The Polyculture Project.

Conventional meat production has been (justly) criticized for the strain it puts on the environment and the deplorable conditions in which animals are kept. However, there is an alternative to conventional farming. Diversified, pasture-based farms, also called polycultures, work with the land such that the farm becomes integrated into the natural ecosystem. Multiple species of animals are raised together along with crops that can be used for animal feed and for human consumption. Overall, this type of farming provides many environmental benefits and a higher quality of life for the animals than conventional farms.

A criticism of polyculture farming is that it isn’t productive enough to meet the needs of our population, and thus, meat could only ever be a small part of a sustainable food system. Although often repeated, I have rarely seen this statement quantified, which has led me to ask the following question.

How much polyculture farmland would it take to produce enough meat to feed the US population?

Answering this question requires two types of data: the amount of meat we need for everyone in the US and the amount of meat, per acre, produced on polyculture farms. The USDA and FDA collect and distribute vast amounts of data on the productivity of US farms, but I couldn’t find anything on the productivity of pasture-based, diversified farms. So I set out to collect the data myself.

I first reached out to the farm where I currently get my meat: North Mountain Pastures (NMP), a polyculture farm in Pennsylvania. My family has been part of their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program for several years now. Every month, we get a box of meat with a variety of cuts from a variety of animals. The farm is run by Brooks and Anna Miller, who graciously contributed to this project.

Brooks and Anna put together this table of their farm’s output in 2013, which includes all of the animals they raised and the edible pounds of meat typically provided by each animal. The total weight they compute is consistent with a rough estimate based on the amount of meat supplied through their CSA. Brooks and Anna also calculated the acreage of their farm and the land required to produce some additional grains they feed their chickens and pigs. Dividing the total number of pounds (49,855) by the total acreage used (114), gives an annual output of 437.33 pounds of meat per acre.

The other key piece of data is the amount of meat required for the entire US. The USDA recommends that typical adults get about 6 oz of protein each day, which is 0.375 pounds (see MyPlate for more info). For this analysis, let’s assume that all of the protein comes from meat. Throughout a whole year, we would need to produce 42 billion pounds of meat to feed all 308 million Americans their recommended 6 oz. of meat every day. Americans actually consume about 52 billion pounds of meat each year (Earth Policy Institute).

Assuming the productivity of North Mountain Pastures farm, we would need just under 100 million acres of land to produce 42 billion pounds of meat each year and 119 million acres to match current demand for meat.

Those are such big numbers that it’s hard to interpret them without some context. So, let’s compare them to the amount of land we currently use for grazing. According to the USDA (as cited by the EPA), the US devoted about 600 million acres to animal grazing in 2007.

That means we could produce enough meat for the entire US population by converting 16% of our current grazing land to polyculture farming. We would need to convert 20% to match current meat demand.

That doesn’t seem like a lot of land at all. In fact, it seems like diversified farms could actually reduce the amount of land we devote to meat production without reducing the amount of meat people eat. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean that meat is totally sustainable. There are other environmental impacts we should consider, such as water usage and carbon emission. From the perspective of land use though, diversified, pasture-based farms can provide more than enough meat without requiring any additional land.

If people choose to get less of their protein from meat, it would further lessen the land burden of raising animals. For example, North Mountain Pastures also produces eggs, which we did not include in their meat production numbers. Fish, nuts, seeds, and legumes are also high in protein and can serve as alternatives to meat. However, if sustainability is the goal, we would need to consider the relative environmental impact and scalability of obtaining these other foods to that of meat raised on polyculture farms.

Another benefit of diversified, pasture-based farming is that it hasn’t yet been fully optimized. Farmers and scientists around the world are working on advances that can boost efficiency and lessen the environmental impact of raising animals for food. At North Mountain Pastures, they are working with grain farmers who use no-till agriculture and other ecofriendly methods, exploring ways of reducing off-site feed, and adding an orchard. In a much broader effort, the Savory Institute is devoted to restoring badly managed grazing land and promoting ecologically-sound land management. If we actually wanted to convert current grazing land to polyculture farms, the Savory Institute’s research could help bring the productivity of marginal land closer to a farm like North Mountain Pastures. Additional improvements, as well as more widespread adoption, are also likely to lower the cost of producing meat in this way, a savings that can be passed on to the consumer. Currently, members of the NMP CSA pay about $8 per pound for their meat.

One other potential barrier to producing all our meat on polyculture farms is that we would have to change the way we eat meat. North Mountain Pastures raised 7 different animal species with a wide range in the number of animals of each species. For example, they raised only 12 cows and 10 goats but 240 turkeys and 5200 chickens. To take advantage of a diversified farm requires that we diversify both the types of animals and the cuts of meat we that we regularly eat.

For this analysis, I’ve assumed that any diversified farm could be as productive as North Mountain Pastures. Without any additional data, it’s hard to know if this assumption is reasonable. I will say that I didn’t know how productive NMP would be when I approached them about this project, although that doesn’t necessarily mean that their productivity is typical. And productivity can vary a lot depending on the location of the farm. That’s why I would like to expand upon this study to include as many polyculture farms as I can find. That way, I can better quantify the productivity and scalability of polyculture farms, assess additional environmental concerns, and help develop a pathway to a food system that produces meat without destroying the environment or abusing animals.

It’s a lofty goal and one that I can’t achieve on my own. If you, or someone you know, has data on the productivity of a polyculture farm, please consider sharing it with me. Together, we can turn the polyculture project into a polyculture solution.

Note: This material was originally presented at the 2014 Ancestral Health Symposium. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in this terrific event and for all of the interest and feedback I received from my fellow attendees.

From farm to table.

It seems that spring has finally arrived in Maryland. We’ve had a whole weekend filled with sunshine and crisp, fresh air. There are daffodils popping up along the creek, little green buds on all of the trees, and a constant buzz of little creatures (human and otherwise) venturing back outside. To celebrate this lovely change of events, we are dusting off the grill and making the one food we have rarely had the chance to eat over the past few years: hamburgers.

It may sound strange – hamburgers are one of the most popular foods in the United States – but eating only ethically-sourced meat means avoiding hamburgers almost everywhere. I recall eating them quite regularly back in college, though, both at restaurants and grilled in my backyard. Hamburgers were the mainstay of nearly all get-togethers: the Superbowl, July 4th, or even just a weekend poker party. I remember those times fondly because, above all, they were celebrations of friendships. They certainly weren’t celebrations of food, however. I bought my burger patties frozen, in a big tan box from Costco. I never thought much about how the meat had come to be in its mechanically-pressed, totally uniform state, and I had no idea how the cows were treated in the process.

Today’s event will be quite different. It will be just me and my little family, celebrating life, hard work, and of course, food.

After the 2013 Ancestral Health Symposium, a fellow attendee who lives nearby contacted me about joining a cowpool. I’d never participated in a cowpool before, but I jumped at the chance. Here’s how it works: A group of people pool money to purchase a half or whole steer from a farmer. Typically, the price per pound is lower than if you bought comparable meat at a store or farmers market, and you can find a farmer who uses practices you are comfortable supporting. Depending on the farmer, you may even be able to visit the farm and your particular cow while it is being raised.

Our cow was grass-fed, raised on pasture at Legacy Manor Farm in northwest Maryland. Although the farm isn’t run with quite the level of management of Polyface Farms (i.e. maximizing integration between the different animals and the land), the animals are raised in a natural, low-stress environment without hormones or antibiotics. Our cowpool, which was broken down into 8 shares, purchased a half-steer. A few months later, our intrepid cowpool leader, Steve, met up with our farmer, Kathy, at the midway point between Silver Spring and the farm to pick up our half steer.

Buying a whole or half animal is quite a different experience than buying cuts of meat at the deli counter. Our meat came, quite literally, as a side of beef, which weighed in at 347 lbs. Although we could have had it broken down before delivery), we instead turned to the experts at The Urban Butcher, an artisan butcher shop located in downtown Silver Spring. These guys were amazing. They allowed Steve to attend and photograph the butchering process. Rather than issuing them a list of cuts, Steve simply let the butchers make the decisions about how best to break down our half steer. Due to their diligence and expertise, only 10 of the 347 lbs were unused, and we got some rather uncommon steaks and roasts in addition to T-bones, ribs, ground beef, and the like.

In early February, all the members of our cowpool met up in order to distribute our shares of meat. It was a lovely day, and our hosts greeted us with wine, a warm fire in their backyard pit, and over 300 lbs of vacuum-sealed and labeled beef. Before we started divvying up the meat, Steve gave a toast. He spoke of the gratitude he felt for this food, which was enhanced by his participation and the awareness it gave him of all the time and effort that goes into raising and butchering a steer. We were able to acknowledge and appreciate the life lost in bringing this food to our table, and the efforts of our farmer and butchers to honor that life.

We then picked numbers out of a hat, and took turns selecting cuts of meat until each share-holder had their allotted amount. My family took home about 40 lbs of grass-fed beef, bones, and tallow. The cuts we selected included: neck roasts, oso bucco, ground beef, kabob, “man” steak, top sirloin roast, short ribs, sirloin tip roast, T-bone steak, picanha steak, clod, and flank steak. We paid $210 for our share, which comes out to about $5 per pound, although excluding the fat and bones brings it up to about $7 per pound.

Over the ensuing months, we’ve been slowly working our way through the meat. Everything we’ve tried has been delicious, in part because we treat each of these meals as a special occasion. Even today, grilling hamburgers on the patio for no one but ourselves, it is a celebration. The ground beef has a heftier consistency, with larger chunks of bright red meat and bright white fat, than you would find in a grocery store. We prepare it simply, alongside grilled portabellas, asparagus, and romaine hearts. We pour some wine. Even our toddler can sense that this is a special meal. It’s not just the amazing taste of the food, it’s also the fact that this meal took effort, that makes it so satisfying. This is a hamburger I will remember.

Almonds, a nutty industry.

I love peanut butter. I mean, LOVE. Especially smeared on a toasted English muffin or on sliced apple – amazing! And there is nothing better than following each tasty bite with some piping hot coffee. It totally makes my morning.

Despite my infatuation with peanut butter, I’ve been trying to change things up. Having exactly the same foods every day means that I am getting the same nutrition every day – and missing out on the same nutrients. Also, peanuts are technically legumes. The Paleo diet recommends nuts rather than legumes, which contain anti-nutrients.

As I began my quest for a nut butter as awesome as my peanut butter, the first thing I noticed is that, unlike peanut butter, organic nut butters are basically non-existent. Apparently, organic nuts are rare and expensive. Despite the few options, I was able to find Kettle Brand Almond Butter (yup, the same guys who make the chips), Silk Almond Milk, and Pacific Natural Foods Organic Almond Milk (yay, organic!). I also picked up squeeze packs of Justin’s Almond Butter; sadly, stores near me don’t sell the jars. Later, I sat down with a glass of almond milk and started reading about almond production. What I found kinda made me not want to drink it anymore.

In 2004, there were two relatively small salmonella outbreaks that were linked back to almonds. Without any real pressure from consumers or the government, the Almond Board of California – the trade organization for US almonds - recommended to the USDA that all almonds be pasteurized to eliminate contamination. As of 2007, all domestic almonds must be pasteurized before they can be sold.

Quoting the Almond Board of California (ABC) website, the following are allowed methods of pasteurization:

• Oil roasting, dry roasting, and blanching: These traditional processes provide the necessary reduction in harmful bacteria while providing consumers with the same product they have come to know and love.


• Steam processing: These treatments are surface treatments only. Multiple proprietary steam treatments are currently being utilized by the industry which meets USDA Organic Program standards. The short bursts of steam do not impact the nutritional integrity of the almond. These treatments do not “cook” proteins or destroy vitamins and minerals. The nutritional and sensory characteristics of the almonds remain unchanged when treated with steam.


• Propylene Oxide (PPO) treatment: PPO is also a surface treatment which has been approved for use on foods since 1958, and is widely used for a variety of foods such as other nuts, cocoa powder and spices. PPO is very effective at reducing harmful bacteria on almonds and poses no risk to consumers. In fact, PPO residue dissipates after treatment. The effectiveness and safety of this process was revalidated in July 2006, when PPO underwent a stringent re-registration process with the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA confirmed that PPO poses no health risk. The treatment does not affect the nutritional and sensory characteristics of almonds.

Despite the ABC claims that PPO is perfectly safe, the European Union has banned PPO on both domestic and imported almonds*. It is also considered a “probable carcinogen” and has many harmful side effects. Supposedly, the PPO dissipates and should not reach harmful levels in almonds. It is still an unsettling thought that this toxic chemical is in my food. I’d certainly prefer to avoid it if possible, but that’s harder than you might think.

Because steam processing and PPO treatments are surface treatments, almonds treated in these fashions can still be labeled as raw. That means, when you purchase almonds, almond butter, or almond milk, there is no way to know how the almonds were processed.

Pasteurization increases the cost involved with producing almonds. Using the steam method, the only method allowed for organic almonds, is apparently more expensive than the PPO treatment. Perhaps that explains why so few organic almonds are produced compared to peanuts; it’s simply too expensive. In addition, imported almonds are not required to undergo any treatments whatsoever, making them more competitive with domestically produced almonds.

The pasteurization requirement came after salmonella contamination sickened people. How do almonds get salmonella in the first place? Animals carry the bacteria that can sicken people; almonds don’t. According to the agricultural extension of Rutgers University, “possible sources of contamination in the field or packinghouse could include use of contaminated irrigation or wash water (from a bacterially contaminated well or pond), use of improperly composted manure in the field, or handling of the produce by sick field or packinghouse workers.”

Basically, if we were more careful with our produce, salmonella contamination simply wouldn’t be an issue. In our pursuit of a cheaper product, we allow (and in effect, force) growers and producers to cut corners. And for some reason, an acceptable solution to this problem is to add more chemicals to make up for poor production practices. As consumers, we now have very few choices. We can pay the nearly $20 per pound for organic almonds or accept the risk of PPO.

As for almond butter, there are few options, all of them considerably more expensive than organic peanut butter. Strangely, despite the fact that peanuts were linked to a much worse salmonella outbreak than has ever been caused by almonds, I found no indication that pasteurization is required for peanuts.

I found a few retailers who sell organic almond butter:
Quail Oaks Ranch
Once Again Nut Butter
Rejuvenative

In addition, Justin’s Nut Butters only uses steam-treated almonds. I know this because Justin’s website contains sourcing information on every ingredient in every product they sell. From farm locations to food miles, Justin’s is clearly committed to using sustainable ingredients and practices AND making that information available to the public. Justin even held a sustainable squeeze packet summit in an effort to find a greener alternative to his single-serving nut butter packets. You can follow his progress on his blog. Justin’s almond butter comes in 16 oz. jars for just under $10. Other products include peanut and almond butters either plain, with honey, or with chocolate, maple almond butter, chocolate hazelnut butter, and ORGANIC PEANUT BUTTER CUPS! You can purchase some products online or do a retailer search.

I will definitely be more careful of what almond products I buy in the future. I prefer to avoid PPO, and I would always rather support smaller organic farms that employ more sustainable practices. Hence, I’ll be sticking with organic almond products or buying from companies like Justin’s that are choosing steam instead. Either way, my morning coffee and nut butter ritual is here to stay!


* - I was unable to confirm via the EUs website that PPO-treated almonds have been banned. However, the ban was mentioned in virtually every article I read on the subject of PPO use in almond production.

Organic food, only a click away.

As my last post described, eating fresh veggies (and some fruit) is the cornerstone to any healthy diet from the USDA guidelines to the Paleo Diet and so on. With all I’ve read and learned over the past couple of years, I am fully convinced that seasonal local produce, grown without pesticides or chemical fertilizers, is best for our personal health and the health of people in farming communities. It is also the most sustainable way of growing food now and for years to come. In the past, accessing organic (or beyond organic) foods was challenging due to lack of availability and the corresponding high price. Nowadays, there are many options for even the busiest people to get high quality, fresh, organic foods.

Joining a CSA* is great option, but I’ve recently stumbled across something that may be better for busy people who want organic food but don’t want to add an extra chore like picking up a CSA box or taking a trip to the farmers market. There are now several online businesses that allow you to place a customizable order online and have the food delivered to your doorstep. Many of these businesses focus on organic foods and offer more than just produce. These services can actually eliminate your weekly shopping trips altogether.

With a little bit of internet searching, I was able to find organic food delivery options throughout the country – from the SF Bay Area, Portland, and Seattle, to Austin, D.C., Chicago, and more! Some online stores work directly with local farmers and strive to supply most of their food from within the region. Others are more focused on variety and meeting the demands of customers even if it means getting produce from Mexico or beyond.

Each service allows customers to place orders that arrive as frequently as once a week. The specific foods you receive can be changed each week online through your account. Those services that provide more than just produce allow you to search for foods based on allergies, such as wheat or dairy intolerance, which can make shopping much easier. All of the services I viewed deliver food to your doorstep even if you are not at home. Care is taken to preserve food that may be left out for hours. If you prefer to keep your food indoors you can give them a key to your house or garage.

Planet Organics, which delivers to the SF Bay Area, focuses heavily on locally-sourced foods. In addition to produce, they offer meat and seafood, eggs, milk, and processed organics like cereal and pasta. Planet Organics uses about a dozen labels to quickly identify vegetarian options, common allergens, certified organic foods, and even grass-fed or pasture-raised animal products. Another neat option is the ability to add products to a favorites list. If you really love blackberries, for example, you can add them to the list and receive blackberries anytime they are available. They also offer recipes with ready-made groups of ingredients (called meal kits) that you can add to your shopping list. The interface is easy to use and your food delivery is very customizable. The minimum purchase is $32.

Here are a few other doorstep organic companies that deliver outside my area:

• Greenling: Based out of Austin, TX, these guys seem very passionate about working with local farmers and getting healthy produce to the people of Central Texas! If you live in Austin, this sounds like a great option for local organic produce and locally-sourced artisan products at a minimum of $25 per box. They even have gift cards with seeds in them, so you can plant them after use. Neat!


• SPUD: With delivery areas in the SF Bay Area, Seattle, L.A., and several cities in Canada, SPUD was certainly the flashiest site I found. While they do offer some local organic produce, you have to do a bit of searching to isolate these options. SPUD is probably a good option for people who just want healthy food and lots of processed food options, like waffles and juice, and aren’t too worried about where their food is grown.


• Suburban organics: This company delivers to many east coast areas including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and parts of New York and Maryland. They offer mainly produce, all of it organic. In summer months, the food is mostly local (unless you request things like bananas and mangoes, which will never be local). In winter, though, they rely on shipments from Mexico and South America. Again, this is a good option for people who are mostly concerned with having easy access to organic food. Suburban Organics also partners with Door-to-door Organics, which has hubs in and around Colorado, Kansas City, Chicago, and Michigan.

There are many components to eating ethically. Human health, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability are all important aspects of a truly ethical food system. Organic bananas or out-of-season tomatoes are not the best options when it comes to the environment. Processed organic products and organic produce from industrial-scale monoculture farms are other examples of foods that live up to the label of certified organic but probably offer little improvement in sustainability over their conventional counterparts. Despite these shortcomings, restoring the health and well-being of our population is a worthy goal. Organic home delivery offers an opportunity for more people to access fresh and healthy foods, and local or not, that is a huge step forward.

* - Community supported agriculture (CSA) programs link farmers and consumers directly. Typically, you commit to purchasing a certain amount of food (produce, meat, etc.) each week. A box is delivered either to your home or to a central drop-off location. CSAs offer food that is currently being harvested, so it’s the easiest way to get seasonal fresh food. I am a member of the CSA at Eatwell Farm, which delivers one box every two weeks to a location near my work. I get several kinds of fruits and veggies plus a half dozen eggs. You can read more about my motivations for joining a CSA in this post, and about my experience with the Eatwell Farm CSA specifically in this post.

We are what we eat.

The book, Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, describes different food lifestyles and expenditures of families all over the world along with terrific photos of the families with all of the food they eat in a week. You can check it out on Google Books or just look at the photos (with credits). I thought this was a really intriguing idea so this week, after finishing up our grocery shopping, my husband took a picture of me with all the food we bought for the week. We expect this food to provide us with two servings each of seven breakfasts, five (or six) lunches, and six dinners. On the dinner menu for this week is Garden salad and homemade baked beans with wild boar bacon and a side of fresh-baked corn bread (Sun/Mon), Baked salmon with green beans and baked sweet potato (Wed/Thurs), and Portabella mushroom sliders with grilled corn on the cob (Fri/Sat).




How much for how much?

For all the food you see in the picture, we spent $82.97 total. Organic food grown within four miles of our house cost us $8.97 (front row, right); food from our garden we counted as zero cost. The rest of our organic products cost $39.51 (front row, left), and we spent $39.55 on non-organic foods including our wild boar bacon and wild-caught salmon (back row). The U.S. Census Bureau reports estimates of the amount spent weekly by a family of two, aged 19 – 50, for four different diet plans determined by income. The diets, called thrifty, low-cost, moderate-cost, and liberal, are determined by the USDA based on a combination of the types of foods that people in different income ranges report eating and federal guidelines for a nutritious diet. The U.S. Census reported that, in December 2008, the “Weekly Food Cost of a Nutritious Diet” for the thrifty diet was $83 whereas the low-cost plan was $105.60. For August 2010, the most recent report available from the USDA, the “Cost of food at home” for the thrifty diet was $80 and low-cost was $101.90. That means our food expenditure, despite including many organic products, is right around the thrifty estimate. That makes it seem like our diet would be considered affordable to the people for whom the USDA designed the thrifty plan. However, buying organic is usually considered a luxury that low-income families simply cannot afford. Perhaps the thrifty diet calculations are off, or maybe the people reporting what they eat make very different choices that turn out to be about as expensive as ours. Or maybe it's an issue of access?

How typical is this number?

This week, we ate a little less meat than normal. The meat products we will eat in upcoming weeks are more expensive by $4 - $18. That would put us in between the thrifty and low-cost plans. We also did not include foods we already had in our house, such as olive oil, even if we plan use them in meals this week. We assume the cost will balance out since we also don’t expect to finish every product we purchased by the end of this week. Coffee is the only product we purchased for which we adjusted the price; we generally drink a canister of coffee in two weeks, so the cost was cut in half.

The Census and USDA numbers are calculated with the assumption that all food consumed during the week is eaten at home. For us, this is true for all but one dinner and one or two lunches. Thus, while our total food expenditure for the week will be a little higher than our grocery purchases for this week, it’s still a valid comparison given that most people don’t eat all their food at home either.

What this picture says to me.

My husband and I have changed our diets a lot over the last five years, and it is quite evident in this photo! People used to refer to me as the girl with the Dr. Pepper because I was seemingly never without a can or bottle of the stuff. I haven’t regularly consumed soda in over a year now so you won’t find any of it in this picture! I also see a lot more fresh fruits and vegetables than I would have a few years back, and all of it is organically grown and pesticide-free. Our animal product purchases have greatly decreased. I’m lactose-intolerant so no cheese, butter, or milk makes it into our house. We only buy eggs from ethical farms and are currently out. And of course, we only use a small amount of meat, none of it conventional! Along with our dietary changes, there have been significant physical changes. Since adopting a diet low in animal products and processed foods but high in whole, fresh fruits and vegetables, I have run a half-marathon, completed a sprint triathlon, and dropped two dress sizes. I would say the sacrifice is worthwhile, but I don’t actually feel like I’ve sacrificed anything. I enjoy my food more now and really love my active, healthy life.

How do you compare?

I would be very curious to see how my family’s expenditures really measure up. That’s where you come in. Just like the book, I’d like to put together a collection of photos of people with a week’s worth of their groceries and the cost of that food. I’m curious to see what types of food choices lead to lower food costs. Given restrictions on photo uploading within comments, I’ll ask anyone interested in participating to please upload their photo and cost estimate to my companion page on Facebook (use the FB widget in the sidebar to access it or search for An Omnivore’s Decision from within Facebook). You will have to “like” the page to contribute, but then you will also get to see all of the shorter tidbits I post there and connect with other people interested in these issues. If you have trouble accessing or posting to the FB page (or if you’d rather send me your info via email), please leave me a comment.