This Is the Most Trustworthy Source for Truly Clean Food

This week on The American Family Farmer, host and lifelong farmer Doug Stephan (www.eastleighfarm.com) shares critical updates impacting small farms across the country.

Doug opens the show with a look at the ongoing immigration enforcement issues that are threatening family farms. The American Farm Bureau Federation has expressed serious concern over reports of renewed immigration crackdowns that are removing essential, hardworking laborers from small farm operations.

Next, Doug dives into the challenges facing the beef cattle industry — including the reemergence of screwworm infestations coming up from Mexico, raising alarm for U.S. livestock. On top of that, an increase in tick activity is causing a surge in infestations across farms this season. Despite these concerns, there’s good news: the cattle market remains strong, with continued high demand.

Turning to the honeybee crisis, Doug reports that bee colonies are down by two-thirds, due to a combination of migratory stress, parasitic threats, and erratic weather — especially recent floods across the U.S. Given the vital role bees play in agriculture, Doug encourages anyone with the interest and ability to consider starting a colony of their own to support pollination and food production.

In his “Doug’s Opine” segment, Doug revisits his recent conversation with Julia Barton from the Organic Farmers Association (episode: "Empowering Organic Farmers: A Conversation with Julia Barton of the Organic Farmers Association"). He reflects on the challenges surrounding the “organic” label — a term that has been increasingly compromised by government red tape and industrial agriculture interests. Doug shares his strong belief that real organic farming should return to its roots — before chemical farming — and stresses the importance of knowing your farmer. As he says, if your organic food comes from a local farm, it’s far more trustworthy than products from big ag brands bearing the same label.