Helen Chambers, Director, Eco Communities
When attending a viewing of Six Inches of Soil this week at the new Picturehouse Cinema, I didn’t know what to expect, but I was interested to see what I could learn, and I’m glad I went.
The film followed three young farmers moving away from intensive farming methods and instead using versions of regenerative farming practices.
It reminds us of the fantastic and essential work that soil does in keeping the global population alive. But how the way we farm the land currently has been degrading it and removing the nutrients. With some experts estimating there are only 40 harvests left if we continue to manage the soil in the way we have, it does sound like we need to do something drastic.
The young farmers showed that it didn’t take long for the soil and land to start to regain its nutrients and that although there is a lot of trial and error the products produced can be as good if not better than using traditional methods.
The most surprising thing to me, having worked in carbon footprints, was the ability to significantly reduce the impact on the planet of beef production.
The Livestock farmer Ben Thomas had a herd of cows which fed off a new field each day and one roll of hay. Due to the way he managed the herd and the land, a carbon expert estimated the farm as carbon positive, despite at the time the farm only having cows, one of the biggest carbon contributors to a Western diet.
My favourite part of the film was watching the cows being led into a woodland for the first time to graze and seeing them scratching themselves against all of the trees and foraging on the branches.
Adrienne Gorden reminded us that it is not cheap or easy setting up from scratch, and finding a route to market for small producers is really tough.
Although I avoid supermarkets as much as possible and only go for things I can’t buy locally, it did remind me that there is more I can do in seeking out food markets and market gardens. It also reminded me that I have a garden of my own and I should be giving it a go growing my own veg, especially to teach my kids where their food is coming from.
Anna Jackson and her Dad showed us what the power of a book can do. Annas Dad has read Dirt to Soil by Gabe Brown and had started a journey on his farm to use less pesticides and less intensive methods. At the same time Anna moved back home and started working part time on the farm. She had never been inspired to do so before, but seeing her Dad making changes that benefited the planet she felt that it was something she could get involved in for the first time. It was clear throughout the film that Anna wanted to move at a faster rate into organic or regenerative farming and her Dad at a slower rate but it was really heart-warming to see them both on the same page and working as a team with the same goal, to protect the planet for future generations.
Following the viewing of the film we were lucky to have panel at the end comprising of Riverford veg, The Grosvenor estate, a Dairy farm vet and the films producer. It was a really interesting discussion highlighting that it is often the farmers that are seen as villains, but they are just trying to feed us and need to keep their farms profitable. It also highlighted that Government and policy plays a vital part for farmers being able to move into more regenerative practices (although the term is not universally loved) and anything individuals can do to push and support these policies is vital.
Asking the question to the panel if there is anything we can do to support this there were three key areas:
- Educating our youth on where the food comes from and how vital it is to grow it in the right way.
- Where we can putting out money into locally grown food, that is grown with the planet in mind. Sharing great producers and sellers with friends and family where we can.
- Supporting locally in Chester with the Food for the Planet project by supporting the businesses signed up to the pledge and speaking to venues who would be interested in learning more.
There is more information about the film at www.sixinchesofsoil.org.
Sustainable Cheshire 