Worry about disease leads to a focus on health

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March 20, 2020

I hope you all are doing well during our current state of crisis. I know that many people on this list are being seriously affected by social isolation, and I wish you the best transition into and out of this temporary state of life.

When faced with the global worry about disease, my worry transfers to worrying about my personal health and the health of my family. Is it the same for you?

I think of all the things I’m doing wrong or are off in my life. I don’t get enough exercise. I drink coffee. I forgot to give my kids elderberry syrup last week. My three year old has had boogers for two weeks. I buy easy processed snacks for school lunches. This is what I think about as I try to fall asleep.

But… I need to catch myself in this spiral of despair. Instead, I switch to focusing on all the things I am doing right for my health.

I almost always cook dinner from scratch. More than 50% of my food comes from conscious small farmers (and even more right now). I walked or hiked every day this week. I drink lots of water and bone broth and fermented veggies. I’ve been sleeping enough. My family has very limited screen time. And so on...

However, how can you be sure you’re actually in good health?

Sure, you can listen to your body and trust your gut. But, it can be hard, especially in hysterical times like these, because “health” is not definitively quantifiable.

Farmer Aaron had a surge of confidence this week. His doctor had his whole family’s hair tested for vitamin, mineral, and toxin content. The results were astounding!

The whole family had above normal levels of sulfur, silicon, boron, potassium, iron, and manganese. They had normal levels of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, selenium, and more. The doctor was thrilled with their results.

Two family members tested a bit high for aluminum and lead. They will be doing a doctor-recommended detox and probably have their house water tested to find the source.

Keep in mind, Aaron’s family lives a healthy, active lifestyle. At least 90% of their diet comes from nutrient-dense small farm food. They do not take any vitamins or supplements or pharmaceutical medications - well, except cod liver oil and, when sick, homeopathic or herbal remedies.

And now Aaron’s talking about having his cow’s hair tested in the same way. Maybe coming soon…?

When I heard this news, I had a surge of confidence. If eating food from my primary food source results in test results like these, then I’m on the right track. And I’ll keep going.

To help keep people healthy with access to real farm food, the farmer is putting some basic items on deep discount. These are pantry staples that the farmer has an abundance of.

Feel free to check out more of our specials here and bundle deals here.

I wish you all the best during this confusing time of turmoil. Please know the farmer is doing everything in his power to continue providing you high quality, great tasting food.

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 😊

Worry about disease leads to a focus on health

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