| Support the American Farmer | | | | Meanwhile, just 10 agricorporations generate more |
| From our founding as a nation, the roots of the | | | | than 50 percent of the global food-retailing revenue. |
| American people burrowed deep into the soil. For at | | | | One reason why the situation of the farmer is so |
| least the first 150 years of our history -- From the | | | | disturbing has to do with this simple fact: if it is |
| first colonial settlers to the Great Depression of the | | | | nothing else, farming is a labor of love. Many farmers |
| 1930s -- farmers and farming were the foundation of | | | | have a deep, emotional, almost mystical connection |
| our economy and framed the American experience. | | | | to the soil they plow, plant and harvest with pride. |
| Intrepid explorers like Lewis and Clark and Daniel | | | | With the economy in tatters and home foreclosures |
| Boone may have inspired restless citizens with visions | | | | at an all-time high, we're well aware of the pain and |
| of the promise "out West," but it was the tireless | | | | loss our fellow citizens experience when they have |
| farm families who made that promise a reality. The | | | | to give up their property or homes. But for most |
| trailblazers were followed by pioneers who cleared | | | | farmers, it is particularly heart-rending - literally, it |
| and tilled the land, establishing farms and agriculture | | | | seems, at times. |
| as the predominate way of life across vast sections | | | | However, there is hope. Organizations such as Farm |
| of our country. | | | | Aid, the Center for Rural Affairs, Organic Valley, the |
| As cities grew, it was the American family farmer | | | | Farmer Direct Co-Operative and Dakota Rural Action |
| who fed their burgeoning populations. But now, in the | | | | have mobilized farmers and the public by bringing |
| 21st century, the family farm is in serious jeopardy. | | | | awareness of the problems small farmers face to the |
| The National Family Farm Coalition estimates that | | | | national level. The incoming presidential administration |
| between 1996 and 2001 - a 5-year period -- 100,000 | | | | has promised to review and rethink existing free |
| American family farmers were forced off the land - | | | | trade agreements with an eye to fairness to the |
| land that, in many cases had been lovingly labored | | | | nation's small farm community. And a number of |
| over by the same families for generations! | | | | companies and businesses, among them Planet One |
| The juggernaut that has coalesced to threaten U.S. | | | | Gifts, are working to ensure that their offerings, |
| Farmers and destroy a way of life? It's a combination | | | | where possible, come from small American farmers. |
| of: | | | | Where and how we get our food is of concern to us |
| - international free trade agreements, flooding the | | | | here at Planet One Gifts. So, just as we support Fair |
| U.S. market with cheap food imports; | | | | Trade on the international level, we're actively |
| - loss of local market share, because U.S. farmers | | | | involved in promoting the concept here in the U.S., |
| can't compete in price; | | | | too. The home grown version - Domestic Fair Trade |
| - the rise and mushrooming expansion of huge, | | | | - links American farmer cooperatives directly to |
| U.S.-based corporate agribusinesses. | | | | consumers, small distributors and local food |
| The end result? The people who grow our food | | | | processors, thus helping to ensure that farm families |
| receive an ever-shrinking share of the money that | | | | get a fair price for their crops and can continue to |
| we consumers spend on food. | | | | pursue their vocation. |
| Equal Exchange, a Fair Trade company, states that, | | | | By supporting Domestic Fair Trade through your local |
| from 1935 to 1997, the total number of U.S. farms | | | | farmers and growers, you help built stronger local |
| fell from 6.5 million to just over 2 million. In 2003, | | | | communities and ensure the sustainability of a bigger |
| there were 1.9 million working farmers. That sad | | | | community, our planet. |
| statistic is less than our nation's prison population! | | | | |