In Wendell Berry’s Conservationist and the Agrarian, Berry explores the different levels of commercial farming and its effects upon the environment. He presents the smaller farm as a more appropriate choice in promotion of sustainable food systems. Berry also puts forth control systems that are “commercialising with unprecedented haste and aggression in order to grow the world’s food supply” (68).
Over the last few years I have learned a great deal about the food system that the vast majority of the population benefits from. I had to, as I have a now six year old son who was experiencing major behavioral issues. Through a variety of different types of assessments through the traditional medical system I was advised to put him on medication. Which I chose not to do. Eventually through a holistic health practitioner it was determined that he had food sensitivities. Within 24 hours of cleaning out the cupboards and starting to eat only food that had no colorings or preservatives there was an enormous difference in his behavior. This got me really thinking about the impact that food available to us in grocery stores is having on our population and how it may be affecting our mental capacity and overall general health.
One of the questions that I have thought of and asked often in relation to some of the environmental destruction that continues and despite the mountains of evidence that these projects are having upon our planet. A population controlled in a variety of ways including nutritional deficiency is one of these controls and could be an answer to the unbalances in our population today. It is definitely something to consider and also supports Berry’s call for a return to a smaller more sustainable food production measures.