Jim here... When you consider the agricultural and marketplace practices that affect the food we eat (e.g., pesticide use in the fields, widespread irradiation afterward, and the contamination of produce from various sources -- not to mention some of the disturbing potentialities we face in terms of further governmental intervention into the food chain), it leads one to the conclusion that, if we really want to eat the best food ever, growing it yourself is a great solution. It's also cheaper to grow your own and, in my opinion, more fulfilling than purchasing it (if you have the time and space to manage it, that is).

With all of these concerns (and more) in mind, we've launched a new series of interviews called "Know the Growers" in which I'll be interviewing organic farmers around the world on best practices in the field. Initially, we'll be publishing them every few weeks, most likely. Once we sell our home and are "full-time Pure Jeevan karma yogis," we'll be publishing them weekly (along with resuming our daily video series Know Your Food). I'll be publishing these organic farming interview transcripts on NaturalNews.com under their Citizen Journalist program.

In fact, the first interview, a three-part discussion with Myra Goodman, co-founder of Earthbound Farm -- perhaps the largest name in organic produce in America -- is already posted:

>> Here's a link to the complete interview, archived right here on PureJeevan.com.? <<

(Natural News has an article-length policy that requires longer pieces like these to be broken up into smaller chunks. So, we like to have our own archive where you can read the complete interview at once.)

Myra's got some great things to say about organic farming, so I hope you'll invest some time in reading it. I'm very grateful to her for spending two sessions with me to discuss some of the issues we covered. The title of the piece is taken from a point she made that I found particularly telling: Organic farming is a relationship with the land:

... what he had to drop with the switch to organic was the macho idea that he should be able to grow whatever he wanted wherever he wanted whenever he wanted to. Conventional growers had grown accustomed to using this arsenal of chemicals to fight off all the weeds, fight off the diseases, make something grow faster, whatever they needed to do to get whatever they wanted, when they wanted, where they wanted. With organic, it s more like a real relationship where you have to learn about your partner and work in harmony...

So, again, read through that interview when you get time and let us know what you think!

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We're big fans of Natural News here at Pure Jeevan, btw. If you're unfamiliar with that site, it's pretty much exactly what the name suggests -- independent coverage on natural health, natural living, nutrition, and more. They receive roughly 3 million visits per month! -- largely because it's run with uncompromising integrity by Mike Adams, aka the Health Ranger. (Take a minute to follow that link, as Mike has an incredible story.) Here's a snapshot:

Mike Adams & Wendi Dee at Raw Spirit Festival 2008

So, that's the big news of the day here at Pure Jeevan!? Got a question you'd like answered by an organic farmer? Are you an organic farmer who'd like to be interviewed? Know an organic farming operation you'd like us to interview? Email Jim at Rawdiant [at] Gmail.com and we'll see what we can do to provide you with the information you want!