by Brooke Anderson
Imagine that the delivery service that puts food on grocery store shelves nationwide shuts down, and people need to find food. The first place they would go? Local farms. But what if no more local farms exist? What would happen then?
Local farms are more important to our communities than we realize, and many of them are struggling. To figure out why, we decided to visit one of our native San Diegan farms and experience the world of local farming for ourselves.
“This is why it’s called Seabreeze,” Stephenie Caughlin says as we reach the highest point of her farm. A fresh, salty breeze brushes our faces, and we rest our eyes on the still water in the distance beneath the horizon.
Caughlin is the owner of Seabreeze Organic Farm, a plot of land tucked away behind walls of trees and surrounded by residential communities in the San Diego neighborhood of Carmel Valley. After buying the land in 1978, she started her small farm in 1988 and has been selling fresh produce to customers ever since. But while some may believe being a small organic farm is easy and fruitful, this is not actually the case, especially for farms in San Diego.
“It’s a myth. It’s an absolute myth.”
Being a local farmer is challenging work, and there are even more difficulties as an organic farmer. Organic farmers avoid the use of pesticides and weed killers. For Caughlin and the others working on the farm, that means working the farm by hand. With 65,000 square feet of land used for farming, every square inch of it must be tended to. And if weeds are allowed to grow anywhere, they will take over the entire farm.
Local farms in San Diego have struggled to stay in business. Recently, one such farm was Suzie’s Farm, which closed in July 2017. Small farmers face many issues, including bad weather, pests, diseases, the rising cost of water, transportation, utilities, and labor, taxes and fees.
“We have lost many talented and dedicated growers in San Diego over the last 20 years,” Caughlin says.
According to Caughlin, she never vacations and instead constantly takes care of the land. She only has one paid worker, the foreman, because it is difficult to find people willing to work on a farm. Since San Diego has such a high cost of living, workers would most likely have to take an hour commute to the farm—on top of low wages. Fortunately, her friends come by the farm and help her with some of the duties.
For Seabreeze Organic Farm specifically, Caughlin has managed to stay in business through other means besides just the produce. She no longer sells at farmer’s markets due to fees and is a completely private enterprise. Art classes are held on the farm inside a greenhouse, which is cooled by a water system that runs water across the plastic on the roof (and waters the plants). People rent and stay in the farm’s straw bale house, which as the name suggests, is made entirely from bales of straw. The bathroom outside the straw bale house is a cyclative system, sending water from the bathroom to the plants, saving money. Additionally, Caughlin utilizes a stacked farming method in which produce is stacked vertically and water trickles down to the plants, therefore using less water (and deterring animals from harming the food).
Besides being an integral part of the community, local farms have many other positive qualities that make them worth our support. In Caughlin’s case, those who get food from her farm are guaranteed fresh food (delivered straight to their door!). Since Seabreeze is a private enterprise, customers who want the produce can order what they like and pick it up at the farm or have it delivered to their home or office. The food is harvested a couple days before or even sometimes the day of delivery. When the customers get their bags of produce, they also receive a bouquet of flowers picked
straight from the farm.
Along with the obvious benefits of fresh produce, Caughlin also introduces a lot of new types of produce to San Diego. For example, French breakfast radishes—which she picked right in front of us and let us try—along with other produce like arugula and blood oranges. One of the many benefits of touring and supporting a local farm!
In addition to fresh food, customers are also ensured the good treatment of farm animals. On Seabreeze Organic Farm, Caughlin has made her farm a sanctuary for humans and animals alike. When the homes were built around the property, she fought for not installing street lights on the roads. At night, while looking up at the sky, she can
see everything—including owls and bats. Her farm is also a sanctuary for animals because of how she treats them. Caughlin refuses to kill her animals, instead taking care of them into old age. Today, old hens are seen lounging around in their own space on the farm.
Caughlin’s produce benefits more than just the customers, but the military as well. While delivering to members of her program, she found that people would unexpectedly skip delivery dates, which was a problem, since their food was already
grown and ready to go. In response to the issue, Caughlin created the Hungry Heroes Program. Now when customers skip a delivery, their bag of food is given to a military family in need. According to Caughlin, about 7-8 bags are delivered to military families per week.
While buying produce is a great way to support local farms, it is not the only way. According to Caughlin, donations and volunteering are significant ways to show support for small, local farmers.
If you’re interested in learning more about your local farms, the best method is to go visit them in person. Look at the vast array of fruits, vegetables and flowers. Say hello to
the goats and the chickens. Taste the sweetness of a blood orange and smell the rich scent of basil leaves. Ask questions and learn more about the farmer’s practices.
You’ll find a greatly rewarding experience and enriching knowledge of the food and
land that is difficult to find elsewhere, just as we did.
For more information on Seabreeze Farm, visit seabreezed.com
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