Learning about stress, happiness, and health at Farm Day

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September 20, 2019

This past weekend we hosted our annual Farm Day event. It was a day full of excellent food, good old fashioned fun, and some unexpected epiphanies.

In the farm’s packing room (where lunch was served), the farmer has signs posted. One sign says:

One minute of anger ~ weakens the immune system for 4-5 minutes!

One minute of laughing ~ boosts your immune system for 24 hours!

This really got me thinking about the correlation between stress, happiness, and health.

Last week, my 7-year-old son was stressed about reading in school. On Thursday, he had a 102F fever and was sent home by the nurse.

Judge me if you want, but we went to Farm Day anyway. I figured the worst case scenario is that he rested at our rental home with my husband.

We arrived on the farm on Friday, and my kids loved seeing the chickens, playing in the sandbox, and just being kids. They were free in nature. Free to roam, free to play, and free of stress. My son was feeling much better.

On Saturday, he had a blast at Farm Day. His face filled with pure joy while the farmer’s son John gave him a ride on a buggy pulled by a pony. Again, the face of joy when hand milking cows and reviewing milks from different cows. Again, the face of joy when giving hay to the horses. And so on and so on.

On Sunday morning, my son was 100% healthy.

Listen, it could be coincidence. But, my mama instincts tell me that it had something to do with the joy and laughter he experienced on the farm. His stress-free body was able to heal (and, I’m sure the amazing nutrient-dense food didn’t hurt, either).

A cow on the farm had a similar experience with stress at Farm Day, except it was the opposite.

I need to first note that cows do not like change. Anything out of the ordinary is stressful. So, Farm Day makes the herd a bit uneasy.

When the cows were in the barn to be milked, a customer (who’s a birth doula) noticed that a cow’s water may have broken.

The farmer came over and said it’s possible that the cow might give birth soon, but it’s hard to tell. After Farm Day ended, the cows were moved back up to pasture.

Low and behold, the cow gave birth around 10pm that night!

There’s no way to know 100%, but it seems to me that the cow was ready to give birth in the barn. However, due to the stress of strangers, she didn’t. Her body waited until she felt safe and calm at pasture.

I believe my son and that cow had something big in common on Farm Day. They needed to de-stress for their bodies to function their best.

Our bodies and our minds are so beautiful and complex. And, they are so completely affected by stress.

The farmer’s vision is to promote wellness. And a big part of this is reducing stress.

The farmer hopes that, by eating his nutrient-dense food, you are not stressed about the quality ingredients you feed your family. He hopes that you can be calm knowing exactly where and how your food is produced. He hopes that his pickup locations and mail shipping options are convenient and hassle free. And, he hopes that our excellent customer service reduces your stress, knowing you’ll always be taken care of.

How do you reduce stress in your life? Is it by the foods or lifestyle you choose? Do you have any regular practices for de-stressing? I’d love to hear from you!

Farm Updates

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 😊

Learning about stress, happiness, and health at Farm Day

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