Lights On Laurentians: The Importance of Organic Farming: Seed to Table Has the Answers

By Rylee Ewald

London Bernier ’20 and Georgia Grzywacz ’20 both love cucumbers.

They met in their Sustainable Agriculture class last semester, and soon found out that they had very similar interests, even agreeing on their favorite vegetable. 

As co-presidents of the Seed to Table, they both voiced that they wanted to “reenergize Seed to Table.” I sat down with them at one of their Wednesday night Seed to Table meetings.

Georgia spoke of big plans for revamping the permaculture garden, which is located behind Commons College.

“I’m making a three-year plan for the garden,” Georgia says. “I won’t be here next semester, so I need to make sure things stay organized.”

Planning and organization were continuous themes throughout our interview.

London and Georgia both believe that people don’t understand the immense amounts of work that go into the planning of a garden.

“Georgia and I sat in a room for hours, like four to five hours, just outlining the plan for the garden. It’s a lot of work,” London said.

They stressed the importance of organization and making a timeline. They needed to know when to harvest and what tasks to assign to club members.

“I think once you go through the process of planning yourself, you grow an appreciation for it. Once you do it, you just want to continue it,” says Georgia about her experience with garden planning in the Seed to Table club.

“I want to walk into Dana and know where my food comes from, and I imagine others do as well,” adds London.

For a student concerned with where his or her food comes from, many find it discouraging when they find that the answer lies with Sysco.

Sysco is one of the many multinational corporations around the United States that supplies food to schools and other facilities.

The problem with large companies such as Sysco is that quite often we don’t know exactly where the food is coming from, which is especially true when dealing with produce.

It can be difficult for schools to move away from the large food distribution industry, although some schools have made a pact towards a more sustainable dining hall.

According to Skidmore College’s dining services webpage, the school is making choices to lessen its impact and promote healthy choices for its students. In the dining hall they try to get as many local products as possible.

Cornell University is also trying to lessen its ecological footprint by purchasing local food and supporting student-run gardens.

Colleges around the United States are slowly trying to move away from large food distributers and in return are purchasing more local food to serve to students.

That being said, one of Seed to Table’s main goals is to provide local food to Dana, whether that be from their own garden at the Sustainability program site, or from other local gardens.

Normally, one club member’s designated duty is to negotiate with Dana and sell vegetables directly to them.

When the club plans the garden, they make sure they plant vegetables Dana will want to purchase from them.

A big problem the club faces is getting enough of this local food to Dana. “Think of how many bins of lettuce Dana goes through a day: we would have to harvest a lot to make enough to supply them,” said London.

Another goal London and Georgia spoke about was the importance of educating students on growing their own food and engaging in their local community.

“Considering the location of SLU, agriculture is a big part of the community, and we are often disconnected from it– especially in the dining hall,” says London when asked about why it is important to have the skills to grow your own food.

The club is active on and off-campus. On-campus, they host workshops that have included breadmaking and vegan baking. They once collaborated with the Campus Kitchens Project to make homemade potato chips and carrot balls, which were then used for Bear Packs to serve as snacks for local elementary school students.

The club hosts a winter and a spring indoor market on the first floor of the Student Center. This month, on April 25, they will hold their indoor winter market, which will be filled with local vendors as well as student vendors.

Off-campus, Seed to Table volunteers at Bittersweet Farm and Milkweed Tussock Tubers Farm- two great volunteer opportunities if you like getting your hands dirty.

Georgia and London also spoke highly of the summer internship that Seed to Table offers.

Interns will live at the Sustainability program site for about three months, from mid-May to mid-August.

They will be in charge of taking care of the club’s garden, located at the Sustainability program site, as well as tending to the permaculture garden.

Fall internships are also available. Students will have similar tasks, including harvesting food and selling to Dana.

I finished my interview asking Georgia and London what they thought were the benefits of organic farming. “On the science side of things, organic farming doesn’t use pesticides, which prevents disease resistance buildup. It also builds healthier soil, and pollutant runoff won’t impact water.

Organic farming is also a form of sustainable land use, allowing a more intimate connection to the land,” answered Georgia.

Not to mention the many other benefits organic farming has: the ability to connect individuals to their local community, the knowledge of where your food comes from, and the privilege to enjoy fresh and seasonal produce.

Two peas in a pod, co-presidents Georgia and London are excited to see the club grow in the future.

“Making food and eating it is an awesome experience,” says London.

They both hope that more SLU students are able to enjoy this experience.