RESCUE OUR FARMS & WE RESCUE OURSELVES NOW

We need to rescue ourselves by rescuing America’s farms. They are disappearing at an alarming rate. As we lose farms, we lose our food & water supplies. American Farmland Trust (AFT) is on a rescue mission to save them -- and thereby help save us all.

We lose 2 acres of farmland to development every minute in the US. That is equivalent to 1.2 million acres of farmland lost every year into strip malls, parking lots and developments.

The best, most productive farmland near urban centers is the first to go. This land produces most of our food (91% of our fruit, 78% of our vegetables).

Of the 2 billion acres of land in the US, ½ is working agricultural land. Less than 20% of that is of high quality. Flat, well-drained, rich land is being overtaken by development the most quickly. Fertile soils require thousands of years to develop, so it can’t be easily replaced.

For the last 30 years, AFT has been working with governments, farmers, and scientists, to promote sustainable agricultural practices, conservation, enhanced productivity, & resource preservation.  

AFT supports Farmers Markets and the farm-to-table movement, promoting closer ties between farmers & the people they feed.

Family farms, such as Blue Dog Family Farm, owned by Shawna & Dennis Wilcox, & Tide Mill Organic Farm, owned by Aaron Bell & Carly DelSignore, are especially important because they typically produce the highest quality food and they are integral to their local communities. They are also the most vulnerable.

For anyone who might think urban housing is more important, consider this: Farms require few municipal services, protect wetlands & watersheds, help maintain air quality, control flooding and contribute $1 trillion to our economy.  And if we have no food, we have no life.

Co-founded in 1980 by Peggy McGrath Rockefeller, the wife of philanthropist David Rockefeller, AFT helped to develop a powerful tool – conservation easements – to keep farmland off limits to developers.

AFT has also developed innovative conservation practices & programs that preserve land, soil and water supplies. To date, AFT has protected well over 5 million acres of farm & ranch land nationwide, as well as the family farmers and ranchers who help to feed us.

Read more about Beautiful Rescues in Beautiful Rescues Ripple Out To Save The World Now and Sea Lion Rescues Save Us All.

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Wayne Stadler. “Harvest Blessing.”
2. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
3. Image: Courtesy of American Farmland Trust.
4. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
5. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
6. Image: Courtesy of Tide Mill Organic Farm. Edmunds, Maine.
7. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
8. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
9. Image: Courtesy of Chester County Government. West Chester, Pennsylvania.
10. Image: Courtesy of American Farmland Trust. “Alstede Farm, Clear Spring, Maryland.”
11. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
12. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.
13. Image: by BN App - Download now!
14. Image: Courtesy of Blue Dog Family Farm. Battle Creek, Michigan.