She stood in front of 9,000 people: 6,000 of us were small scale food producers from 158 countries. The other 3,000 present were there because of their affiliation with Slow Food, the primary sponsor of Terra Madre.

All of us were there because of our commonly held commitment to supporting and protecting local food production and local economies around the world. That is a huge task with so very many potential expressions that I find it a bit overwhelming to even talk about.

There are almost daily examples of the industrialization and globalization of food production world wide and an effect is lose of food quality, nourishment, and public health. An example from our own culture is the use of high fructose corn syrup as the predominant sweetener in processed food. It is cheaper and easier for the big producers to use corn syrup than the traditional sweeteners such as cane or beet sugar. Unfortunately, research indicates corn syrup plays a large role in the sky-rocketing rate of adult onset diabetes in this country.

Most governments have proven they support multinational corporations rather than stand up for their culture and people. It’s up to all of us now more than ever to do what we can to preserve the integrity of local cultures, traditional livelihoods, and sustainable agriculture. If nothing else, we can at least carefully consider where we spend our dollars: Wal Mart (don't get me started!) vs. Bi Mart which is worker owned. Borders Bookstore vs 'Books without Borders' which is locally owned.

What follows are some links to websites we very much hope you will visit.

Your fiercely independent farmers,

John and Lynn