Book 1: Post 2

After finishing the book "Growing A Farmer" by Kurt Timmermeister, I can say with great confidence that it exceeded all of my expectations. 

Kurt Timmermeister details his journey beginning as a city chef with a vegetable farm, to becoming a full-time dairy farmer. One of the biggest discrepancies between vegetable and dairy farming are the government sanctions placed on selling dairy products. In order to sell raw milk, he had to get a special license. Timmermeister highlights some of the struggles associated with selling highly regulated products. 

Towards the end of the book he wrote, "I am a more experienced farmer now, but that does not mean that I am immune to the unpredictability, and sometimes downright cruelty, of nature." Prior to reading this book I had some pre-conceived idea that farmers care for their livestock in a very robotic and mechanical way. Timmermeister completely humanizes this notion of what it means to be a farmer. They are real people too, and it is hard for them to watch their livestock suffer in any capacity.

I was so inspired by this story and the way that Timmermeister chose to whole-heartedly devote himself to his passion. This book has led me to think more deeply about where food comes and the faces behind that rigorous process.