Buy local, help our nation
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Editor,
I’ve been hearing a lot about small farmers being held hostage by Monsanto through use of their seeds, and farmers who raise crops and animals for big agriculture and are forced to follow environmentally destructive and inhumane practices in order to continue making their living as farmers. A good documentary about the big agriculture industry and how food arrives to our supermarkets is “Food, Inc.” My understanding is that big agriculture is subsidized by the government, which creates an artificially low price for food in the average supermarket.
In order for consumers to know what we are eating, there is a movement to have genetically modified food labeled, which is being opposed by Monsanto, and other big agriculture businesses. GMO food produced by these huge companies is said to contribute to the generation of greenhouse gas pollution and pollute the soil and water with pesticides and chemical fertilizers and toxins. It also increases the cost of food, while reducing nutrition and biodiversity, creating pesticide resistant superbugs and weeds, and generating new and dangerous animal and human diseases.
I see lots of reasons to support the “little guy” – smaller farming operations. In Montana, we have a significant agriculture industry, and there is a growing movement to promote a “buy local” and “farm to table” distribution structure. The more food we buy and consume that is produced locally, the better it is for our Montana economy. If we would increase the amount of local food we purchase from Montana producers by 20 percent, it would keep millions of dollars in the state and create and retain jobs, hopefully save transportation costs and fuel, and would likely be a healthier way to eat. I don’t see a downside (unless you own stock in Monsanto). Buying locally grown food products is one way for us to help ourselves and stop giving our financial power away to huge conglomerate businesses.
Judy Preston
Polson
