A Tale of Veggies and Valor

 

Now that food comes with a story, heirlooms have a great one to tell. You know the backstory:

Over the last century farms got bigger, concentrated on growing fewer types and varieties of crops, and used chemical pesticides and herbicides to produce them. This resulted in unforeseen consequences harmful to our health and planet which are now being recognized and remedied.  Heirlooms came to be a symbol of all that is good about the local food movement, and an antidote to all that is bad about gene-edited food produced by Big Ag. The farmers who grow them are heroes of the story. And they have a business opportunity of a lifetime.

According to Crop Trust, there are 30,000 edible plant species, but we only eat about 150 of them. That means our life’s work could be devoted to bringing all these unknowns to market. One SPIN farmer and his wife, Adam and Diana Diehl,  are trying.  As Adam explains, “Most varieties we grow can be dated back before 1900, so we promise you no GMOs or Hybrids. You see different colors or shapes.” He caters to customers wanting to support biodiversity with the truly unique heirloom crops that he grows. One is so precious and popular, he sells it for $80/lb.!

See how two urban farmers started out championing veggies from the past, and got caught up in an epic story that’s about the future of our planet here.