The Rural Voice, 2001-04, Page 7listened to as intently as the largest
producer. By the same token, I' have
learned much from those with many
more acres than ours, which includes
some good neighbours. Not all
agribusiness shuns the little guy
either. Our local co-op staff willingly
serves us just as they do the biggest
operator. Extension people and
college instructors have spent
considerable time with me when they
could just as easily ignore my
discussions on some "small-scale"
subject. Older farmers have helped
and encouraged us too, maintaining
the basic principles of good farming,
hard work and thoughtful planning,
can still make a successful operation,
whatever the size and regardless of
what modern rhetoric would have us
believe.
I am not necessarily knocking
modern technology or larger farms,
I'm just saying small farms can
continue to thrive and survive, as
they have throughout agricultural
history. In these times of big bucks
and unlimited expansion, it is easy to
ignore the small guys, but somewhere
out there, they are still milking a few
cows, filling small corncribs, selling
a pig or two and putting money in the
bank. Of course, it helps to hear it
said once in awhile.
For those who are trying to be
small farmers, I recommend not only
listening to all the positive advice you
can get, but to take up a bit of
reading. Gene Logsdon's Contrary
Farmer, Making Small Farms
Profitable by Ron Macher, Joe
Salatin's You Can Farm, Raising
Small -Scale Livestock by Carol
Ekarius and Kelly Klober's A Guide
to Raising Pigs are excellent sources
of current information and
encouragement.0
Earle Johnston
Palmyra, Ontario
Deadline for the
May Issue of
The Rural Voice
is
April 18, 2001
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L I M I T E a
APRIL 2001 3