Save our Farms! Follow Farmer Friday!

A Farmer in a parched field...

So, in case you haven't noticed, both from my previous Movie Monday post and any time spent out side for most of July, it's been hot as hell and dry as a bone out there. While this might be great for getting a tan and running your solar car, it hasn't been very good for our poor poor farmers. In fact, it's been damn near catastrophic.


But, dramatic hyperbole aside, the skies finally opened up these last few days and poured many, many precious drops. This was great for some, not so awesome for others, and much, much too late for still more. It mostly made me happy, both for my present and future self. 


For present day Paul, I am happy because I have friends and loved one's who are or have been farmers and it's been a VERY tough year on them. For most, it's the worst year they can remember.


For future Paul (which sounds awesome if you say it out loud like you would a super hero's name "Future Paul!") I'm extra extra happy, because it means that maybe, just maybe, my food won't quadruple in price through the fall/winter. Some of that is determined by Ontario, but in our global economy, even more is determined by the horrible drought also going on in the States.


Hopefully, at this point you're asking yourself "but Paul...what can I do to help?" That's a great question, and I'm glad you asked it. First off, if you've got magical powers I suggest that you make it rain more. But in all seriousness, the best thing you could do is go out of your way to buy as locally as possible. Personally, I like to try to buy from farmers themselves, and so frequent a few Farmer's Markets here in Toronto. If you'd like to find one check this link or this one. 


Alternatively, pay extra attention at your local grocery store to where their produce is from. For example, my local Loblaws carries very little Ontario produce, but Price Chopper has everything that they can get their hands on! Pretty sweet!


No matter what, as I always do, I encourage you to buy local and try and have a positive impact on the great farmers that put food on our table!


-exit soapbox-

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