Hens on the farm
As much as I wish I did, I don’t live on a farm. In fact most Americans don’t live on a farm and have become increasingly cut off from the food they consume. Food comes in boxes or bags. Meat comes deboned and deskinned. Many cows are fed grain to fatten them up, and they live in crowded conditions. Many chickens live their lives in windowless sheds. They are packed beak to tail in this horrifying shed. They never see the light of day. And so on. And because they are in so much emotional and physical stress from the unnatural diet and crowded conditions, they are more prone to infection, thus the standard feeding of antibiotics. The products we buy from stores have gone through so much processing that they no longer resemble the food it comes from. In fact, I’ve taken to calling much of the processed food you’ll find at a supermarket a Food Type Product. It just doesn’t seem right to call something made with heavy machinery and chemicals food. It makes me sick. That stuff isn’t food.
I think we need to get that connection back to the farm. We need to see vegetables growing in the garden. We need to see cows out on pasture, and then connect that with the food we eat. I also believe it is important so that we can know and approve of the conditions in which our food is made. I want to make sure that the eggs I eat are from chickens who actually spend time foraging outdoors. Partially because I believe that all animals have the right to be treated with some basic respect, but also because eggs that come from clean conditions, from hens who receive sunlight and are able to forage for bugs and grass and weeds in addition to chicken feed are so much healthier!
In my effort to get closer to the food I eat, I visited one of the farms that provides me with milk, milk, eggs and other homemade or farm grown products. What I found was nothing short of delightful.
