--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We need to confront honestly the issue of…" description: "\"We need to confront honestly the issue of scale... You may need a large corporation to run an airline or to manufacture cars, but you don't need a larg..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/wendell-berry-236_airline_we-need-to-confront-honestly-the-issue-o_732584.jpg" --- # We need to confront honestly the issue of scale... You may… ![“We need to confront honestly the issue of scale... You may need a large corporation to run an airline or to manufacture cars, but you don't need a large corporation to raise a chicken or a hog. You don't need a large corporation to process local food or local timber and market it locally.” quote by Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/wendell-berry-236_airline_we-need-to-confront-honestly-the-issue-o_732584.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/wendell-berry-236_airline_we-need-to-confront-honestly-the-issue-o_732584.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/wendell-berry-236_airline_we-need-to-confront-honestly-the-issue-o_732584.jpg) > “We need to confront honestly the issue of scale... You may need a large corporation to run an airline or to manufacture cars, but you don't need a large corporation to raise a chicken or a hog. You don't need a large corporation to process local food or local timber and market it locally.” [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Large corporations are necessary for massive industries, but small, local enterprises can thrive without them, preserving community and sustainability. **In simple terms:** Big firms suit big tasks; small farms can stay independent. Key Takeaway Support local production and resist unnecessary scaling. Themes sustainability localism economics community scale Mood thoughtful hopeful pragmatic Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - Running a family farm - starting a local timber business - selling produce at farmers markets - community-supported agriculture Key Concepts Agriculture decentralization market dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can communities balance efficiency with local autonomy? - What policies help protect small producers? A Different Perspective Large scale may bring efficiency but can erode local resilience and environmental health. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Corporation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporation/) [Corporations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporations/) [Issues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/issues/) [Local food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/local-food/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) ## Related quotes > [Anybody interested in solving, rather than profiting from, the problems of food production and distribution will see that in the long run the safest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/anybody-interested-in-solving-rather-than-profiting-from-the-problems/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [If you're a large corporation, you can afford to pay the money to register patents, but if you're an individual like me, you can't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-wall/if-you-re-a-large-corporation-you-can-afford-to-pay-the-money-to/) [Larry Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-wall/) > [One doesn't have to be a large corporation to benefit from the advantages of volume. This can also be achieved through joint ventures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norbert-reithofer/one-doesn-t-have-to-be-a-large-corporation-to-benefit-from-the/) [Norbert Reithofer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norbert-reithofer/) > [For a large corporation to be effective, it must be simple. For an organization to be simple, its people must have self-confidence and intellectual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-welch/for-a-large-corporation-to-be-effective-it-must-be-simple-for-an/) [Jack Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-welch/) > [“It is not. The aspiring leader has been set up to fail. He just doesn't recognize it yet. The first few months go well,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-trimble/it-is-not-the-aspiring-leader-has-been-set-up-to-fail-he-just-doesn-t/) Chris Trimble > [A great advantage of a large corporation is supposed to be the large pool of talent in which its leaders can find and groom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-heffernan/a-great-advantage-of-a-large-corporation-is-supposed-to-be-the-large/) [Margaret Heffernan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-heffernan/) > [Inside all the computers of any large corporation is every decision that gets made. But people spend a huge amount of time trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-butterfield/inside-all-the-computers-of-any-large-corporation-is-every-decision/) [Stewart Butterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-butterfield/) > [I wasn't always interested in technology. I had been a student for a long time - I'd earned a bachelor's degree, a law degree,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-chambers/i-wasn-t-always-interested-in-technology-i-had-been-a-student-for-a/) [John T. Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-chambers/) > [The salary of the chief executive of a large corporation is not a market award for achievement. It is frequently in the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/the-salary-of-the-chief-executive-of-a-large-corporation-is-not-a/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [Don’t complain about being unable to afford high-quality local food when your grocery cart is full of beer, cigarettes, and People magazine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/don-t-complain-about-being-unable-to-afford-high-quality-local-food/) [Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/) > [I have a great love for cuisine, so Im always interested in local food, and there are so many interesting dishes, spices and ingredients…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romain-grosjean/i-have-a-great-love-for-cuisine-so-im-always-interested-in-local-food/) [Romain Grosjean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romain-grosjean/) > [From zoning to labor to food safety to insurance, local food systems daily face a phalanx of regulatory hurdles designed and implemented to police…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/from-zoning-to-labor-to-food-safety-to-insurance-local-food-systems/) [Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/) > [Public charities, foodbanks and church pantries are doing more than ever before, but they can't keep up with the need. We can never end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bridges/public-charities-foodbanks-and-church-pantries-are-doing-more-than/) [Jeff Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bridges/) > [A lot of local food is very tasty. I'm very happy to eat it. I just don't think it's the same thing as saving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/a-lot-of-local-food-is-very-tasty-i-m-very-happy-to-eat-it-i-just-don/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [Hua Hin is Thailand's royal beach resort and home to the king's summer palace. The local food is fantastic, the weather is beautiful, everything's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/hua-hin-is-thailand-s-royal-beach-resort-and-home-to-the-king-s/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) ## More by Wendell Berry > [During the last 17 years... I have been working at the restoration of a once exhausted hillside. Its scars are now healed over, though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/during-the-last-17-years-i-have-been-working-at-the-restoration-of-a/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Like the water of a deep stream, love is always too much. We did not make it. Though we drink till we burst, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/like-the-water-of-a-deep-stream-love-is-always-too-much-we-did-not/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The two families, sundered in the ruin of a friendship, were united again first in new friendship and then in mariage. My grandfather made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-two-families-sundered-in-the-ruin-of-a-friendship-were-united/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The living can't quit living because the world has turned terrible and people they love and need are killed. They can't because they don't.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-living-can-t-quit-living-because-the-world-has-turned-terrible/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“I knew a man who, in the age of chain-saws, went right on cutting his wood with a handsaw and an axe. He was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/i-knew-a-man-who-in-the-age-of-chain-saws-went-right-on-cutting-his/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The concept of country, homeland, dwelling place becomes simplified as "the environment" -- that is, what surrounds us, we have already made a profound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-concept-of-country-homeland-dwelling-place-becomes-simplified-as/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [A community is the mental and spiritual condition of knowing that the place is shared, and that the people who share the place define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/a-community-is-the-mental-and-spiritual-condition-of-knowing-that-the/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“That we can prescribe the terms of our own success, that we can live outside or in ignorance of the Great Economy are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/that-we-can-prescribe-the-terms-of-our-own-success-that-we-can-live/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The mind that comes to rest is tended In ways that it cannot intend: Is borne, preserved, and comprehended By what it cannot comprehend.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-mind-that-comes-to-rest-is-tended-in-ways-that-it-cannot-intend/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The mercy of the world is time. Time does not stop for love, but it does not stop for death and grief, either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-mercy-of-the-world-is-time-time-does-not-stop-for-love-but-it/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The soil is the great connector of our lives, the source and destination of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-soil-is-the-great-connector-of-our-lives-the-source-and/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [I dislike the thought that some animal has been made miserable to feed me. If I am going to eat meat, I want it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/i-dislike-the-thought-that-some-animal-has-been-made-miserable-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/laughter-is-immeasurable-be-joyful/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [These are people who are capable of devotion, public devotion, to justice. They meant what they said and every day that passes, they mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/these-are-people-who-are-capable-of-devotion-public-devotion-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) [Explore all 847 Wendell Berry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## More Airline quotes > [One of the Internet's highest-profile companies, Priceline once dreamed of transforming the way consumer goods are bought and sold by offering customers the chance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-berenson/one-of-the-internet-s-highest-profile-companies-priceline-once/) [Alex Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-berenson/) > [Juan Tripp was a friend. Good name for an airline man, huh? Juan Tripp after another?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-wray/juan-tripp-was-a-friend-good-name-for-an-airline-man-huh-juan-tripp/) [Fay Wray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-wray/) > [Most big companies don't like you very much, except hotels, airlines and Microsoft, which don't like you at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/most-big-companies-don-t-like-you-very-much-except-hotels-airlines/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If the Wright brother were alive today Wilbur would have to fire Orville to reduce costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-kelleher/if-the-wright-brother-were-alive-today-wilbur-would-have-to-fire/) [Herb Kelleher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-kelleher/) > [Hart is still like that little tub of vaguely milklike gunk that comes with airline coffee. It is labeled a "nondairy" product. Fine: we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/hart-is-still-like-that-little-tub-of-vaguely-milklike-gunk-that/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [Be Luke Skywalker, not Darth Vader. Ultimately love is stronger than evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-burr/be-luke-skywalker-not-darth-vader-ultimately-love-is-stronger-than/) Don Burr > [As a businessman, Frank Lorenzo gives capitalism a bad name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr/as-a-businessman-frank-lorenzo-gives-capitalism-a-bad-name/) [William F. Buckley, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr/) > [I have an 800 freephone number now that I call if I get the urge to buy an airline stock. I call at two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-have-an-800-freephone-number-now-that-i-call-if-i-get-the-urge-to/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [I don't mind flying. I always pass out before the plane leaves the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-campbell/i-don-t-mind-flying-i-always-pass-out-before-the-plane-leaves-the/) [Naomi Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-campbell/) > [Can a physicist visualize an electron? The electron is materially inconceivable and yet, it is so perfectly known through its effects that we use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wernher-von-braun/can-a-physicist-visualize-an-electron-the-electron-is-materially/) [Wernher von Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wernher-von-braun/) > [Funny, isn't it? The airlines go to all that trouble to keep you from taking a gun on board, then they just hand you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/funny-isn-t-it-the-airlines-go-to-all-that-trouble-to-keep-you-from/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [Any serious airline has to look at a worldwide network.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-mallya/any-serious-airline-has-to-look-at-a-worldwide-network/) [Vijay Mallya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-mallya/) > [Running an airline is a normal job. Racing is more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niki-lauda/running-an-airline-is-a-normal-job-racing-is-more/) [Niki Lauda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niki-lauda/) > [Those were my children being slaughtered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-burr/those-were-my-children-being-slaughtered/) Don Burr > [I came from the music business, which reputedly has the biggest egos, but I really think the airline world caps it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-fernandes/i-came-from-the-music-business-which-reputedly-has-the-biggest-egos/) [Tony Fernandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-fernandes/) Browse all 342 Airline quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We need to confront honestly the issue of scale... You may need a large corporation to run an airline or to manufacture cars, but you don't need a large corporation to raise a chicken or a hog. 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