Every year the Agricultural Science Association (ASA) goes on an international study tour to learn about farming and food in different countries. This year we travelled to Washington DC where we were hosted by the Irish agricultural attaché Dale Crammond. We met a lot of people, discussed a lot of farming issues and we ate a lot of American food.

Dave Salmonson told us that he grew up on a very diverse farm but in the early 70s everything changed when big supermarkets came into the smaller towns

Similar to what has happened in Ireland, the diversity at farm level has made way for more specialised farms. At the American Farm Bureau, Dave Salmonson told us that he grew up on a very diverse farm but in the early 70s everything changed when big supermarkets came into the smaller towns. Local farmers lost that direct-to-market link as the small corner stores closed, so Dave‘s family moved exclusively to dairy. However, he claimed that over the last 10-15 years things have switched back and farmers’ markets and organic produce are back in vogue with consumers.

When you think of American food, is it all burgers and massive portions? We ate in different places, each with their own distinct personality. At our first lunch we were joined by Roger Johnson, the president of the National Farmers Union, in a restaurant called Farmers and Distillers.

Within reason, all the food is directly sourced from farms, which he admits is an expensive business model but that people buy into the story and are willing to pay that little bit extra

As a member of the North Dakota Farmers Union, Roger is a shareholder in this restaurant and its six sisters, which are majority owned by the union members. Within reason, all the food is directly sourced from farms, which he admits is an expensive business model but that people buy into the story and are willing to pay that little bit extra. With no expansion plans at the moment, I fear that not enough consumers are buying into it.

In another restaurant, this one in Gettysburg – the Mason Dixon Distillery – when I asked for the wifi code I was told: “No TV and no wifi, we focus on the family experience here.” Again the restaurant’s calling card was an emphasis on local ingredients but they were adding the family value message also.

Almost 95% of American farms are still “family farms”

Although there is a drive towards local sourcing and supporting a family farm structure domestically, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is conscious that there is a global perception that American farming is very corporate. Arguing against this, they claim that almost 95% of American farms are still “family farms” – the definition of that being the majority of the business is owned by the operator and individuals related to the operator by blood, marriage or adoption. They are concerned about how this perception and others such as Frankenfood is impacting on the American food brand, particularly in the EU.

In the US, size matters and scale has secured an income for many. The corporate farm label has been given to farms of scale that use modern equipment and technology. To produce food at a price, scale and innovation are important but yet the image of the farmer that the consumer wants is one of the “cowboy” or the “lone farmer taming the frontier”. If we were to follow that to a conclusion, that corporate is modern, and family farms are operations devoid of innovation, using practices from bygone eras, there would be no family farms at all anywhere.

Consumer demand and perception in Ireland presents us with the same difficulties, I fear – a desire for all things but a willingness to pay for little.

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