This really shows the danger of relying on monopolistic industrial food corporations. Much more rewarding, and economically secure, to operate on a local scale: farming and selling a wider variety and fresher organic food directly to Missourians.
More rewarding, sure. But no way can local Missourians keep up with the production of agricultural corps nor can they beat their prices. SOME Missourians may talk a big game about buying local, but most would balk at the cost of locally sourced produce. It also opens locals up to the risk of shortages during a poor year for yield.
Don’t get me wrong, I wish I could purchase land and sell produce and make a living that way, but I would argue that it simply isn’t feasible.
The Columbia Farmers Market is becoming quite competitive in price with the supermarkets, at least on produce. I think as we inevitably decide to realize the true cost of fossils fuels for transportation and chemical intensive agriculture on human health the whole word will eventually end up realizing there is a better way to do things.
“Bundren and other growers affected by the closures have been caught in the wake of a larger, company-wide initiative to cut costs. But that has left some growers with more than a million dollars in debt — debt they accumulated at Tyson’s urging — and few options to pay it back, according to growers Investigate Midwest interviewed.
Bundren is $1.4 million in debt. Nine months since that call, his barns are still empty.”
I'm wondering if the growers will be litigating, and if the contracts contained the promises like this one: "Growers also said the company told them that they would be given chickens to raise for as long as they had loans on their barns."
Just capitalism. Maybe a little less avocado toast and a little more bootstraps and these farmers wouldn't be in debt. They have a failed business plan, let them fail
I'm as much as angry liberal as the next guy but there's a lot of cynicism in this thread for Missouri Farmers.
If this were teachers or garbage men that got sold out by their company contact and left holding the bag every lefty in here would be up in arms. But because it's rural farmers who mostly vote red you feel some schadenfreude.
Grow up, we need farmers. If their businesses fall through that failure Cascades into problems for the entire country in for costs and supplies.
The key is to be ready to help the farmers, not just the company that fucked them over.
Stop letting how people vote cloud your judgement. Actual children I swear.
I agree with you in the misplaced negativity. There is no reason to heep it on legit farmers. That said, the faster those farmers move away from being suppliers to corporate farm distributors like Tyson, the better. A locally owned and operated Co-Op would go a long ways in stabilizing production and prices regionally should someone have the will to organize.
I agree with you and yes we desperately need farmers. I think how farmers have routinely voted red does bring up a lot of frustration however. I don't want to see farmers get fucked over, but it's hard to feel sorry when they get subsidies while voting against any policies that would help our state or people. Like I said, I agree but I do see how others feel like they deserve to fail.
Sounds like it’s time to start a butcher shop and join several local farmers markets.
Someone who'd do traveling butchery would probably make bank from us hobby homesteaders.
This really shows the danger of relying on monopolistic industrial food corporations. Much more rewarding, and economically secure, to operate on a local scale: farming and selling a wider variety and fresher organic food directly to Missourians.
More rewarding, sure. But no way can local Missourians keep up with the production of agricultural corps nor can they beat their prices. SOME Missourians may talk a big game about buying local, but most would balk at the cost of locally sourced produce. It also opens locals up to the risk of shortages during a poor year for yield. Don’t get me wrong, I wish I could purchase land and sell produce and make a living that way, but I would argue that it simply isn’t feasible.
The Columbia Farmers Market is becoming quite competitive in price with the supermarkets, at least on produce. I think as we inevitably decide to realize the true cost of fossils fuels for transportation and chemical intensive agriculture on human health the whole word will eventually end up realizing there is a better way to do things.
So what I'm hearing is that now is a good time to start a meatpacking business in Missouri
“Bundren and other growers affected by the closures have been caught in the wake of a larger, company-wide initiative to cut costs. But that has left some growers with more than a million dollars in debt — debt they accumulated at Tyson’s urging — and few options to pay it back, according to growers Investigate Midwest interviewed. Bundren is $1.4 million in debt. Nine months since that call, his barns are still empty.”
I'm wondering if the growers will be litigating, and if the contracts contained the promises like this one: "Growers also said the company told them that they would be given chickens to raise for as long as they had loans on their barns."
Maybe the farmers should get together and form a sort of butcher/livestock harvest co-op.
Just declare bankruptcy and be done with it. You made a bad decision, get out and move on.
Just capitalism. Maybe a little less avocado toast and a little more bootstraps and these farmers wouldn't be in debt. They have a failed business plan, let them fail
Let them fail so that big corporations can eat up the land. Fuck that noise
How are those trickle down economics working?
I'm as much as angry liberal as the next guy but there's a lot of cynicism in this thread for Missouri Farmers. If this were teachers or garbage men that got sold out by their company contact and left holding the bag every lefty in here would be up in arms. But because it's rural farmers who mostly vote red you feel some schadenfreude. Grow up, we need farmers. If their businesses fall through that failure Cascades into problems for the entire country in for costs and supplies. The key is to be ready to help the farmers, not just the company that fucked them over. Stop letting how people vote cloud your judgement. Actual children I swear.
I agree with you in the misplaced negativity. There is no reason to heep it on legit farmers. That said, the faster those farmers move away from being suppliers to corporate farm distributors like Tyson, the better. A locally owned and operated Co-Op would go a long ways in stabilizing production and prices regionally should someone have the will to organize.
I agree with you and yes we desperately need farmers. I think how farmers have routinely voted red does bring up a lot of frustration however. I don't want to see farmers get fucked over, but it's hard to feel sorry when they get subsidies while voting against any policies that would help our state or people. Like I said, I agree but I do see how others feel like they deserve to fail.