Children Quote by Barbara Kingsolver
““Now, it's fair to say, the majority of us don't want to be farmers, see farmers, pay farmers, or hear their complaints. Except as straw-chewing figures in children's books, we don't quite believe in them anymore. When we give it a thought, we mostly consider the food industry to be a thing rather than a person. We obligingly give 85 cents of our every food dollar to that thing, too--the processors, marketers, and transporters. And we complain about the high price of organic meats and vegetables thtat might send back more than three nickels per buck to the farmers: those actual humans putting seeds into the ground, harvesting, attending livestock births, standing in the fields at dawn casting their shadows upon our sustenance. There seems to be some reason we don't want to compensate or think about these hardworking people. In the grocery store checkout corral, we're more likely to learn which TV stars are secretly fornicating than to inquire as to the whereabouts of the people who grew the cucumbers and melons in our carts.””
About This Quote
Source Essay: “The Unseen Farmers” by Barbara Kingsolver, 2015
People rarely recognize or compensate farmers, treating food as a product rather than a labor of real people.
In simple terms: We ignore the people who grow our food.
Key Takeaway
Consider supporting local farmers directly.
Themes
agriculture
visibility
consumer awareness
economics
ethics
Mood
reflective
concerned
Type
analytical
critical
When to use this quote
- grocery shopping
- policy advocacy
- community-supported agriculture
- education campaigns
- ethical consumption
Key Concepts
food systems
labor value
social responsibility
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we make farmer contributions more visible?
- What policies could ensure fair farmer compensation?
A Different Perspective
The complexity of global supply chains can make direct farmer support difficult.
