A hearty congratulations to AJ Jackson, who correctly identified all five farmers in our first Name Your Farmer contest.

Last Wednesday, we printed five photographs of regional farmers, wondering: can you name them and their farms?

Here are the photos, with AJ's correct responses.

‍

"Mrs Letty Smith, the beloved Circle S farmer! I miss her CSA boxes," she said.

Here's our story on Letty.

‍

"Alysia Leon from Bird Fork!" AJ said.

Here's our story on Alysia.

‍

"Eric Hanson (avid supporter and vendor of HiLo, we love him) from Hissing Possum!" AJ continued.

‍

"Padgett Arnold from Sequatchie Cove Creamery," she said.

Here's our story on Padgett and the origins of the Main Street Farmers' Market.

‍

"5th was harder to conjure up but I believe that's Todd Gentry from Bent Tree Farm? The bassist cattle farmer extraordinaire," said AJ.

Here's our story on Teddy Gentry, Bent Tree Farms and the "Southern Mama Cow."

You should also know AJ: she's one of the founders of the Hi-Lo Farmers' Market, meeting each Saturday at Highland Park Commons.

Here's our story on AJ and HiLo.

AJ was the first to respond with all five names.

She was also the only one to respond.

‍

Here's why this little contest of ours matters.

In our ongoing Little America series — our small attempt to cultivate some joy and pride around America's big 250 birthday that's fast approaching — we are reminded again of how integral farming and agriculture is to America itself.

We wouldn't exist without farmers. To celebrate America at 250 is to celebrate American agriculture.

Over the last century, farming has declined towards a semi-extinction. Small farms, family farms, young farmers, Black farmers, middle-class farmers: all in decline.

"Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens," Jefferson declared. "They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bonds."

It was true 200 years ago; is it true today?

For all the cultural and social upheaval happening, as so many forces try to redefine America in its own image, why are farmers and farms left out of the remaking? Why is there no interest or energy — like lightning to a ground rod — to include agriculture as part of this whirlwind zeitgeist our country is experiencing?

I'm 52. For 45 years of my life, I couldn't name one farmer.

But now, like some veil trailing behind me, the relationships and knowledge I have now also includes all these other forms of richness: knowing farmers means I know more about food, which means I know more about the land, which means I know more about life.

It's all family: hard work, ecology, birdsong, rainfall, sunlight, seed starts and sharp knives and harvest times.

"What type of knowledge does our country value?" one friend likes to say.

Yep. He's a farmer.

Can you name him?

‍

It's fine if you can't. The point of this isn't to hangdog anyone for not knowing this person or that person. Over the years, I've learned: self-righteousness isn't a good color on me.

Rather, the point is to clarify this larger way that we are all being manipulated into amnesia: all this forgetting, this drift from the land and our food. It's like the clutch is slipping, a foundational erosion. If outside forces wanted to destroy a people, one surefire way would be to magic wand them into losing connection with food, the land and those who work it.

So ... how does this shift?

Our work — and the work so many of you are doing — sometimes feels like this:

There's this doorway, and it's really beautiful and wholesome, and it points to this old-world-new-world place where we remember all these things modern American tries to make us forget.

We've tried to shine a light on the keyhole. There are many ways to walk through.

Story ideas, questions, feedback? Interested in partnering with us? Email: david@foodasaverb.com

This story is 100% human generated; no AI chatbot was used in the creation of this content.

‍