S4E169 How Is Homesteading Different From Farming?

This week I spent a lot of time reading the policy manuals of the Farm Bureau and the NY Farm Bureau.  As I did, I spent quite a bit of time thinking about how homesteading and farming are the same.  And how they are different.  On this episode, I share my thoughts on that as well as why I think homesteading is crucial to solving the issue of aging farmers.

Enjoy!!
Brian

Transcript

Microphone (ZOOM P4 Audio) & c922 Pro Stream Webcam: 0:03

I'm your host, Brian Wells, and I'm a fourth generation homesteader. Since 2008, my family and I have been homesteading here. Beautiful upstate New York. In 2019, I launched the homestead journey podcast. To help people just like you get started and find success. On their journey towards self-sufficiency self-reliance and sustainability. This is the homestead journey. And this. Is season four. Well, hello everyone. And welcome back to another episode of the homestead journey podcast. So glad to have you with us. As always, my name is Brian Wells. I am coming to you from three before I'm in homestead here in. Beautiful upstate New York. This is season four, and this is episode 169. And again, welcome, welcome. Welcome to this episode. I certainly hope that you are having a wonderful day wherever this might find you. I did want to start out the podcast today by offering my apologies. Once again, that I am a day late and a dollar short putting this up as sold out, I had some technical difficulties. Once again, yesterday. As I went to record the podcast, I've actually switched up my work phone and I'm not going to get into all of that. But unfortunately, I didn't notice that I had the wrong mic selected when I went to, record the episode. And so it sounded like I was talking into a tin can. And once I realized that I went to rerecord the episode, but I was so tired, I couldn't think straight. And I finally said, forget it. I'll do it tomorrow. And so here it is. But once again, my apologies. Excited to be sharing with you today on the topic. Of farming versus home setting something that I have really been thinking a lot. About this week. In part, because I received. The farm bureau policy manuals on last week's episode. I shared with you that I joined the farm bureau. And so this week I had the opportunity to read through their policy manuals and I've really been doing a lot of thinking with regards to homesteading versus farming. And we're going to get into that here. In a little bit, but before we do so. As is our normal custom here on the podcast. I did want to bring you up to speed with what we've been doing here on three B farm and homestead. So not a whole lot, honestly, going on here on the home set it's that time of the year where we're starting to wind things down. The first official day of fall was a few days ago and we are starting to feel those fall like. Temperatures here. In beautiful upstate New York. And. I believe we have a frost. Uh, potential frost here coming in the next couple of days. So we'll have to keep an eye out for that. But in the meantime, we have continued to enjoy what little bit of bounty we've been getting from this year's garden. Uh, certainly as I've shared with you before not been the best garden ever here on three B farm and homestead for a whole lot of reasons that I'm not going to get into. In part, because it is rather depressing, but. Uh, we have been enjoying a few things from the garden. I believe I shared with you a couple of weeks ago that. In the midst of the disappointing things in the garden. I have had a few bright spots and one of those has been my ability to miraculously grow cult flour. And in particular, a variety called the purple, which is an absolutely beautiful. Purple. A head of color flower that not only is it beautiful, but it tastes good as well. And I have shared pictures of those over on our Instagram and Facebook accounts. So if you don't follow what's there, definitely check that out. But we really have been enjoying that cauliflower. Uh, and it is just absolutely gorgeous. Another thing that has done very well for us this year. Has been my Lima beans. And so this past Sunday, I actually cooked up a batch of succotash. Growing up, our traditional succotash recipe was simply Lima, bean and corn, but I ran across the fact that many people put tomatoes. In there succotash. And so my mom and dad came over on Sunday. And part to celebrate my mom's birthday. And so I whipped up a batch of succotash using a jar of tomatoes that we can a couple of years ago, as well as some corn that we had put into the freezer and then some fresh Lima beans that I had picked and shelled the night before using that new little gadget that I bought a few weeks ago at a junk shop. It's the P holler and bean slicer. And it really, really worked very well. Uh, hauling or shocky knows. Lima beans. I don't know. Do you shuck Lima beans? Whatever it is. But it did work very well to do that. And so we enjoyed that. Uh, this past weekend. I do have to, to also share with you that I harvested the bulk of my tomatoes this past weekend in folks, it was an absolute disappointment. Just so very, very disappointing. A few weeks ago, I picked some tomatoes, put them as has been my custom, the last several years. In the freezer. I think I had one, maybe two gallon sized bags of tomatoes. I picked the remainder of my slicing, and my paste tomatoes. And they all fit into a single. Sizable ball, but into a single bowl. Very very disappointing harvest this year for me. But it is what it is. And hopefully next year things will be better, but this harvest and I'm using huge air quotes was definitely something that I hope to never repeat again. Because it was very, very sad. I do have a few cherry tomatoes still hanging on. Up there, but as far as my normal. Abundant tomato harvest that I have grown accustomed to. It certainly was not that. But under some positive news. And that is, as I mentioned, my mom's birthday was celebrated this past weekend. We actually had the opportunity to get together. With my in-laws as well on Saturday evening to celebrate my father-in-law's upcoming birthday. So my mom's birthday is on the 23rd. My father-in-law's birthday is on the 27th. And so what a joy to be able to share in the celebration of that? I certainly don't take it for granted because there were many, many years. Where we lived, honestly, on different continents. There was a point in time in our lives. Where both of my brothers lived outside the continental us, my. Um, my wife and I lived in the Cayman islands. My mom and dad lived in Brazil. And so there was a lot of distance between us in many, many years. Where I didn't have the opportunity to spend time with my mom or with my father-in-law to celebrate their birthdays. And so just a joy and an absolute privilege. To celebrate with them. So I did want to take an opportunity on this episode to say, Mom and dad. Happy birthday and here's to many, many more. The last thing I wanted to share with you is that as I mentioned in my opening, we'll call it monologue. I had the opportunity this week to read the farm bureau policy manuals. Now, for some people that probably would be a very, very boring thing. And I can't say that it was all that exciting, except that it was exciting for me to see. What positions this organization holds with regards to certain concerns that I have. Some of those concerns were concerns that I mentioned on last week's episode. And one of the things that I am very, very happy to have found out is that they have already identified many of the areas of concern that I had as areas of concern. And they have policy proposals in place to address those things. For example, like the number of rabbits that can be processed and sold direct to consumers. Things like a need for better access to. Meat. processing facilities and that the laws that govern that processing should be changed. there were so many policies. Uh, that I found myself, uh, in agreement with now. I certainly did not agree with everything in there, but I really did find myself. Uh, pleasantly surprised by how well thought out those policies are, even in the areas where you don't necessarily agree. Uh, they certainly are well thought out and, uh, I was by and large. Very happy. Now, the policy manual from the national farm bureau was 246 pages. And the policy manual for New York farm bureau was 182 pages for a combined 428 pages of excited then trawling reading. And I did read most of it. Almost word for word? No, there were a few areas of policy that I did skim over, but most of it, I read word for word. and was again, very, very happy. With, what I saw in those policy manuals. And so it really did confirm to me. That I made an excellent decision in joining this organization. And I'm excited to see where it's going to lead. I'm looking very much forward to working with this organization. To help advance the cause of homesteading, not just a New York state. But throughout the United States of America as well. All right, folks, let's jump on over to this. Week's charting the course as we talk about. The differences between farming and homesteading. So this week, as I read through those policy manual, certainly in the back of my mind was the question, how does homesteading fit within all of this farming stuff? And how was homesteading different than farming and what are the needs of homesteaders versus. The needs of farmers. And does homesteading fit within the mission of the farm bureau? Well, let me just revisit once again, what the mission is of the farm bureau, the farm bureau was a non-governmental volunteer organization, financed and controlled by member families for the purpose of solving. Economic and public policy issues, challenging the agricultural industry. Certainly from my perspective, no matter how you define homesteading, it does fit within the context of the agricultural industry. So they go on to say the mission of New York farm bureau is supporting today's agricultural needs and creating member opportunities for tomorrow through advocacy and education. And certainly advocating for. Uh, the ability to raise and grow food. And providing better education to people on knowing how to raise and grow food. To me. I would think fits within that mission. Certainly no opposing or conflicting arguments from my perspective. And find the big one to say this, the forward-looking N Y F B. Vision is the voice of New York agriculture. That unites a diverse farm community and builds a stronger food system. And rural economy. And certainly from my perspective, the idea of home setting certainly fits within the context of a diverse farm community. And building a stronger food system. And rural economy. But that only works if. Homesteading could be. Considered part of a farm community. And so it got me to thinking is homesteading farming is farming homesteading. Like how do you kind of work all of that together? And as I've thought about this, and I don't think I'm necessarily breaking a whole lot of new ground here, but as I thought about this, To me. I think There are huge similarities between homesteading and farming in there are differences between homesteading. And farming. And so as I, as I started thinking about how home setting in and farming kind of relate. And how they're different. I really thought about three key areas that I think help us define. What makes a homestead versus what makes a farm? So the first thing I think is scale. To me, generally speaking, not all the time. But generally speaking. Uh, homestead is going to be smaller in scale. Than a farm. Generally speaking farms are going to comprise many, many acres. Lots of buildings and infrastructure. And generally speaking, homesteads are going to be smaller, both from the physical size as well as the amount of output. Generated through agricultural production. The second thing that I think. Has a tendency to define home setting versus farming. Is that homesteads are generally. More diverse than farms. What I mean by that is generally speaking homesteads are going to take more of a polyculture approach. And farms are going to be a little bit more. Of a monoculture. Approach. Usually. Farms are going to focus on one area of production. And homesteads are going to focus on many areas of production. And even in farms that are somewhat diversified. There usually is one central or one main product. That they're producing. So let me just kind of flesh that out a little bit. In our area, we have several large dairy operations. They have lately diversified. One of them. That comes to my mind is a farm called ideal dairy. Primarily at dairy farm. But they joined forces with the cheese company that my wife works for. That produces things like cheese and yogurt. But they also produce some baked goods. But even in that diversification, Their primary focus is going to be dairy. Whether you're talking about milk, you're talking about yogurt. You're talking about cheese. They're primary. Area of production is dairy. There's another, uh, dairy farm here locally called Taya. Schoeke. They are. A relatively large multi-generation multifamily. Dairy farm. That has diversified into. Raising steers for meat. Um, raising some pigs. They also do some pumpkins and they have a farm store. But at their core. They are, and they probably always will be a dairy farm. We also have some friends that, uh, are vegetable farmers. They grow lots and lots of different vegetables. Now they do have some chickens that they keep around, that they feed vegetable scraps to. And they'll sell the eggs from that. But primarily they are a vegetable farm. And even when you stop and you think about Polyface farm, which is a very well-known farm within the home setting community. While they practice regenerative agriculture, and they do have diversification from the standpoint of Raising pigs and beef cattle. And poultry. At the end of the day they're primarily focused on raising meat. They're not a vegetable farm. They're not making soap. They're raising meat. And that's okay. But you contrast that with. Homesteads and homesteads, generally speaking are a little bit more polyculture in their approach. They're going to be raising vegetables are going to be raising meat. They might have their own fruit trees. It's going to be a little bit more of a comprehensive approach. With regards to what they raise in grow. Versus what farms do. Now again, I'm speaking in general terms. But in my opinion, Homesteads. Are going to be more diversified in more poly culture in their approach versus a monoculture. Approach. At a farm. But to me, the biggest differentiator between homesteading and farming is the motivating factor. The motivating factor. In my opinion. For a homestead is going to be to produce for personal consumption. Whereas a farm is going to be focused on producing for other people's consumption. It's the difference of raising food for yourself versus raising food for other people. And so if I were to do a Venn diagram, Right. You know, the concentric circles, kind of that middle piece where those circles overlap. Is what I would call farm setting. And that's where as homesteaders, we might overproduce in a particular area. Whether it's on purpose or on accident. But we over produce in a particular area. And then we use that overproduction as a means to help support our homestead. So for example, We raised pigs for a number of years. And I would always try to raise extra pigs. And sell those extra pigs to help put pigs into the freezer for me. And try to pay for that. Didn't always work out that well for me, but that was in essence, my end goal. We've done the same thing with some vegetables, we've done the same thing with some meat, birds and some turkeys. Over producing in particular areas to help. Offset the cost of raising food for our own family. Again, sometimes that's in a calculated manner. Where you might plant extra tomatoes so that you can sell them at a farm stand or at a farmer's market. Or using the pigs or the chickens as an example where you raise a second batch to sell, to offset the batch that you're raising for yourself, which is really the approach that Jack polner has over at the mindful homestead, where he's raising turkeys, he's raising meat, birds, he's raising pork, certainly to make money. But also in large part to offset the costs so that he can put a pig in the freezer for his family and essence for free. Uh, to put chickens in the freezer for his family in essence, for free. And then anything that he makes on top of that is kind of icing. On the cake. But certainly I would say that his primary motivator. At least initially. Was to raise food for his family. One more thing with regards to home setting versus farming. Is that with homesteading? What you might find is that the things that a homesteader sells from year to year might be slightly different. So one year homesteaders might raise a few pigs. And sell a few off to friends. But they might not need to put a pig in the freezer every year. So this year they would raise pigs and next year maybe they get cheap. This year, they raise meat, birds. Next year they raised turkeys. This year, they grow extra tomatoes. Next year, they grow extra peppers. This year, they grow extra corn next year, they grow extra squash. And so. Going back to those farms that I talked about, those dairy farms. I will always be dairy farms. Predominantly Polyface is always going to be a meat driven farm. It's not like next year Polyface is going to become a vegetable farm. They're going to be focused on particular areas of expertise. We're home centers, even the things that they are selling might vary slightly from year to year. Based on what their family's needs are and even what the needs of their customers are. But I also think that home setting is kind of a throwback to how farming used to be. I remember hearing the stories from my grandfather of the farm that he grew up on that farm eventually did become a dairy farm, but when he grew up. It was a farm that had ducks and geese and chickens and cows, and they did a lot of different things. On that farm, where, when my great uncle retired, it was a dairy farm. All they did was have dairy animals. When you look back in the day, at the small family farms, they certainly were more well-rounded at least as I understand it. Then what we see today. Again, more of that monoculture approach, more of that. Um, area of expertise type approach. And I'm not knocking. That approach. I think that there is definitely. A need. For those types of operation. But I also think that as we are looking at agriculture moving forward, We need to realize that not only is the average age of the farmer increasing quickly. According to the USDA, us farmers, ranchers and producers of every kind are growing older. The average age of farm producers increase from 56.3. To 57.5 years from 2012. To 2017. And if we're going to attract a new generation of farmers. It's not going to be young people leaving urban or suburban areas. And moving to the country and buying a large dairy operation or buying a large, Vegetable farm operation or. Or buying a large pig farm. The learning curve is far too steep. But beyond that, the cost of acquiring an operation like that. Is far too large. And so if we're going to see a new generation. Of people involved in agriculture. I'm convinced that the way forward is going to be via the homestead. And I think we're already starting to see that. But certainly to expect them to come into homesteading and to right away, see it as a profit making enterprise I think is unrealistic. Again, that learning curve is far too large. And so some people are going to come into this. They're going to get their feet wet and they're going to decide, you know, what. All I want to do is grow for my own family. And there's nothing wrong with that. I think that's very, very important. I think that there are skills that can be kept alive. There are certainly recorded examples of vegetable strains that have been saved even breeds of animals. That have been saved through the efforts of homesteaders. I think that's all an important component of agriculture. And so if these newcomers we're coming into agriculture from a suburban or an urban background. If those homesteads don't grow into anything more. And I hate to use a term just producing for themselves, but I'm going to say it that way. I, I still think that's a worthwhile. And a very important segment of agriculture. Because it's from that, that we may be able to raise up and grow a new generation a farmer. I see. Periodically bumper stickers that say, no farmers, no food. And that is 100% correct. And so to me, Homesteading is critical. To ensuring that we have a path forward. In the area of commercial agriculture. What are your thoughts? What are your thoughts with regards to the difference between homesteading and farming? Why do you think home setting is important? Do you see a correlation between them at all? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Reach out to me, Brian, at the homestead journey.net. That's my email address. These are just some of the things that I have been wrestling with thinking about, and hopefully I will have an opportunity in the future. To discuss these concerns and thoughts. With. People that can help make a difference. To ensure that everybody. Has the opportunity. If they so desire. To pursue self-sufficiency self-reliance and sustainability. That's it for this episode, folks. Until next time. Keep up the good work.