I’ve been photographing farms and farmers in the Berkshires in Western Massachusetts where I live for nearly a decade. I started this project because I believed that food and where it comes from and how it is made is one the most urgent, universally important issues our world faces today. And the more time I’ve spent on this work, the more I have come to understand that we really are also in serious trouble: Issues of personal health and world hunger; the instability and injustice of an oil-dependent economy; terrorism, increasing agricultural trade surpluses, and structural violence of a global food system; the lack of knowledge around genetic engineering, the loss of traditional knowledge and regional varieties in our crops; the ethical treatment of animals and the impact on our environment… all are part of the dynamic we participate in each and every day, every time we eat.
Proponents of industrial agriculture will insist we are too far-gone and must buy into technological solutions. But a growing number of communities around the world are challenging this assumption, and farmers on small, independently owned, and community focused farms are helping local economies grow and sustainable agriculture take hold in legitimate and effective ways. Such farmers represent real alternatives and I photograph them to provoke the critical conversations we need to be having about where our food comes from and the sustainability and vitality of that system.