Everything might be ok if we simply listen and love each other

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posted on

September 17, 2021

The world can be a pretty scary place right now.

People are divided, and the future is uncertain. Whether it’s because of pandemic mandates, inflation, food security, climate change, new technologies, whatever.

In my opinion, a lot of the scariness comes down to politics. For example, let’s say a state has a “landslide” vote with 65% for and 35% against something, then the rules go in favor of the majority. But what about that 35%? That could be millions of people that feel shorted. Is the 65% considering the 35%? Typically not. That’s how politics in a democratic republic work.

The even scarier part is with your family and community. The divides right now are so strong. I’ve heard too many stories of people breaking up with family and friends. It’s really not ok. Your friends and family should be there to support you, no matter what, right?

All this aside, I have hope. So much hope. I truly believe everything will be ok if we can simply listen and love each other.

The past year and a half has been rough (to say the least). It’s as if we need to re-learn how to listen to each other. We need to re-learn how to empathize with each other. We need to re-learn how to love each other.

You see, when I have an opposing view to someone else, my beliefs and what I say may be harmful to them. I need to understand that. I need to listen and practice nonviolent communication over these really tough issues of today.

For example (and I know this is a BIG and HEATED example right now), let’s say that I am pro vaccine mandates, and I’m speaking to someone who’s pro medical freedom. I say, “Everyone should get the vax. If you don’t, then you only care about yourself.”

Even though I’m acting in what I think is the best interest for myself and everyone, that can be really harmful to them. Instead, I should step back and think.

Maybe it’s against their religious beliefs. Maybe they or someone close to them had a severe vaccine reaction at some point, and the thought of being forced to do it again triggers an anxiety attack. Maybe they are doing lots of other things to protect the health of others. Maybe they got the vaccine personally but believe wholeheartedly in medical freedom.

You could do the same exercise vice versa or on any topic. There could be so many reasons my views differ from someone else’s. But, unless we are able to have these hard conversations, we won’t get anywhere.

With any problem, there are an abundance of solutions. There’s really never one right answer. Let’s take a breath. Let’s take a step back. Let’s analyze what’s important and move forward together.

**At Miller’s, we are here. We listen to customers. We love you, too. We believe your choice is the right choice. Let’s build the next generation of healthy children together.**

What do you think? Anything troubling you recently? Anything on your mind? I’d love to hear from you.

Ugh greenwashed labels. What does it take to get ___ on a label anyway?

Not a fan of the confusing, greenwashed labels in store? Yea, me too! And it's especially real for me, because I'm responsible for getting our labels approved with the "powers that be". Here's a little story with a big inside scoop... I made new labels for our bone broth a little while ago. It didn't go as smoothly as planned. Why? I put the little icons about our farming practices on them. They look like this: Yup, despite being 100% accurate and true, they were denied!! We're not allowed to put those statements on our food labels. So, I asked the USDA guy, "What would it take to get those claims on the labels, anyway?" The answer was kinda shocking. First off, there's some guidance on wording. Silly technicalities in my opinion. For example, you can't use the term "No Spray" but you can say "Produced without the use of synthetic pesticides." Or another example is that you can't say "No Routine Antibiotics or Vaccines" but you can say "Raised without routine use of antibiotics or vaccines." Second, the processor needs to update their documents to provide traceability. In other words, they need to document how they make sure the bones for our bone broth don't get mixed up with bones from other farms. I mean, this is pretty simple, especially with small batch foods like ours. But the documentation needs to be meticulous. Drafting it in government-approved language can be time consuming and/or costly. And lastly, once you get the wording and process right, you need proof. This was the real shocker for me: Want to know what proof would suffice for all the claims above? A 2-3 sentence affidavit (AKA a super short letter) signed by all farmers that supply us. That's it!? This lead me to a bunch of questions: What if a company submits a letter from one farmer but actually has other farmers that supply them, too? What if a company changes farmers? Will they submit new letters?What if a company's farmers change their practices in the future? Will they immediately update their labels?Are the "powers that be" checking on this? Is anyone checking on this?Is this why most farms and food facilities don't allow outside people coming in? It seems to me that, if a business isn't doing what the label says, the only way to find out is via a whistleblower. And the only way to make them stop is to take them to court. You know, like what's happening with Vital Farms and their pasture raised egg claim right now. It seems to me that, all that good natural stuff on labels - grass fed, pasture raised, antibiotic free, etc - doesn't mean it's true. Certifications are a little better, but the same kinda thing can be said about those, too. This is why, at Miller's, we choose to NOT sell in stores. No wholesale for us. In fact, we don't even have an on farm store. We only sell directly to our customers via our website. And, we choose to only get certified for what's required. This way, we can make our own natural standards. And, we can provide you will all the info and proof you need. Descriptions, photos, blog posts, test results, and more. So, what do you think? Should we do the affidavit thing to get claims on our bone broth labels? What proof do you need to feel confident in your food choices? I'd love to hear from you. Comment below (no account required - just start typing) or contact us 😊

Everything might be ok if we simply listen and love each other

The world can be a pretty scary place right now.

All this aside, I have hope. So much hope. I truly believe everything will be ok if we can simply listen and love each other.

Even though I’m acting in what I think is the best interest for myself and everyone, that can be really harmful to them. Instead, I should step back and think.

**At Miller’s, we are here. We listen to customers. We love you, too. We believe your choice is the right choice. Let’s build the next generation of healthy children together.**

More from the blog

Ugh greenwashed labels. What does it take to get ___ on a label anyway?

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Miller's Bio Farm, 523 Valley Road, Quarryville, PA 17566