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047: Biodynamic Farming and Healing the Planet Through Agriculture with Erin Sojourner Agostinelli

When it comes to the food system, we are pretty overdue for a massive overhaul. Processed and convenient food seem to have taken over most industrialized nations.

In the last 20 plus years, that has slowly been changing with natural and organic foods coming into the main stream. What if I told you there was another food standard beyond organic?

In this episode I had the honor and pleasure to sit down with my wife, Erin Sojourner Agostinelli, to chat about Biodynamic farming, regenerative agriculture, soil and so much more.

Erin joined Demeter in 2013 to help “Heal the Planet through Agriculture”. Her childhood memories on her grandparent’s “philosophically organic” farm infused her with a deep passion for Horticulture. In her mid 20’s, she went from classroom to hands-on, building her first greenhouse and growing lots of food, flowers, and herbs on her heirloom nursery farm. Needing an educated market, she started her town’s first thriving farmer’s market and picked up accounts at restaurants and schools. Always a fan of brilliant minds and the intelligence of nature, she studied geniuses such as Rudolf Steiner and Viktor Schauberger. After 5 successful years farming, Erin took her work to a national level collaborating with leading organic food companies, non-profits, educational systems, thought leaders, chefs, and authors on nutrition, farming, food systems, and much more. The culmination of her work led her to partner with Demeter USA with the aligned mission to educate farmers, consumers, and retailers as the Farmer Education Coordinator and Raw Materials Matchmaker. Her other full time job includes being a mother, photographer, and social media storyteller.

We dive into topics like

  • What got Erin started with agriculture
  • Erin’s beginnings of educating the marketplace
  • A brief history of the Biodynamic standard
  • What is Biodynamic?
  • The affects of modern agriculture
  • The “closed loop” concept of Biodynamic farming
  • The restoration of soil
  • The wide range of standards that exist in Organic food certification
  • Soil science and carbon sequestration
  • The two main carbon sinks
  • Being connected to the soil, nature, food, the outdoors…
  • Victory gardens
  • How the food supply needs to be renewable
  • What you can do to reintegrate with nature and bring in more connection
  • The wine industry as the early adopters in the Biodynamic movement
  • Biological time and Marketplace time
  • The consciousness raising affects of clean natural food
  • How Biodynamic foods actually taste better

Click to Tweet Erin’s quote

“The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it and to foster its renewal is our only hope.

– Wendell Berry

Look for the Biodynamic seal on products in your local markets…

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Connect with Erin and Demeter on social media

Demeter

Twitter | Facebook | InstagramWebsite

Erin

 Facebook | Instagram

Resources

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