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The Point of PATHS is Support

PATHS supports all agricultural efforts that lead to more sustainable food being produced in this country.

PATHS supports verifiable standards of sustainable food produced on farms.

What does it mean when you buy a PATHS APPROVED product?

All PATHS APPROVED products come from: Certified Organic Farms.

All Farms must commit to and submit a plan for pastured livestock when producing food products that come from farm animals.

Any PATHS APPROVED product derived from farm animals must be audited for optimum humane treatment by Humane Farm Animal Care’s Certified Humane auditing program and must earn Humane Farm Animal Care’s Certified Humane approval or must likewise be certified and audited by American Humane under American Humane Certified. All producers of these products must agree to PATHS random audits and inspections of their records and their facilities as they pertain to the PATHS program.

So when you buy food from a PATHS farmer you support creating more:

Sustainable agriculture

Local Farmers

Greater Farm Animal Welfare

Sustainability means the capacity to endure. When used in reference to food production the word describes how a well planned and balanced bio-diverse system of farming can remain productive over time while in total balance with nature in a self renewing perpetual process. Proper management of livestock numbers that are well balanced in ratio to the land that supports them is critical to sustainable agriculture. Over burdening land that cannot sustain the farm animals that live upon it creates the danger of an unhealthy ecosystem for such animals and those who depend on them for a source of food. Most of the food we consume today comes from Mono culture farming activity. Mono culture food production occurs when only one agriculture activity takes place on a farm. Such activity is not sustainable. It needs constant artificial life support from outsourced agri-chemicals and grains. It is disconnected from any real relationship to it’s surrounding environment and creates, we feel, an unhealthy imbalance.

This why the first seed a PATHS farmer plants is a grass seed. Grass for grazing is the foundation of all sustainable agriculture. For true sustainability, grains are only a supplement to an animals diet and for ruminants like dairy and beef cattle they are unnatural and unwanted invaders to their diets real food love, grass.

Through the natural miracle of photosynthesis, Grasses create their own food to feed themselves and in the process replenish and revitalize the earth. Grains only take and do not replenish.

Grazing livestock on grass when managed in under sustainable practices like those PATHS supports, become even more dynamic developing even richer earth from which all nourishing life giving foods from farming are derived.

That is why all farmers or those who derive income from livestock farming activity who seek recognition as a participant in the PATHS program of Progressive Sustainability must be:

At the least, a PATHS Member.

A PATHS member demonstrates recognition of sustainable agriculture’s critical importance to the well being of our planet and those who live upon it, through contribution to the promotion of PATHS Supporter and PATHS Approved products. Even if you at the moment are not producing food under sustainable practices, as a member you show your encouragement and your recognition of sustainable agriculture. For this you will be recognized and applauded by PATHS for your support

A PATHS Supporter farmer.

PATHS Supporter farmers are actually involved in farming activity that progresses them towards sustainable food production in bio-diverse agricultural.

A PATHS Approved farmer.

PATHS Approved farmers have achieved sustainable pasture grazing for their livestock or have a working plan to progress their current pasture towards the goal of sustainable grazing.

The second seed PATHS farmers plant is information, so greater understanding will grow about where the food you buy comes from.

PATHS helps farmers develop a plan to achieve full sustainable food production on their farms. Informing you about that process is the PATHS farmers second greatest goal. PATHS will open direct communication between farmers and those who consume their products. Through coordinated efforts farmers and consumers together will bring PATHS products to markets to ensure their availability to all who desire sustainability produced food. The result will be greater trust in what we all eat while at the same time providing and protecting the independence of the small farmer. This will create greater demand through growing awareness and knowledge of food produced by approved PATHS farmers. And, most importantly, more and more sustainable farm land.

Certified Organic by Pennsylvania Certified Organic

Giving Nature has and continues to be committed to the ethical production of organic food which enhances the health of each of us, and our planet.

With this conviction rooted deeply in the integrity of sustainability, we announce our strong support of a new consumer/farmer based organization called

Progressing Agriculture Towards Healthy Sustainability, or

p a t h s

PATHS helps connect farmers who practice sustainable farming, with consumers who want to buy food created by sustainable farming procedures.

paths