The State of Our Farms Address (with Lucinda Cramsley)

The average conventional farm sells their product on the commodity market. Corn, Beef, Soybean, etc. Some random trader in Chicago or New York sets the prices for the whole nation and farmers across the US feel the squeeze. They have to bet on intangibles like inflation and future events like the weather months in advance, which is really impossible to do. The loans they took out in the spring need to be repaid with the fall's harvest. Sometimes what they plant or slaughter isn't even worth the initial investment and time they've put into them.

For instance, during the 80's the US government bought the dairy cows from struggling farmers and dumped them on the beef market. That tanked the beef market for beef producers and put them out of business!

The solution to all this anxiety-producing bet on intangibles and future events is buying direct. Support a farmer who heals the land and sells directly to consumer. They get to keep the entire dollar rather than watch part of it go to a middle man.

Lucinda Cramsley is jumpstarting that revolution. She's something crazy like an 8th generation farmer, whose ancestors used to farm hemp. She's married, but she's not married to the past. Lucinda founded an internet company called "MOINK" ("Moo" and "Oink") that helps farmers sell direct to consumers. It accepts food that meets only the highest pasture-based standards and ensures farmers receive around 800% more than if they sold on the commodity market.