Like many West Texas youth, Eric Herm left his family's Ackerly farm looking for a life away from duststorms, mesquite brush and empty horizons. After graduating from Abilene Christian University with a degree in broadcast journalism, Herm traveled and worked for 10 years before returning to his family farm with a new perspective..
"This land has been in my family for 100 years," Herm said, noting his father, both grandfathers and four great-grandfathers farmed the land..
Now seven years into running the farm where he lives with his wife and two sons, Herm is battling the effects of genetically modified seed and the impact of corporations that sell farmers the seed and the pesticides and herbicides to use along with it..
After extensive research, he published his first book about the burden commercialized agriculture has on the environment, the economy, the consumer and the farmer. "Son of a Farmer, Child of the Earth: A Path to Agriculture's Higher Consciousness," was published in October 2010. Herm will be signing copies of the book from 4-6 p.m. Thursday at the Heritage Museum of Big Spring, 510 Scurry St..
"This book is about welcoming nature back into our lives," Herm said..
After a synopsis of Herm's personal journey back to his birthplace, the book begins with a history and explanation of the dramatic increase in the use of genetically modified seed.
Genetically modified Roundup Ready seed is marketed to farmers as a way to save money because it requires less maintenance. While the product may be cost-effective in the short-term, Herm encourages farmers to consider the broader consequences of the product and the chemicals required to maintain it..
Herm attributes issues such as soil erosion, food and ground water contamination, extermination of beneficial insects and a lack of nutritional elements in food to the use of genetically modified seed, herbicides and pesticides..
"I think if farmers really knew what we were doing to everything that most of it would stop with the GMO seed with the excessive use of herbicides and pesticides, but we've been trained to look at everything through an economic lens," he said..
"When we truly look at where our money is going and who we're supporting and what those products are doing to our food and our environment -- it's a lose-lose situation."
Along with accounts of his personal experiences, Herm cites more than 200 sources in the book. And each problem is followed by suggestions and resources for a solution..
His call for an agricultural revolution does not apply only to farmers. He writes about issues such as the use of genetically modified seed to consumers who are affected by the pesticides, growth hormones and other additives in food..
"We don't all have to be farmers to grow food, just because you don't have 5 acres or 500 acres doesn't mean you can't grow your own food," he said..
Herm encourages consumers to buy organically grown produce at local farmers' markets and to demand local grocery stores carry organic and local products..
"We have responsibilities not just as farmers but as consumers," he said. "Your dollar speaks often louder than your vote.".
Herm currently is working on his next book. Though he acknowledges his calls for change may be unwelcome by established farmers, he said he hopes each generation of farmers will incorporate their predecessors' knowledge and experience with the new information available..
"To me, it's about simplifying things," he said. "This is an opportunity for us to transcend everything -- culture, religion -- because everybody eats and everybody drinks and without healthy food and water we're nothing."
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For more information, visit www.sonofafarmer.com or look for Eric Herm's page on Facebook.
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Written By: Megan Lea Buck
Megan Lea Buck can be reached at mbuck@mrt.com.
[Infromation taken from:http://www.mywesttexas.com/life/article_f9a2ed03-526e-57a5-9ba5-7c0cb7d6d31f.html]
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