The Morgan Farm—Supporting Sustainable Farming
Many family farms struggle with trying to make ends meet. Plus there is the pressure to convert to organic or other new farming practices, the temptation to sell out to developers and the desire to keep your children interested in farming. It’s a daily challenge to be responsible stewards of the land.
America in the 1970s sought to maximize the potentials of farming to provide more food at an affordable price. The efforts of then U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Earl L. Butz during the Nixon and Ford administrations, along with the farm legislation and farm subsidies, aimed at bringing the cost of food down through mass production has created cause for pause in the way we think about farming in America. The cost of food could be much greater than we spend out of our pocket. But heart disease, diabetes and obesity can be directly attributed to the mass over-production, supplying fast food chains and putting low-cost grocery items on today’s shelves. We now have low nutrition and low quality for low prices.
The Morgan farm, run by myself and my wife, Annette, invites groups, families and friends to gather at their farm to witness first hand today’s family farming challenges and to teach people about the importance of green and humane farming techniques. Organic and natural farming, free range poultry, eggs and grass fed beef, are just a few of the things the neighboring and local farms have to offer. My wife and I are members of Slow Food, Northern Ohio, an organization that supports good, clean and fair food, and hosted a very successful Slow Food event in May, attracting hundreds of people to the 142 year- old farm house.
Morgan Farm is dedicated to living and sharing the farmland experience. Our goal is to increase awareness of the small farm as an economical, lifestyle, and health and nutrition food connection experience. Our farm is situated among traditional large and small American, Amish and Mennonite farms with patches of new, non-farming homes on sold- off farmland. 
We are raising Heritage Turkeys and alpine goats, and provide natural pasture for Belgian work horses. We have a unique collaboration with our Amish neighbors in a respected exchange of technology and old world farming techniques that helps bring awareness to those who have lost the connection to farm and food.
This summer and fall we are nurturing our 60 plus flock of young, growing, Heritage turkeys. The highly sought after, rare birds are free range and cage free.
The Morgan Farm is available for weekly and daily rentals. For more information or to order a Heritage Turkey for Thanksgiving, visit www.MorganFarmStudios.com.
August/September 2008 Contents