Hi, my name is Frances, I am a senior in high school, and I was an intern at Bluebird Farms this July. I am interested in plant sciences and sustainable food systems and am very inspired by the work the Bluebird Farms does.
I definitely learned a lot over the two weeks, from soil health and weed control to marketing and branding. The one thing that really stood out to me was the importance of buying organic grains. I knew that chemical fertilizers and pesticides are harmful, but I never considered how much of an issue it actually is. While I was in the fields with Sam, he told me that conventional grain farms not only use herbicides to control weeds, they also use them to kill the grain plants for when they want to harvest them. Then from the moment that that herbicide is sprayed on the grain to the moment, it is scooped into the bag as flour, it never gets washed. That means that when you are eating conventional flour, you are also directly eating the herbicide. Not only is it bad for the people eating the flour, but for all the wildlife that surrounds the fields as well. In contrast, all the grain grown in Bluebird’s fields is cured in the field. You can very easily see how these methods are better for the surrounding wildlife because ladybugs happily hang out in the grain. Hearing that really made me understand the profound benefits of buying organic products and supporting organic agriculture.
I also experienced firsthand all the processing, packing, and marketing of the grain. Just growing good crops isn’t enough. They have to do every step themselves to maintain the integrity in what they do because of the systematic barriers that organic farming faces. They work incredibly hard to do right for the world and I am so grateful that they do. Besides, the grain is fantastic. I baked peach thumbprint cookies with the Einka flour, and let me tell you, they were delicious!
I want to thank everyone for working at Bluebird for being so kind, welcoming, and willing to show me around. I had a fantastic time with them, and I want to thank you all for supporting a farm that is dedicated to keeping not only us but our surroundings healthy.
Frances