meat and dairy industry, and as the intensification of the industry has accelerated, it has become more reliant on imported grain to sustain the national herd, with 60% of said grain imported. That equates to 3.47 million tonnes of grain feed imported into Ireland every year to feed our animals.

Our food security as a nation has been brought into the limelight as Charlie Mc Conalogue the minister for agriculture stated during the week.“Food security is really important over the next number of weeks and months and it is something we have to work together on.” Well Charlie, I think it is pretty important just about all the time, and it is unfortunate that the tragic events of the last month are required to bring what food we produce and how we produce it onto centre stage.

Irish farmers were asked last week to consider the idea of growing grain and fodder crops to help feed our population and our burgeoning dairy and beef herd. But the necessary skills cannot be magicked up over-night, it takes time, specialised machinery and experience to learn to grow crops on a reasonable scale.

It’s a pity then that Charlie does not turn his focus on the below cost selling practice by supermarkets which has weakened our non-export focused food industry and is causing more primary food producers to struggle to sustain their enterprises. The Jim Powers economics report published this week, states that retail prices compression threatens the viability of Irish horticulture which could lead to even more reliance on imports to feed our nation. The most recent national field vegetable census showed that the number of field vegetable growers fell from 377 in 1999 to 165 in 2014. That is a contraction of 56%

These skills are lost for ever, and once they are gone are difficult to replace.

If we don’t want to end up being a nation even more reliant on imports maybe we should shift our focus from an export dominated beef and dairy industry, to an industry that produces more crops destined for consumption at home and pay the farmer a fair price for the food. Surely that would allow us to invest and build a more secure and resilient food system.

Kenneth

How many more horticultural enterprises organic or otherwise need to go to the wall before we realise it is too late?

A very significant report has been commissioned by the IFA and published this week: the Jim Power Economics’ report states ‘Retail Price Compression Threatens the Viability of Irish Horticulture’. In other words loss leading and below cost selling of fresh produce is putting Irish farmers out of business. 

The report’s findings are far from surprising and many primary producers up and down the country will tell you, the power that large retailers hold is enormous. They have hollowed out the horticulture industry here in Ireland and it is in real danger of closing it’s doors for good unless there is meaningful change. 

It states that farmers are the weakest link in the supply chain, they have the least say in what they get for the food they grow.

Imagine the food we eat, put into our bodies, the very stuff that makes us tick and to a large extent will dictate how long we will live, our fresh food as far as supermarkets are concerned should cost as close to zero as possible.  Are we all complicit in this race to the bottom though?

It is why in part that we ditched supply to the supermarkets all those years ago, in the famous words of Frank Sinatra we decided “to do it our own way”.  It isn’t all roses either here as we are constantly competing with the very idea that food should be cheap, and we cannot compete with the supermarkets. 

But it really is only through your support, by reading this, by supporting our business and farm week in week out that we are still here and have expanded our farm and continue to grow healthy happy food, whilst nurturing the land for 16 years.

The report goes on to say:

“A cheap food policy is not a sensible food policy”

It singles out the discounters as the main driver that have severely undercut the price given to Irish farmers, and as a result all other major retailer have had to follow suit to stay competitive. The end result is less for the farmer. This year the second biggest Brussel sprout farmer in Ireland closed his doors for good as the price he was getting for his food meant his business was unsustainable.

I really wonder how many of those farmers that adorn the walls of the supermarket aisles have forced smiles on their faces for fear of losing their contracts? 

As real costs increase and as the price the farmer gets paid for the produce decreases how does that equation end up? Yesterday we paid over €2000 for agri diesel for our tractors, last year it was less than half that.  It clearly is not sustainable.

Where will all this end, I wonder? Well maybe, just maybe, it will end with change, and with more and more people making the choice to support local food where possible, even if it costs more (and yes in these times that is a big ask). 

But the benefits are immense: Local food means better food, healthier food, local jobs, local enterprise in rural areas, higher nutritional content, better flavour.  If it is organic too then the health benefits and the benefits to the planet are surely worth something too?

Kenneth

A sense of possibility and new beginnings is naturally in the air in Spring. On the farm, maybe it is the start of the new plant and seed arrivals that kindles this feeling, there is a sense that we can do things better this year, that we will try a little harder to get things right, that all will be well in the end.

Nature is waking up, the birds are singing, the daffodils are blooming, the new leaves are beginning to unfurl on the trees. The extra daylight means that life cycles are changing and growth increasing, it is a natural rhythm, and it resonates on a subconscious level if you let it.

Even our lovely new season salad is responding well to the extra light, and we will be harvesting our first crop of the new season next week.

The sun is higher in the sky and on clear days you can feel the first tendrils of warmth, there is more power too in its rays, the plants respond to it, we respond to it and the solar panels on our shed respond to it!

Frequently now we can see plants growing, hear the birds singing and the insects buzzing well before it is time. This can be symbolic of a world out of sync and it has ramifications for all living systems.

Planning a season of vegetable growing on the farm becomes more of a gamble as the natural order we rely on can change unpredictably and dramatically.

The change in our weather is a complex global problem, and the solutions too will necessitate change on a global level. But maybe the solutions are also simpler that we think, down at the level of you and I there is much that can be done.

Sometimes it seems to me that simple, traditional solutions can be overlooked. Planting trees is one of the simplest ways to help redress the balance, something we have done quite a bit of over the last number of years.

By supporting local food growers like us and the range of other growers we source from, you too are doing your bit to tackle the climate crisis.

The prediction of the weather for the year ahead was often associated with a saying closely tied to trees:

“Ash before oak you are in for a soak, oak before ash you are in for a splash”.

We are watching this closely, as yet there is no news… Nevertheless, if living and farming in the west of Ireland has taught me one thing it is that the weather is unpredictable it changes fast and sometimes when you least expect it, it surprises you.

Kenneth

PS Thanks, to your generosity over the last two weeks in donating to the Ukraine crisis. We will announce the final figure next week, but currently we have raised with your help just over €4500 for the Ukraine appeal. Thank you so much.

What a week it’s been. It seems wrong to feel you are struggling with everyday issues when there are such terrible things going on in the world, and yet life goes on. We still need to get up and do our jobs and get on with all the other things that life brings to our door.

As we push on into 2022 it is hard to know which way to look to understand what kind of a year it will be. A few weeks back there was plenty of reasons to be optimistic, finally we were emerging from a dark period and there was a sense of relief and hope for the future, much of that now seems to have changed.

Our heart here on the farm has gone out to the people of Ukraine, and there have been some emotional discussions, and discussion too about what we can do as a small business to help. We decided there certainly were things we could do, easily and quickly, so we did them. We have changed our donation box to the “Ukraine donation box” it is €30 and we are topping up the value by an extra €10 for each box. We are also donating €1 for each delivery we make this week (and next). All of the money raised will be given to UNICEF Ireland. We have decided to keep the appeal going for another week and we have already raised close to €3000! So, thank you so much to all who have bought a donation box or received a delivery this week.

I have found at times this week as the real pressures of business bear down and the cost of living and the inflationary pressures increase that there is no where to turn to. We seem to be caught in a perfect storm, we are in the food production and delivery business, the cost of everything has gone up so much, it is eye watering as I am sure most of you are feeling these cost of living pressures too.

We have been looking at this issue every which way you can imagine and have been trying to keep things on an even keel. We are doing what we can, if you look in the special section of our website you will see discounts on some of the staple products, it may not be much but it is a start and hopefully a help. Remember too we deliver to your door and if that means you save a trip in car not only are you helping the planet now you will also be saving money.

While all of these things are flying around in my head I find that there is always one thing that gives me an unequivocal feeling of progress, hope and optimism for the future and that is the farm. The season is starting again we have ploughed our first fields, we have sown our first crops, we are planting our first plants the week after St. Patricks week. The earth smells wonderful, the birdsong is amazing and the break in the clouds to give us the most amazing blue skies with a frosty farmscape have been intoxicating.

So, whenever things are getting that little bit too much, remember you have been one of the people that have contributed to nearly €3000 for people who need it much more that we do, and the fresh air, the blue sky and the earth beneath our feet are always there we just need to stop and look.

Here’s to a great St Patrick’s week ahead.

Kenneth

PS There is also a 15% off all of our orders for next week just use the code “STPADDYS” when you order.

From the farm or IRISH this week: Potatoes, leeks, spinach, kale, mushrooms, parsnips, cabbage (3 types), purple sprouting broccoli, celeriac, swede and chard.

Also Remember we are not delivering by courier next week as DPD are not operating on Thursday or Friday.