Organic foods represent the most rapidly growing segment of the American food industry, says John Ikerd, professor emeritus of agricultural economics at the University of Missouri. As the 21st century progresses, a new post-industrial stage is emerging that he believes is being ushered in by the sustainable movement.
Ikerd will discuss sustainability in a lecture called "Healthy Farms, Healthy Communities" at the nexStage Theatre in Ketchum, at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27. The event is hosted by Idaho's Bounty, a local, community-based organization working with small farms in the region.
Ikerd, who is also the author of "A Return To Common Sense" and "Sustainable Capitalism," was raised on a small dairy farm. Besides his position with the University of Missouri, he has held positions at North Carolina State University, Oklahoma State University and University of Georgia. Since retiring in 2000, he spends most of his time writing and speaking on issues related to sustainability with an emphasis on economics and agriculture.
"There's a whole movement out there," Ikerd said. "We don't need to despair. We need to make some changes by linking together our connection to the soil and our connection to each other."
The sustainability movement includes "sustainable development, sustainable living, sustainable agriculture, sustainable fisheries, sustainable forestry, and sustainable almost any other aspect of our economy or society," Ikerd wrote in an article for Small Farms Today magazine.
Idaho, a largely agricultural state, is farmed both with both sustainable and industrial approaches. "Nothing is more fundamental to a farm, a factory, or an economy than its purpose, and the purposes of industrial and sustainable organizations are very different."
The central purpose of an industrial organization is productivity, while maximizing profits and growth. Meanwhile, the purpose of sustainable organizations is a permanence that manages to balance the ecological, social, and economic dimensions of communities.
"The future will demand a food system fundamentally different from the fossil energy-dependent food system of today," said Judy Hall of Idaho's Bounty. "Thankfully, many people are becoming concerned about the consequences of their food choices, not only for their own health but also for the health of their local economy, their community, and for the future of humanity."
"We all need to be encouraged now and then to do new things," Ikerd said. "We've created an economy that uses things of nature and from society that we're not reinvesting for the longer benefit. It comes down to a matter of energy—this idea of taking away and not putting back. We've created an agricultural society that is a based on (industrialized) energy. In the broader society, the link (between healthy communities and healthy farms) is directly related to agriculture and the ability to feed ourselves. I see the critical challenge as being rooted in how we sustain healthy communities."
In south-central Idaho, there are some farmers, many of whom are connected to Idaho's Bounty, who employ or are moving toward organic, biodynamic, ecological and innovative practices. These farmers typically market livestock and crops to specialized niche markets, or through farmers' markets and community-supported agriculture organizations such as Idaho's Bounty. In turn, these help create an interdependent society that cares about itself and seeks sustainability.
No less than environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has touted Ikerd's expertise.
"For years, John Ikerd's writings and speeches have provided precious insights into the economics of this nation's food system, exploding the myth that factory farms are economically imperative," Kennedy said. "He makes a powerful case for a new capitalistic economy: one that is environmentally sound, socially just, and economically sustainable."
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Sustainability Discussion
What: "Healthy Farms, Healthy Communities."
Who: Professor John Ikerd.
Where: nexStage Theatre, Ketchum.
When: 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27.
Cost: $10 suggested donation.
John Ikerd
