Artisan agriculture (AA) is a term emerging to describe the approach to agriculture and farming that is not only compatible with its urban context, but is designed to significantly benefit from the presence of a large adjacent population.
Characteristics of artisan agriculture include:
- Production of high quality niche market items that eaters will pay a premium for.
- The distinct lack of toxic chemicals, large machinery, and degraded landscapes.
- Pasture based grazing for livestock, who play and important function in the nutrient cycling on a farm.
- Direct marketing to families, chefs, and specialty stores.
- Prices that reflect the whole life cost of the item being sold and provide farmers with a sustainable livelihood.
- A frequent priority of human labour over large scale mechanization.
- On-farm intern/mentorship opportunities.
- On-farm composting and nutrient cycling.
- Customized and creative systems for crop and livestock rotation depending on climate, season, and ingenuity of the farming team.
- Others.
There are a growing number of farms across North America that are now adding a wide range of value-added products, services and experiences to their base agricultural production business case. A few to to explore include:
- Duex Puces farm – http://www.thefarmbar26.com/freestyle.html
- Arcadia farm – http://arcadiafood.org/programs/arcadia-farm
- Woodland farm – http://www.woodlandfarm.com/about/
- Essex farm – http://www.essexfarmcsa.com/
- Green dirt farm – http://www.greendirtfarm.com/
- Apricot Lane Farms – http://apricotlanefarms.com/
- Raven and Boar farm – http://ravenandboar.com/
- Little Qualicum Cheeseworks – http://www.cheeseworks.ca
- A fun blog on all things artisan farming – http://modernfarmer.com/