Fantastic Free Food and Farming Films

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Chris Bedford is an accomplished filmmaker, writer, and activist with a keen interest in food systems local economies, and a terrific knack for telling a story. He has recently made three of his excellent short films (about 1/2 hour each) available for free online. I encourage you all to take this opportunity to watch one or more of these thought-provoking, inspiring, and insightful films:

COMING HOME: E.F. Schumacher and the Reinvention of the Local Economy (click Title to Watch)

In 1973, British economist E.F. Schumacher wrote “Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered”… a book that offered a vision of an economy driven by a desire for harmony, not greed, and based on community and ecological values, not global financial derivatives. In the 1970’s “Small is Beautiful” helped launch the back-to-the-land movement, ancestor to the Local Food Revolution of today. For the last three decades, the E.F. Schumacher Society has transformed Schumacher’s ideas into a series of practical innovations reinventing much of the local economy of Great Barrington, Massachusetts and southern Berkshire County in the process. This film tells the story of the Society’s remarkable work that includes founding of the nation’s first CSA, economic development based on Community Land Trusts, and the creation of the nation’s most successful local currency … BerkShares. Runtime: 37 Minutes

What Will We Eat?: The Search for Healthy Local Food (Click Title to Watch)

This Film tells the story of the growing failure of the industrial food system and how a grassroots coalition of small farmers and consumers is inventing a healthy, humane, homegrown alternative. Filmed in Michigan, Iowa, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Maryland, “What Will We Eat?” features John Ikerd, Fred Kirschenmann, Michael Hamm and John Biernbaum of MSU plus the voices of local West Michigan farmers and consumers working to build a new, revolutionary food system. (Runtime 26 Minutes)

The Organic Opportunity: Small Farms & Economic Development (Click Title to Watch)

This film tells the story of Woodbury County, Iowa’s innovative economic development campaign centered on the development of local, organic agriculture. This film is for anyone interested in discovering the positive impact a local food system grounded in organic agricultural practices can play in a community’s economic, environmental and physical health. “The Organic Opportunity” explores Woodbury County’s pioneering program of (1) economic development tax rebates for farmers who transition to organic, (2) county purchasing that prioritizes local, organic food, and (3) financing for new, small farmers committed to organic agriculture. It is a story of hope and practical steps any community can take to build a thriving local economy. (Runtime 26 Minutes)