On Facebook recently I saw that a farmer was bemoaning the fact that the United States loses 4.3 acres of farmland every minute of every day. I can appreciate that sentiment. But there's another side to that coin. We've become much more efficient at growing food. Farmers have significantly increased their yield per acre over the decades. For example, the amount of corn per acre has increased 5 times since 1950. In addition, the U.S. wastes about 30 percent of the food we grow. We're already growing enough food to basically feed most of the planet. As much as I hate (for sentimental reasons) seeing farmland sold to developers, we small-acreage farmers are doing just fine and still provide plenty of food both for ourselves and for others. If you want to get upset about something, get upset about our gluttony problem here in the U.S. and about how much food we waste. As for your choice of housing, people today prefer track homes that are all the same with no space between them and where you're afraid to burp because the neighbors 5 homes down can hear you. It's called the law of supply and demand.
I'm so thankful that the former owners of my farm refused to subdivide their property and insisted that the farm be sold intact.
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| Nothing can beat an old Massey Ferguson 135! |
I'm sure they took a financial hit but they wanted their land to continue to be farmed. Many of my colleagues at the seminary have in recent years bought a few acres out in the county. They're leaving the city for nature. They look around and see nothing but farms. All that fresh grass, peace, and quiet will do wonders for their blood pressure.
But no, I do NOT blame developers for buying up farmland.