Why biodiversity is important to us

written by

posted on

June 15, 2017

I watched the Netflix documentary What’s with Wheat the other day. It’s about how grain’s omnipresence in modern America has created a health crisis.

Since you are already a Miller’s Bio customer, I may be preaching to the choir here. However, one part of the documentary really stuck out to me. The film explained how the best diet for humans to follow is the one they were eating about 150 years ago, just before the industrial revolution. It was a time when people thrived on biodiversity!

bi·o·di·ver·si·ty
/ˌbīōdiˈvərsədē,ˌbīōˌdīˈvərsədē/
noun
the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

This is exactly where the name of our farm comes from. At Miller’s Biodiversity Farm, a great many forms of life are interacting to produce the most healthful and nutrient dense food the farmer can produce. Our farm and the farms that we work closely with all follow this model.

Every plant, animal, and microorganism has its purpose. Sure, the cows produce milk. But, they also produce manure. Along with the smart use of cover crops, this is a natural fertilizer for the fields. Chickens produce eggs and meat, but they also fertilize the fields and eat pests that would destroy crops and gobble up seeds that would grow into weeds. Pigs are the garbage disposal. They are fed soured milk and basically any farm waste. In return, they provide us bacon (and other cuts, of course)! Our plants are the mechanism for drawing the nutrients back out of the soil, feeding our animals, that then feed us. And microorganisms are what keep our animals and soil healthy and make delicious digestible and fermented products for us.

There are countless examples of these positive symbiotic relationships that make farming a sustainable, life-enriching practice. Our farmer pays such close attention to the health of his farm. The richer the soil, the healthier the animals, the healthier the food, the better for our members and the farm.

It would be an interesting challenge to create a biodiverse meal, one that includes plants, seeds, animals, dairy products, and microorganisms. We could call it a whole farm meal. Anyone up for the challenge?

Thanks for being a Miller’s Bio Farm customer and being part of our biodiversity.

Opinion

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 😊

Should I choose animal rennet or vegetable rennet in my natural cheese?

Let’s take a look at what rennet is and why it’s used in cheesemaking, compare the different types of animal and vegetable rennets, check out the labeling requirements for rennet, and consider the potential health consequences. Keeping all this in mind, Miller’s Bio Farm aims to produce the most nutrient-dense, natural, A2/A2 cheese we can and gives you all the info you need to make the choice that’s best for your body!

Is yolk color is no longer a great indicator of the egg's nutrition?

It used to be true that, if your egg yolks were darker in color, then the better the egg's nutrition. Conscious consumers of the past would look for that deep orange yolk and stray away from lighter yellow yolks. It's sad, but this simply isn't the case anymore. Here's why you can't trust cheap store-bought eggs with orange yolks and need to know your farmer instead.

Why biodiversity is important to us

More from the blog

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

Should I choose animal rennet or vegetable rennet in my natural cheese?

Is yolk color is no longer a great indicator of the egg's nutrition?

Do

Learn

Uphold

Connect

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