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Cover photo: Tai Power Seeff
Hope for the future lies with a new generation of regenerative farmers.
Within a decade, nearly half of all American farmland will change hands as an older generation of farmers steps aside. In their place, a groundswell of new growers will face numerous challenges, including soil degradation, insufficient income, and investors devouring farmland at a staggering pace. These new farmers are embracing regenerative agriculture—the holistic approach to growing food that restores the soil and biodiversity—in the movement to reclaim our health and the planet’s. But can their efforts help reverse an epidemic of diet-related disease, food inequality, and even climate change?
To answer that question and more, award-winning journalist Jennifer Grayson embedded herself in a groundbreaking farmer training program, then embarked on this investigative journey. The diverse array of farmers, graziers, and food activists whom she profiles here are working toward better, more sustainable foodways for all. From a one-acre market garden in Oregon to activists reviving food sovereignty in South Carolina, A Call to Farms tells the captivating story of these new agrarians finding hope and purpose in reconnecting to the land and striving to improve the future of American food.
“In this deeply inspiring book, Jennifer Grayson examines the motives, practices, problems, and successes of a diverse collection of young, small-scale farmers growing food sustainably and achieving enormous satisfaction and joy in the process. The farmers provide abundant reasons for hope in the future of food that’s healthier for producers, people, and the planet. If you’re looking for hope, here it is.”
—MARION NESTLE, PHD, MPH, professor emerita of nutrition, food studies, and public health at New York University and author of Slow Cooked: An Unexpected Life in Food Politics
“A Call to Farms is a transformative act of journalism. Who writes an eloquent page-turner about farms? Jennifer Grayson does. A Call to Farms erases shopworn stereotypes of farms and farmers, gracefully leading the reader into a boots-on, magical culture crucial to the well-being of society, the land, and our future.”
—PAUL HAWKEN, New York Times–bestselling author of Regeneration and Drawdown
“A Call to Farms is a pivotal exploration into the heart of the new agrarian lifestyle, a topic close to my own journey. Jennifer Grayson captures the essence of what it means to be a modern, small-scale farmer, intertwining the challenges and triumphs faced by those committed to nurturing the land. Her eloquent narrative not only highlights the importance of sustainable practices but also celebrates the joy and satisfaction found in this crucial work. This book is an essential read for anyone passionate about the earth, its caretakers, and the sustainable-food movement.”
—JM FORTIER, author of The Market Gardener and advocate for small-scale organic agriculture
“Food, farming, and a purposeful life all come together in this inspiring tour that visits America’s new generation of regenerative pioneers.”
—DAVID R. MONTGOMERY, MacArthur fellow, author of Growing a Revolution, and coauthor of What Your Food Ate
“This is a wonderful book, perhaps a milestone in the gathering movement for a sane, agroecological food system. Each chapter is its own little jewel, glinting with the joy and energy of people finding connection among land, food, and community. Bittersweet jewels they are, though, because Jennifer Grayson knows the painful histories that have sundered these connections and still are shaping our world. That she can face this squarely while conveying such hope is a testament to her skills as a writer and also to the power of the new stories that the farmers whom she describes are writing.”
—CHRIS SMAJE, author of A Small Farm Future and Saying No to a Farm-Free Future
“A Call to Farms makes the case for the urgent necessity to return to organic, regenerative agriculture, as it was prior to the introduction of GMOs and chemical inputs. As Jennifer Grayson persuasively and authentically explains, as we restore the terrain, we will restore our own health.”
—MICHELLE PERRO, MD, integrative physician, cofounder and CEO of GMOScience.org, and author of What’s Making Our Children Sick?
For publicity and media requests, contact Zachary Polendo at W. W. Norton: zpolendo@wwnorton.com