Last week The Howard G. Buffett Foundation and the Norman Borlaug Institute at Texas A&M announced a new collaboration based in South Africa at the Ukulima Farm Research Center to advance African Agriculture and Fight Hunger.

“It is my hope this collaboration will improve agricultural productivity across the African continent” said Mr. Buffet, “particularly for Africa’s poorest farmers.”

Interview with Dr. Edwin Price, Director of The Borlaug Institute:

Dr. Edwin Price at Ukulima Farm

AH: Is this a brand new initiative?

DP: No, Mr. Buffet has been involved in Africa in resource conservation and farming for quite a long time. He initially began largely focused on natural wildlife conservation, came to the conclusion that conserving wildlife, preserving wildlife in Africa was going to require feeding people. So he increasingly engaged in supporting agriculture research and agriculture development projects in Africa for that purpose. He began the farm that was announced yesterday as much as five years ago in the earliest stages of it and he brought it up to an operating level and attracted early collaborators and partners from various private research organizations as well as Universities and international research centers. So that group of partners has been working for three years or so. He’s asked that Texas A & M University, specifically the Borlaug Institute, with which we share the vision for Africa to become more involved in the management of the farm. And so what was announced yesterday was the new designation of the Borlaug Institute as the management entity for the nature conservation trust of South Africa, which is the operator of Ukulima farm.

AH: What are the goals?

DP: The goals are really to develop technology, usable by small African farmers to get their productivity up, to get their yields up. Maybe even to introduce resource saving technologies, energy saving technologies possibly. Working with minimum tillage, conservation farming. As well as advanced techniques – we really haven’t taken anything off the table in terms of looking at all the possibilities there are for improving small African farm productivity. We know that the need is there to improve small farm productivity in Africa and in a lot of places. We’ve been working cooperatively in other regimes in the Middle east for example where they face some of the same problems. Nevertheless we’re focused in this case through Ukulima Farm on small African farmers.

Our namesake, Dr. Norman Borlaug passed away a couple years ago but had made his early breakthrough in modern agricultural productivity in developing countries of Asia. He had enormous impact. At the time of his death he recognized, and despite his ten years of effort in Africa that the job still had to be done. In fact his parting wishes with colleagues was: “Don’t forget about Africa, I want you guys to carry on my work in Africa. So in that regard he felt that Mr. Buffets’ objectives and our objectives were highly consistent. And we are very pleased to have a partnership with him.

AH: How much of the work is this organization having to focus specifically on contending with water issues?

DP: Water issues are major. Both water quality and water availability. And also making sure you don’t impair water quality or availability through your technologies. So it’s both a problem for the input as well as what you leave for others, so it’s definitely a concern for the work. And we have some really good scientists who are coming on board to work with us on the hydrology and all about water use. Of course, our partners we’re working with now, for example Penn State University who was working there actually before we came on board is doing some very advanced work. For example on the root structure of plants – how root structures have an impact on the efficiency of that plant in utilizing water. That is really one of the foremost projects being undertaken on the farm right now. So yes, water is a major concern. Soil nutrients, natural processes in the soil that help to conserve soils’ fertility and feed plants at the same time are also a concern. So it’s not only a matter of the water. In fact Mr. Buffet has been party to recent discussions of something they call the Brown Revolution. And that is gaining a better understanding on soil management in tropical and underdeveloped countries.

AH: For those who would ask: Why focus on Africa, why not focus on the US, or why not focus on other areas, how would this organization respond?

DP: We think we’ve got to be working on these issues everywhere. In fact, the resources that we bring to the table from Borlaug Institute are the resources of Texas agriculture Agrilife research. We have 15 research experiment stations in the state of Texas in different regions faced with water concerns, flow, quality concerns, pest concerns all of that. So we regard the work in Africa as part of a worldwide fabric of effort to confront the problems of food security, water use and soil improvement in sustainability. And as far as Mr. Buffet, he is a farmer in the US himself. In fact, almost everything he does on the farm in Ukulima he has a companion project of the exact same treatments being undertaken on his farms in Illinois.

The Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture webpage: http://borlaug.tamu.edu/

Video by: Tim Wimborne Chief Photographer, Australia and New Zealand Reuters News

Video by: Megan Oriana Erskine

From the filmmaker:

Casual Country Charm is a “survey” piece meant to provide a short story on the agri-tourism development in a rural town in Michigan. With the decline of industry like tool and die, Baroda is turning to its agricultural heritage and America’s food reawakening to revive its downtown economy.

Here is an excerpt from that website describing the organization:

The MDG Achievement Fund is an international cooperation mechanism whose aim is to accelerate progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) worldwide. Established in December 2006 with a generous contribution of €528 million Euros ($US710M) from the Spanish Government to the United Nations system, the MDG-F supports national governments, local authorities and citizen organizations in their efforts to tackle poverty and inequality.

In this podcast, we spoke with Wael Rafea, the gentleman who leads the Pro-poor Horticulture Value Chains in Upper Egypt project. He spoke with us by phone from his office in Giza, Egypt.

Video by: José Maurício da Costa
From the filmmaker:

A short film showing through images the process of sugar cane extraction in the rural area of Brazil. The images was captured by Natalia Nunes and I next to her family small farm where we lived times ago. The infographics are illustrative and have only an aesthetic function. The music, inspired by a theme of “There Will Be Blood” soundtrack, is a composition of 5 lines, each one with a little variation on its beats per minute.

I first met Jennifer Trehane of the Dorset Blueberry Company when she came to the Whitesbog Blueberry Festival in southern New Jersey in 2008. Whitesbog is the birthplace of what has become a global commercial blueberry industry.

Dated March 1951, the letter seen below tells just part of the story about how commercial blueberry plants traveled first from southern New Jersey on the Queen Mary to England for the first time. The young plants were then picked up from the South Hampton docks by Jennifer at the request of her father and so began her spirited life as a blueberry grower and educator.

Jennifer Trehane and her son David

No matter how large or small, every farmer thinks about how to manage agricultural water. They think about how they’ll get it, how they’ll conserve it, and how they’ll be able to produce more crops with less water. In this video by ABC Open, we see how one farmer struggles with water daily.

From ABC Open:

Kyle Wohling lives on a farm 50km north east of Esperance. To keep the crops growing and the stock alive water is critical. The past year has been unseasonally dry which has meant Kyle has had to cart water daily to ensure the sheep have enough water to survive.

Video by Julian Post

From the filmmaker:

Everything was filmed at Shelburne Farms in Shelburne, VT. Website: ShelburneFarms.org

Hard work, family, love. These are the primary elements that make up a successful family farm that is passed from generation to generation. Willie H. Valentine started his 109 acre Virginia farm in 1938. He raised tobacco, cotton, corn and fresh vegetables. 73 years later his Great Grandson Miles Valentine has directed, edited and produced this documentary about farming, family, love, and hard work.

It is family member Warren Wyatt that expresses so well what the farm represents: “It’s a symbol of hope, a symbol of the past as well as the future, a symbol of family, of love and I would say a symbol of unity.”

Video by: Miles Valentine

From the filmmaker:

I directed, edited and produce this documentary on the legacy of Willie H. Valentine, a black farmer in Bracey, Virginia 73 years ago, and the efforts by his family to keep that legacy alive.

To hear him tell it, the Throw to Grow project is something simple that filmmaker Nathan Peracciny and his collegues are doing on their own. “People can do this” says Peracciny, adding; “It’s a simple concept, you have the ability to empower yourself through action to do things. The fundamental matter is that people have to do and carve out your own niche. If you want to change something, change it with yourself and your environment. The concept of bokashi is a very simple process that in the end is very big. To divert 100 percent of your food waste and convert it into soil is very big. Wants to have true ownership over his life, not to have to wait for someone else to make a decision.”

About Harvest recently spoke with Nathan Peracciny of the Throw to Grow project:

AH: Please tell me about how you came to be involved with a food waste recycling pilot project in Hawaii?

NATHAN:

Throw To Grow has allowed my life to come full circle in many ways. I am firm believer in the power of media. I believe small independent media can have big impact. Carefully crafted media can inform, inspire, and ignite people. Carefully crafted, meaning media that looks good, sounds clear, and is edited in a way the keeps the viewer’s attention. If you don’t do those three things you fail. Sorry. There are no more awards for second place. The folks responsible for our current environmental crisis, health crisis, economic crisis, culture crisis, etc. are not going for second place. They want to keep people divided, subdued, and paying.

In 1999 I began college at Green Mountain College in Poultney, VT. GMC is a small environmental liberal arts school in a rural part of Vermont. I learned a lot there. The class structure was great. Environmental Ethics class was a battle of ideas. After class you wanted to rush back to your room to read the next assignment. It was awesome. For me there was one thing missing. I saw a disconnect between academia and the source of most environmental, social, economic problems. The individual consuming, and wasting was not interested in reading a collection of essays or a book on sustainability. Print would not be an effective tool in creating change. Then I asked myself; what is influencing people to shop till they drop, gas it up, waste and consume? It was television, film, and radio media.

In 2002 I dropped out of GMC and decided that some day, some how I was going to make meaningful media. Five years (and a lot of traveling) later I graduated from the University at Buffalo with a degree in Media Arts. At first I was pissed, UB gave me no exit strategy, no real plan. I did what anyone of would of done, I worked as a waiter in a fancy steakhouse. (hahaha) I did freelance as a PA and Assistant Editor, here and there. My main gig was waiting tables for a few years. I made a lot of money, wasted all of it, and wasted a lot of time. It was only after losing my job and being on unemployment, that I started to volunteer with an online food and culture show about Buffalo, NY called True Blue Buffalo (www.TrueBlueBuffalo.com). There was no budget for that project my professional responsibilities sky rocketed. I went from PA to Associate Producer in no time. (hahaha) On that project I learned the power of well-crafted food and community videos.

TBB connected me with local entrepreneurs, chefs, foodies, farmers, etc. From there I was given the opportunity to produce video for a Locally focused food and cooking competition called Nickel City Chef (www.NickleCityChef.com) Directing, filming, and editing Nickel City Chef really opened my eyes to so much and gave me the chance to tell the stories of hard working amazing men and women of Western New York that work their butts off in the kitchens, vineyards, and fields. I have since produced two seasons of Nickel City Chef, a full length documentary called Food For Change, and we’re going on our four season of the series this Winter 2012.

After I finished the Nickel City Chef: Food For Change documentary I showed it to my good friend Jim DiCarlo of Each One Teach One Farms (www.eachoneteachonefarms.com) in Oahu, HI. We went back and forth on some ideas for filming a sustainability project in Oahu. That project later became Throw To Grow.

AH:How has your involvement in this project positively affected you personally?

NATHAN:

This project has had a huge impact on me personally. I believe in the Bokashi Bucket compost system because food recycling is a simple lifestyle change that has huge benefits both individuals and communities. Throw To Grow is an awareness movement designed at spreading the word of self-activation and individual responsibility.

When I was asked last August, if I would be willing to fly out to Oahu for a month to film various leaders in Hawaii’s sustainability movement. My first thought was Hell Yeah! Before traveling to Oahu I had limited knowledge of Hawaii, its history, its people, etc. Being from the East Coast you assume it’s all beach, sunsets, and sand. It is a lot different than that. lol! I learned a lot in that month.

For starters, it’s not America. It has America “Things” but Hawaii has its own culture, its own language, and its own way of life. It is very important to appreciate Oahu as visitor. In removing myself of any sense of entitlement or attachment, I was able to really learn and listen. As a Director and Produce a big part of my job is listening. “Talk story” is a great phrase on island.

We simple rolled camera and talked story with educators, artisans, yogis, surfers, farmers, small business owners, chefs, etc. An amazing thing about filming with the group that we did, everyone was so busy (hahaha). It was really hard to set them down and have them talk what they do and why they do it. It was really inspiring.

Telling the stories of others that have made the commitment to living their own lives, as best they can, on their own terms is amazing. I have worked many local service based jobs. Spending your money and eating local matters and it means something. Never before did I think about the power and freedom of recycling your food waste.

I know that not everyone has land, a garden, or access to traditional composting sites. With the Bokashi Bucket you can recycle 100% of your food waste in your home. If you don’t compost, no problem. Once the bucket is filled you can donate it to a green house, a farm, a school, a church, etc. I know making friends with like-minded people in your neighborhood or community might sound crazy. But it is not crazy. A collective body of individuals wasting and consuming creates the problem. A collective body of individuals recycling, independently buying and growing their own food is a solution to the problem.

I have a Bokashi Bucket system at home, eat as much local and fresh produce as I can. When my bucket is fill I give it to the neighborhood healthy choice restaurant Merge (www.MergeBuffalo.com). They add it in to there compost waste.

I have plans to move to Oahu this May, after Nickel City Chef season 4 wraps. The idea is Bokashi systems are scalable. They work for individuals in the home; they can be scaled to service larger food waste generators, and then scaled even further to service communities. And the bi-product is nutrient rich soil.

AH:Why is it named the “Throw to Grow” project?

NATHAN:

Throw To Grow is brainchild of Jim DiCarlo (http://vimeo.com/25295090). Jim is a marketing genius with creative business sense. The title or phrase Throw To Grow is simple but activating statement. In my opinion, when strategically thinking about growing a brand centered around “new lifestyles” you have make it as simple and as acceptable as possible. We want using the Bokashi system to speak to everybody, not just individuals already committed to sustainable living. The idea is simple, you Throw your food waste in the Bokashi Bucket, it later becomes fuel for the soil to Grow more food.

Another aspect of TTG is the growing of ideas. You have to commit to being almost crazy creating such changes but if you believe in your idea, you respect it and put a lot of work in, you will see it gain momentum and grow. Again, small ideas used to create big impact.

AH: Please share a little history about the Bokashi Fermentation and how it works.

NATHAN:

Bokashi is a Japanese term that means fermented organic matter.As a waste management method, Bokashi fermentation is an efficient and earth-friendly way to recycle concentrated volumes of food waste (incl meat & dairy) into nutrient rich soil. Although Bokashi is often referred to as a type of composting, it is actually the exact opposite of what most people think of traditional composting. Bokashi is an anaerobic (no oxygen) fermentation process, while composting requires oxygen to take place. That’s why we see people turning those big steamy heaps of yard and food waste in their back yard. Most of the Bokashi process takes place in an air tight 5 gallon bucket right inside your kitchen and no turning is required.

The magic that makes Bokashi happen is the specialized blend of beneficial microorganisms that are layered with the food waste inside of the Bokashi Bucket. This special blend of microbes, which include lactobacilli, yeasts and phototropic microbes, was developed and popularized by a Japanese professor named Teruo Higa. Although fermentation is nothing new, Dr. Higa recognized the right proportion of microbes needed to make the blend work just right.

Bokashi fermentation is a simple process that anyone can easily adopt as a daily habit. Food waste is scraped into the Bokashi Bucket. The idea is that you can scrape your entire plate of scraps, no matter what’s on it, right into the Bokashi Bucket. For every 3 inches of food waste, 2-3 tablespoons of the Bokashi is sprinkled on top of the waste. This process is repeated until the bucket is full. Inside the bucket the beneficial microbes are hard at work releasing enzymes to break down or fermenting the food waste. To finish off the process, the fermented food waste is placed into the soil, where the naturally occurring soil microbes turn it into a rich black nutrient-rich soil.

There is no foul smell associated with the Bokashi fermentation process. Because it is an anaerobic process, oxygen is the enemy. It is oxygen that causes rotting of organic materials, and hence the stink. In the Bokashi Bucket, the lack of oxygen and the relatively low acidity prevent the organisms that produce gas and smells from forming. Even if they’re already there, these bad microbes will be consumed by the anaerobic organisms that thrive when oxygen is absent.

Bokashi is 100% natural and completely safe for the environment. It reduces the emission of toxic greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane.

AH: What have you learned about the importance and value of a community working on this project?

NATHAN:

Individuals working together and supporting one in another is how Throw To Grow will succeed. I think there are two types of community that are important to consider.

1. The online community. Technology has given us the opportunity to live and solve problems as a global community. We can share ideas and stories instant via vimeo and email. Creative ideas can find resources on sites like Kickstarter. Throw To Grow members are able to send files and work collectively on projects through sites like Basecamp.

2. Regardless of all the technologically tools you have at your disposal. People are the most valuable element to this project. Oahu has great community of DIY minded entrepreneurs, artists, and leaders. To highlight these our friends and community members we created the Throw To Grow Profile Series. Throughout the month of October, we interviewed and documented 14 extraordinary individuals that are leading the sustainability and food movements in Hawaii. These people are being the change they want to see and activating others to make not only Hawaii, but also the world a better place.

Without their support and the support of people passionate about deceasing their impact on the environment. TTG wouldn’t gain the momentum it is right now.

AH: What are your short-term immediate goals for this project and why would people want to become involved?

NATHAN:

The short-term goals are to raise funds for our pilot project in March of 2012. The pilot project will involve Each One Teach One Farms collecting food waste from larger scale waste generators like schools, restaurants, offices, etc. That waste composted using the Bokashi method. During the month of March we will be gathering data on ways to increase the scale of our food recycling services.

Getting involve means you support the idea of responsibly recycling your food waste to create nutrient rich soil, to then use that soil to organically fertilize and grow food.

AH: What are you long term goals for this project and why should people support you all in this Kickstarter campaign?

NATHAN:

In the long term, we want society to rethink the terms “trash” or “waste”. With the Bokashi System waste become fuel for growing your own food. To me there isn’t anything more independent, spiritual, punk rock, patriotic, etc. than growing your own food or supporting those that do. Bokashi eliminates the disconnect between bi-product and the product. Our goal is to build proof of concept on island in Oahu, HI, then bring it the mainland, and then the world.

By supporting our Kickstarter you’ll be giving us the resources necessary to build a larger scale Bokashi site and grow our idea.

To contribute and learn more, visit: ThrowToGrow.com