By Susan Lutz
The roles of farmers often seem to go to men. Perhaps rooting from generations of roll assignments – the men work the land, the women raise the children and support their husbands. My family’s roots stretch back to farming. I remember the stories of my grandmothers supporting their husbands, doing the chores, and feeding the family and the extra farm hands. Without these women, the farms wouldn’t run. As times change, the farm is changing, too.
Organic lifestyles are creating demands for less pesticides, more local crops, and food grown without GMOs. Farms used to rely on the next generation of children, usually the son, to step up and take over. As large corporations took over acres, they created a mass production and marketing system and small farms couldn’t compete. We watched family farms collapse in the ’80s. Today, women are finding ways to farm with new insight and success.
The US Department of Agriculture reports that, beginning in the 1980s, women farmers were the “fastest-growing sector of the country’s changing agricultural landscape” and they will continue to be well into the next 25 years. The number continues to rise and women farmers are gaining visibility. The economic challenge for farmers has shifted from the tradition of turning the farm over to their children, especially to the boys, to the unknown. Many families turn away from the farm for work, but today more girls and women are choosing to stay. Some enter farming for reasons such as wanting to raise children in the rural lifestyle while others may see it as a profitable way to live. Some simply want to promote organic living. Some women choose sustainable farming and some undertake a larger scale.
Where does a woman, either working alone or with a partner, turn for resources? The growing number of women farmers has created new opportunities in education, management, production, and financial resources. The Internet, blogging, and social media have opened up a new avenue of community to women farmers. With a quick click, any woman can look up how to attack a cucumber beetle without pesticides or when the best time to plant a certain crop is, and they can share stories and develop friendships with other farmers.
Women are taking back the earth. Not from men, but together as partners. My grandmother and grandfather left the farm even before the economy suffered. Over time they gravitated closer to factories and industries offering steady pay. I wonder, if the resources today were available to them, would they have had a chance to grow their farm and adapt with help rather than flee in the hopes of just staying alive and making ends meet. The organic movement is so important to so many women I know. One farm at a time, we may see the land and its caretakers turn over a whole new leaf.
It’s summer time, which means that your inner zen takes control, and dreams of lush green forests, cool lakes, warm oceans and tropical gardens become reality. Be a sustainable citizen, consider the environment, and tool around in an electric car. While camping, keep the bugs away with natural herbal products. Join me and my guests this week, Rusti (Paula) Wolintz, realtor extraordinaire, BFF and electric car owner to be. Bonnie Rogers, expert herbalist and founder of Bonnie’s Herbals, and Brian Horowitz, my co-host today, who is the host of 
The simplest spring cleaning ideas can be found around the home. Under the sink and in the cupboard are ingredients with the power to clean easily and organically. Here are a few of my favorites:
When your mom yelled “eat your veggies” she was definitely on to something. My guest this week is Ashley Spivak, Director of Restaurant Guides at Clean Plates. We discuss the importance of a well balanced, plant based eating regimen, that will lead to a healthier you. An 80/20 diet of 80% good stuff (vegetables, fruits, whole grains and protein), and 20% of the foods that make you smile (pie, cookies, mac and cheese) is a good formula to follow. Bio-individuality indicates that there is no right way to eat, not every person is the same, and diets and food choices affect different body types in different ways. The Clean Plates Food Guide lists restaurants that are more conscious about where they source their produce, meats, grains, as well as the taste of the food, the prep and the atmosphere. Making informed choices whether eating out or in is essential to being a healthier, smarter and cleaner eater. For more info about Clean Plates online publications, guides, phone apps and recipes, go to 
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Long story short, America’s reckless agricultural techniques and lack of quality governmental oversight has created a situation in which Americans are falsely assured by their own government about the safety of their food. It is a situation that still has its solutions though. What we need is mass education which will contribute to a snowballing in consumer awareness about the importance of the local and sustainable food movement. It has started to take hold around the world but with EVERONE’S help, we will begin to change. Their have been sparks of change so far, but we need to keep the passion strong to get the fire roaring. As we eat locally and buy from small farms, food becomes much healthier, less mysterious, and more tasty. While food transportation costs and emissions are reduced, air becomes cleaner in cities and communities become stronger through community farms and other 
“The fight is never about grapes or lettuce…it is always about people.” That quote by Cesar Chavez describes what Colt Taylor, Executive Chef at One if By Land, Two if By Sea, and Tatiana Bejar, High Road Coordinator of the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York, have teamed up to do, help the people, which in this case are the restaurant employees who are often times working in conditions that are not always optimal. High Road Restaurant Week, which runs from April 23rd through April 30th, aims to call attention to the the need to improve employment practices, via living wage, health benefits, sick days and overall treatment of those who work so hard to make our dining experiences more pleasurable. Sustainability doesn’t stop at the quality of food, it also connects to the human side, and restaurant workers deserve to be able to support their families and have benefits that all workers strive for. Please visit 
Learn what you can grow Up On The Roof, as Bradley Fleming, Farm Manager at Brooklyn Grange Farm explains how urban agriculture is taking hold on a tall building near you. Find out what grows best on a city roof, and how it helps both the environment and adds to the sustainability of NYC. Go to www.brooklyngrangefarm.com for more info.
