by Alan Imai

Sensei Alan Imai is the Assistant Director of Shinji Shumeikai of America. He also has responsibility for gathering information about alternative agriculture techniques and for coordinating Shinji Shumeikai’s of America’s Natural Agriculture activities.

After our wonderful field trip in Iowa, last year, we discussed the location of our next trip with the Rodale staff and we chose California, where I have been living for 14 years and began my organic field trips four years ago. From the 8^th through the 12^th of June, Mr. Leon Weber of the Rodale Institute staff guided us on this trip in Northern California. The group consisted of Ms. Yaeko Watanabe, Ms. Keiko Domae and Ms. Keiko Adachi from Japan, Ms. Chisako Fukushima, Rodale Institute Intern, and myself. I knew that California is one of the most advanced in the organic movement but this trip really opened my eyes to the importance of California. This state also has some of the most chemically damaged farmland as well as the famous tourist sights of Hollywood, Disneyland, San Francisco, etc. But we cannot ignore the fact that this state produces more than half of all the nuts and vegetables that are consumed by people in the US every year. The Golden State is home to the largest agriculture economy in the United States. Under my feet, my state — California - is the best place to begin with, and necessary to know about, in order to discover new alternatives for future food production.

We visited the following locations: Community Alliance Family Farm (CAFF), Davis; Lundberg family Farms, Richvale; Full Belly Farm, Albany; Molino Creek Farming Collective, Davenport; UC Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz; Blue Heron Farms, Watsonville; Live Earth Farm, Watsonville; Rural Development Center, Salinas; Davis Farmers Market, Davis; Village Homes, Davis. Although we visited several organic farms and support agencies and could learn a lot from each one of their different perspectives, let me share with you some of my personal experiences.

Community Alliance Family Farm (CAFF), Davis

In 1979, people from urban areas, farmers, farm-workers and students got together and filed a suit against the University of California for using our tax money in creation of technologies that benefit only large farms, and hurt family scale farms and farm-workers. That alliance was the origin of The Community Alliance Family Farm (CAFF). CAFF has been working with farmers, consumers and government bodies to build "a movement of rural and urban people who foster family-scale agriculture that cares for the land, sustains local economies, and promotes social justice." The alliance helps farmers to voluntarily reduce pesticide use and maintain economic viability. They hold meetings and field days where farmers, researchers, and agricultural professionals share information about innovative approaches to production, marketing, and resource conservation. They protect local farmland and water resources by spearheading regional chapter campaigns. They shape public policy and serves as a powerful representative for farmers and consumers. In addition to these programs, CAFF sponsors a range of conferences, events, and cultural gatherings. The existence of such a nonprofit organization as CAFF is evidence why California is one of the most advanced states in the organic agriculture movement.

I didn’t know about CAFF. It was a great surprise to see the CAFF office in Davis. After traveling across miles of flat land, we finally found a beautiful farmhouse surrounded by trees and flowers. It was so refreshing. We met Ms. Jill Klein, Associate Director of CAFF, and she gave us a brief overview of CAFF’s activities and of the organic agriculture movement within California. From this starting point of our trip, our expectation of the rest of the trip bloomed greatly.

Live Earth Farm, Watsonville

Tom and Constance Broz operate a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Farm on the beautiful hillside of Watsonville. They used to live in San Francisco. But as they had a son and were thinking of his growing environment, they decided to move to a rural area and started farming four years ago. They started with a 5-acre CSA farm of 25 members. Now they grow 18 acres of vegetable, fruits, and flowers in community with 132 CSA members; they go to farmers’ markets and sell to the stores as well. Tom says that when he thinks of the balance between connection with the soil and financial viability, he doesn’t want to increase CSA membership beyond the number they now have. Tom and Constance use their creative ideas and encourage community involvement. Not only do people in the city have an opportunity to visit a farm together with their families, but also CSA members often contribute to different aspects of the farm with each person’s unique talent. One member created computer software to organize the CSA system. Another member contributed his artistic skill to draw Live Earth Farm’s logo on their truck. Many members provide recipes for their newsletter. A local ecological music band (they are also CSA members) has annual concerts at the farm for CSA members and the community. Some members held their weddings on the farm. The Brozs’ even volunteer to host teenagers from Los Angeles to let them experiencing the joy of touching the soil, growing vegetables and living on a farm. Tom and Constance, out of their love of nature and concern for their son, chose to be farmers. Usually farmers (especially Japanese farmers) are not so talkative. I believe that Tom’s brightness and joyful life as a farmer will give great encouragement to young farmers in Japan. We wanted to invite him to Misono to speak.

Rural Development Center (RDC), Salinas

When we had visited organic farms in the Bay Area, people’s educational level and financial status were relatively high. Because of the price and people’s awareness of healthy food, organic foods are still limited to a small portion of society. However, in California there are a great number of farm-workers from Mexico who work hard for a humble income and, because many have only an elementary school education and their knowledge and fluency in English is very limited, have difficulty in finding opportunities to improve their life. The Rural Development Center, a non-profit organization, has been offering in Spanish resources, technical assistance, education, training and assistance to become a farmer to individuals who aspire to improve the quality of their lives and their communities. RDC offers Small Farm Education Program (PEPA) classes in the evening. Students learn soil fertility management, equipment use, irrigation systems, marketing, organic certification, etc., through a hands-on type of education. Students actually meet people who are working in these professions. After the completion of PEPA, the first year, a student can rent 1 acre of RDC’s farm. They have access to equipment, and marketing income fully stays with the farmer. During this stage, most students still continue to work as farm-workers, and they come to their RDC farm on the weekends. The second year, they can rent three acres of RDC’s farm and continue to develop the skills necessary to be an independent farmer. Their products are sold at farmers’ markets and some start to develop their own CSA. In this stage, one (usually a husband/wife team) student quits his/her job and concentrates on their farm at RDC. With the earnings, they can buy their own equipment or save it as future capital for their own farm. The third year, they can rent 5 acres of RCD’s farm. In this stage, a student’s entire family works on their farm at RCD. When they finish their third year, not only do they know how to operate a small, independent farm and already have their own customers, but also have enough capital to start a farm. RCD will help students find a farmland to rent. So far 350 students have graduated. 80 % of them have become independent farmers; the remaining 20% of them have become farm managers or somehow significantly improved their careers. We met two students, Maria Inez Catalan and Val de Mar Alonso. They both shared with us the difference they experienced before coming to RDC and now. They used to wake up at 4 o’clock in the morning and performed stoop labor (like harvesting strawberries) all day long until sunset, just like a robot without any purpose. Now their life has undergone a 180-degree change: They are independent farmers, they have their own customers who appreciate their organic vegetables. Mr. Luis Sierra, an RDC staff, said, "The organic movement may still be limited [due to education and finances] to a certain level of society, but farm-workers are the ones who help to produce food for us. To help those farm-workers to become independent organic farmers is my dream work."

From the highest level of the organic farm movement to the project supporting a farm-worker to become an independent organic farmer, on this trip we experienced California’s wide and deep organic movement and we were able to meet wonderful people. I would like to continue to learn more about California, and our Natural Agriculture project also would like to become a part of the organic network.

FROM SHUMEI MAGAZINE, VOL. 223, SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER, 1999