Give and it will be given

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posted on

September 17, 2024

The land is a beautiful thing. Seriously, have you ever stopped to look at the way it curves and dips; how the climate and terrain work in harmony to create different landscapes across the whole world? It is thoroughly alive yet not in a loud, in-your-face type of way. It has terrible power yet the land consistently flowers, fruits, and springs forth life. The land gives to us.

The history of mankind includes much cultivation. People of all times have worked the land in order to eat, settle, and build our lives. Sadly, our history also includes much exploitation of the land. Nature resiliently continues to grow back but we continue to take.

In the natural world, we see diversity in species - leading to health and beauty.

In agricultural history, instead of staying with nature's pattern, we have tended toward what is known as “monocropping” essentially planting one variety of seed, often in the same spot year after year. This practice depletes the living soil and the organic matter. Regardless, year after year, many farmers continue to draw from the soil instead of enhancing the life naturally found there.

We cannot expect to keep taking and taking, for we will sow what we reap.

To give life we must draw from a source. In our consumerist culture, we are so accustomed to always receiving without giving in return, but that is not how life works. If we are to receive life from the soil (as we seek to do as farmers) we must, in turn, cultivate the land. Will our legacy be one of exploitation or of harmony and synergy as we nurture and in turn are nurtured? We must not ignore these basic principles of life!!

At Polyface, we have seen our land reward us with even more abundance to share due to the effort put into cultivating it! The community grows, the land can give because it is given the nutrients it needs, and the animals thrive! It is a beautiful picture!

Rotational grazing of livestock and intentional management of all our pastured animals give the soil the impact and nutrients it needs.

When you put animals on a pasture at a high density, they can graze to stimulate new growth and their manure gives the land that extra nutrients leading to fertility. We can bring that nutrition to the land in ways other than grazing as well. Spreading compost on the fields is another way to feed the soil. These same practices can be used to reclaim land as pasture as well.

There are ways that you too can participate in healing the land.

Consider starting a compost pile in your backyard or getting a couple of chickens to eat your food scraps.

Support a farm like Polyface with farmers who are passionate about soil health. Become a partner by spreading and supporting a farming system that gives to the land.

Look at your life as the bigger picture and consider areas where you are a “taker”. Seek to be a giver instead. Perhaps there is an area of your life where you are giving and feeling depleted and you need to find a source of life to draw from.

This idea of giving and taking has been on my heart a lot recently. I desire to be a giver, someone who can be a fountain of life and hope to the world around me and one who is cheerful in their generosity. I can’t be that for everyone. This idea of sustainable synergy thrives on community. Let us cultivate and heal the land while in turn receiving healing from the land. Will you join me on this mission?

“The farmer doesn't sow any seed; he chooses it carefully for by experience he knows that the harvest will be of the same Nature of the sowing. The wise man observes the laws of life and lives accordingly. Therefore, you sow in the furrow of life generous and beneficial procedures for all that according to the law your harvest, being good will make your life better.” -Amado Nervo

“Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.” - Luke 6:38

Priscilla

Why Choose Fermented Foods?

My grandparents on my father’s side used to make sauerkraut in wooden barrels in the basement. My mother’s side made cheese and salami. I could smell these concoctions throughout the entire house. Fermenting is part of your national heritage, no matter your family’s country of origin. Alongside nourishing grass-fed/grass-finished pastured meats like Polyface raises, every person should include real fermented foods into their diet. This method of food preservation goes back farther than most realize, reconnecting us with ancient traditions, long before the refrigerator-freezer was invented. Every culture consumed something fermented every day. Here are the reasons why I like fermented foods. Fermentation preserves food without using high pressure, high heat, or chemicals, so it both conserves and increases them. The nutritional value of fermented foods lies mostly in the pro-biotic bacteria that are present, and byproducts of their digestion. The bacteria’s digestive “waste” is a collection of vitamins, enzymes, and co-factors needed for every system of the body. These include: Vitamins B1, B6, B12, C, and K2 Superoxide dismutase (SOD, an antioxidant) GTF chromium (assists sugar metabolism) Glutathione (a potent detoxifier) Phospholipids (cell membrane building blocks) Digestive enzymes Beta 1,2 glucans (present in shiitake mushrooms; modulates immune system) Fermentation neutralizes or eliminates these: Phytic acid (present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Enzyme inhibitors (also present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Nitrites Prussic acid (hydrogen cyanide) Oxalic acid (binds minerals) Nitrosamines (known carcinogen) Glucosides Probiotics and enzymes in whey neutralize phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors, allowing your digestion to access the nutrients in the food. Enzymes are proteins. Proteins are delicate molecules with very complex structure and shape. The structure of the enzyme gives it its function. Without structure and form, the enzyme will not do its job of catalyzing biochemical reactions. Without enzymes, biochemical reactions would cease. Enzymes are denatured (unraveled or broken down) by high pressure, high heat, acidic conditions, toxic chemicals, and electrical disturbances. Once denatured, they lose their form and shape, therefore they lose their function. Unlike canning and commercial processing, fermenting occurs at atmospheric pressure and room temperature, encouraging beneficial bacteria to thrive. Temperatures above 117 degrees Fahrenheit denature enzymes and kill probiotic bacteria. If you wonder what 117 degrees feels like, it’s the temperature at which you cannot touch an object with your bare hands and hold it for a few seconds. If it’s hot, but you can still touch and hold it in your hand and not pull away, it’s under 117 degrees. This innate protection mechanism (i.e., reflex) prevents your own protein (i.e., skin on your finger) from being denatured. It’s also a good indicator of when your food is hot enough to kill probiotics and denature enzymes. For best results, fermented foods must be eaten raw, never hot or cooked. Fermented foods are safe and protective against pathogens. USDA scientist Roger McFeeters, who oversees a fermentation laboratory, says, “The lactobacilli can number a billion per gram of tissue at the height of fermentation. The bad bacteria can't compete." According to McFeeters, lacto-fermentation has caused no known food-borne illness. "As far as we know, it's been going on for thousands of years. It's perfectly safe.” The sauerkraut that my grandparents made had a layer of raw pork chops embedded in the salted cabbage. When the sauerkraut was done, you could safely eat the pork chops raw! They were pre-digested by the bacteria, and “cooked" by the organic acids in the kraut. Probiotics prevented pathogens from establishing. None of us ever got food poisoning. My grandmother lived to be 100. Fermented foods have anti-carcinogenic properties. They normalize blood pressure and heart rate, help to break down fat in the liver, and maintain healthy systemic pH. And they are quite tasty. In the supermarket, look for fermented foods in the refrigerated section, not on the shelf with canned foods. Shelf-stable canned foods were subjected to high temperatures. The probiotics and enzymes have been denatured. Look for “live cultures” or “live probiotics” on the label. Eat something lacto-fermented every day, like your ancestors did. Just a tablespoon or two of sauerkraut or an ounce or two of cheese is enough to have the desired effect. Choose a salad dressing made with raw apple cider vinegar, or a tablespoon of a fermented condiment such as ketchup, mustard, or mayonnaise. Try a fermented beverage, like kombucha, beet kvass, or ginger ale. (Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon has some great recipes for all of these.) The original condiments were digestive aids. They’re easy to make. Try it. May you be deeply nourished! Susan

Give and it will be given

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