For the Amish, organic farming is born out of necessity and propagated by a belief in the need for wholesome foods that are "medicine" to a generation weaned on overly processed and hormonally supplemented animals and produce.


Miller's Amish Organic Farm

A walk through the Miller Organic Farm reveals a mixture of tradition and innovation.  The cows look the way they should look without chemicals and hormone shots, practices that are widely used in the food industry today.  Therefore they are smaller than most seen in farms across the U.S.A.  The lack of estrogen and antibiotics also prevents the milk taken from these cows from being contaminated.  This organic milk is desirable because non-organic milk and meat riddled with these factors is resulting in a host of health problems, including infertility and early puberty in girls.

Amish bred chickens also lead a very different life than the typical "factory chicken".  These chickens are free-range and grass-fed.  This practice keeps chickens from being diseased and keeps them healthier overall.  ever heard "you are what you eat?"  That's just a way of saying that eating healthy keeps you healthy.  The Amish respect the animals and because of this their animals are raised to maturity in a healthy and happy environment.
 

The key to success

The key to the farm's success is intense managing and a diversity of animals and grasses.  The animals all work together.  The pigs compost while digging for grains.  The chickens fertilize the pastures and get rid of parasites by clawing through cow patties to get at the bugs they like to eat.  A wealth of grass species bring up different minerals that later find their way into the milk.
 

Eating right

Miller's ultimate goal has become less about making money than it is about educating people on their health and on the effect of eating right on "improving the gene pool".

"The grace period is over for our bodies," he said.  "If we educate ourselves, we can save ourselves a tremendous amount of trouble."

Miller's prime example of the effect of eating right?  His 18-month old son.  Miller and his wife began eating a diet heavy in organic meat and animal fats, organic vegetables, and little to no starch and grains more than two years ago.  Miller's son, born a year after the change, is beyond a bout one of the healthiest-looking children in Lancaster, brawny, bright-eyed, and happy.  Bounding out of the house, he picks up the family's old black lab in one swoop and laughs.

"See, he is healthy because we do this." Miler says laughing.  "That's the way it should be."

Miller readily admits that he is one of the more radical of the organic farmers in the Plain community.  He estimates that 5 to 10 of the 100 organic farms are run by radicals like him, and most are in the eastern part of the country.

Miller's philosophy isn't something he, or his fellow farmers came up with on their own.
 

Going Organic

Joel Salatin, a leader in eco-friendly farming, is the father of many of the techniques and philosophies employed on Miller's farm.  He has written several books, many articles, and coined many of the organic farming phrases strung throughout Miller's explanations.

The Weston A. Price Foundation supports and educates organic farmers on the benefits of a diet rich in animal fats.  Price was a dentist in the early 1930s who visited remote regions to study the diets of isolated peoples.

His findings, that health deteriorated as diet was westernized, or increased in amounts of refined sugars and starches and decreased in animal fats, is the primary source of much of Miller's and his fellow farmers information (Murdock)

What is Miller's deduction of this research?  Simply stated, "It's our God-given right to make our bodies healthy (Murdock)."

Licensed farmers are subject to inspections.
 

Work Cited
Organic farming growing among Amish.  Method born or belief in wholesoom foods.  By Lindsay Murdock.  Section: BUSINESS. Page: D-1. Sunday News (Lancaster, PA).