Today, I wrote an email to the office of Representative Lee Terry. He is the Congressman for my district, and I want him to know that I oppose the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. This Act has the potential to overregulate everyone who produces food, and I believe that it will not address the true issues of safe food.

Also, it was organized by the very chemical-producing, gene-altering behemoth you have heard about in Food Inc. and other media outlets.

You can find your Representative’s information here.

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As a constituent and beginning farmer, I urge you to vote against the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009. I have read the language of the bill and have participated in many discussions about it. I have no faith that it will positively impact our food production system in any way.

Clean food starts with clean farms. This means smaller farm sizes, not more regulation. No one can maintain a clean feedlot operation of 50,000 cattle or chickens.

I understand that you have donors who will tell you otherwise. However, I urge you and your peers to vote against this Act. It will harm the very people who strive to improve their communities by participating in food production.

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the word “cost.” In most instances, when we talk about the cost of something, we are really referring to money. The cost of health care. The cost of gas. The cost of food.

Today, I saw a real estate listing for farmland near our farm. There are no buildings on it. Just land. How much is it worth? Well, it is currently zoned agricultural, but the listing touted it as perfect for development. Hmm.

This farm is being listed for $21,000 per acre, which means this 154-acre “farm” costs $3,234,000. The current tax assessment (yes, I looked) is $266,700. So, in the eyes of the owner and the real estate agent, this property is worth nearly $3 million more as another bunch of houses than as a farm.

Money aside, what does this cost? What is the non-monetary value of this land?

Kelly and I got into farming out of our interests in food, gardening and ecological concepts. We want to help people connect with their food and develop a sense of ownership with this farm. We want to raise our children in an environment where they can be free to explore the natural world.

We want to make a living as farmers, certainly. But there is no way for a beginning farmer to take a loan for $3 million dollars to grow varied food crops and raise animals kindly. For centuries, families around the world combined their efforts and incomes to buy land and farm communally. They passed it down to their children so that everyone could benefit from their labor and contribute to future generations.

Through our national desire for expansion and economic development, we have lost the concept of shared value. What does this cost?

Currently, Kelly and I are incredibly fortunate to rent our farm from people who understand the value of two generations working together to create what neither can produce individually. We provide our gifts of desire and labor. They provide the gifts of land and accumulated knowledge. We hope to build a community of people who respect the value of food-producing farms in our area.

To me, the cost of farmland is not measured in dollars. It is measured in the smiles of our friends, the meals we share and our hopes for the future. And, if someone can come up with $3 million, maybe he or she can keep another farm alive.

-Brian