>> AS EVERY FARMER KNOWS, EFFICIENCY IS AN
IMPORTANT EQUATION THAT YOU CAN'T IGNORE.
BUT I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF
MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT EFFICIENCY.
WE HAVE THIS NOTION SOMEHOW THAT
THE BIGGER YOU GET, THE MORE
EFFICIENT YOU BECOME, THAT
THERE'S THAT ALMOST
LOCKED-IN RELATIONSHIP.
AND SO IF YOU AREN'T GOING TO
GET BIGGER, YOU ARE GOING TO BE
LESS EFFICIENT AND THEREFORE
YOU ARE NOT GOING TO SURVIVE.
>> SOMETHING THAT'S EFFICIENT
HAS LITTLE WASTED MOTION AND
PRODUCES AN OUTCOME
WITH MINIMAL EFFORT.
THE GOAL OF THAT IS TO CONSERVE
ENERGY AND AVOID WASTE.
BUT THE EFFICIENCIES THAT ARE
GAINED IN THE ECONOMIC SYSTEM
ESPECIALLY IN THE FOOD SYSTEM
HAVE THE REVERSE EFFECT.
>> AND I STARTED TO THINK ABOUT,
CREW KNOW, SOME OF MY FRIENDS
WHO FARM, WHO NOW ARE
FARMING 25,000 ACRES.
WELL, IF YOU GOT THAT, YOU OUGHT
TO REALLY BE EFFICIENT, RIGHT?
BUT AT LEAST ONE QUARTER SECTION OF ONE OF MY FRIENDS WHO
FARMS 25,000 ACRES IS AT LEAST 100-MILES FROM THE FARM.
IT TAKES A LOT MORE ENERGY AND TIME, ETC., TO PLANT AND HARVEST
THAT SECTION THAN THE ONE THAT'S NEXT TO THE FARMSTEAD.
SO YOU START TO LOSE EFFICIENT
SIS AS YOU GET LARGER.
-- LOSE EFFICIENCIES
AS YOU GET LARGER.
>> THE PROBLEM IS
NOT TECHNOLOGY.
IT'S OUR USE AND OUR PHILOSOPHY
OF TECHNOLOGY THAT THERE IS NO
LIMITS TO WHAT WE CAN DO.
SO IF WE HAVE A PROBLEM, WE WILL
JUST APPLY TECHNOLOGY AND
OVERCOME THAT PROBLEM.
ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY CAN MEASURE
COST BENEFITS IN ECONOMIC TERMS.
BUT SOME OF THE COSTS AND
BENEFITS THAT WE HAVE TO
CONSIDER ARE NOT ECONOMIC AND
THEY CAN'T BE QUANTIFIED.
FOR EXAMPLE, HOW DO YOU
KNOW IF SOMEBODY IS HAPPY?
HOW DO YOU MES MEASURE THAT
IN QUANTITIFIBLE TERMS?
HOW DO YOU MEASURE THE VALUE OF
THE WORK THAT EARTH
WORMS DO IN THE SOIL?
WHAT IS THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF
THE BEAUTY OF A NATIVE PRAIRIE?
OKAY.
WE CAN'T PUT THESE THINGS INTO
AN ACCOUNTING LEDGER, TALLY IT
UP AND SAY WE HAVE ECONOMICALLY
ACHIEVED THIS IN THE MOST
EFFICIENT WAY POSSIBLE.
BECAUSE IT CAN'T
MEASURE THAT FOR US.
THERE'S NO TOOL TO DO THAT.
>> WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW IS
75% OF OUR TOTAL FOOD AND
AGRICULTURE IS BEING PRODUCED BY
JUST 195,442 FARMS
IN THIS COUNTRY.
AND 30% OF THOSE FARMERS ARE
OVER AGED 65 AND ONLY
5% ARE UNDER AGE 35.
>> IN AMERICA RIGHT NOW, 2% OF
AMERICANS MAKE THEIR
LIVING BY FARMING.
SO THAT MEANS THAT 98% OF
AMERICANS ARE IN THE CONSUMER
END OF THE EQUATION ON THIS ONE.
SO WE'VE GOT A VERY SMALL SECTOR
ACTUALLY PRODUCING AND A LARGE
SECTOR LOOKING FOR
THEIR NEXT FIX.
AND I WORRY OVER THAT, THAT
IF WE DON'T GET MORE PEOPLE
UNDERSTANDING AND PARTICIPATING
IN THE PRODUCING END OF THIS
EQUATION, THAT ONE OF THESE DAYS
WE'LL GO TO THE SUPERMARKET
AND THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE
SOMETHING FOR OUR NEXT FIX.
AND THEN WHAT ARE
WE GOING TO DO?
SO IF WE THINK ABOUT THE
ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF TWO
FARMERS FARMING THE SAME AMOUNT
OF PLAN -- LAND WITH THE THREE
FARMERS USED TO BE ABLE TO FARM,
IT'S MORE ECONOMICALLY EFFICIENT
IF TWO GUYS AND TWO TRACTORS CAN
DO THE JOB INSTEAD OF
THREE GUYS DOING THE JOB.
SO ON A STRICT BALANCE SCALE,
OKAY, JUST COSTS, INPUTS,
AND OUTPUT, WE SAY THAT IS
DEFINITELY MORE
ECONOMICALLY EFFICIENT.
THE PROBLEM IS THAT WE DIDN'T
ASK WHAT THE GOAL WAS, OKAY.
THE GOAL IS NEVER
ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY.
THE GOAL WAS THINGS
THAT MATTER TO PEOPLE.
AND WHEN PEOPLE ARE ASKED ABOUT
WHAT IS IT THAT YOU REALLY LOVE
OR VALUE ABOUT LIFE, THEY DON'T
SAY ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY.
THEY SAY THINGS LIKE I WANT TO
BE ABLE TO PUT MY KIDS THROUGH
COLLEGE, I WANT THEM TO HAVE A
BETTER LIFE THAN I HAD, I WANT
TO BE ABLE TO GET TOGETHER WITH
MY NEIGHBORS AND LIVE IN A SAFE
COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, I WANT MY
KIDS TO BE ABLE TO GO TO
A GOOD PUBLIC SCHOOL.
SO WHAT IS THE IMPLICATIONS OF
JUST HAVING TWO FARMERS
WHERE THERE WAS ONCE 30?
SUDDENLY YOUR KID HAS TO TRAVEL
60 MILES ROUND-TRIP TO GET TO A
TOWN THAT HAS A SCHOOL ANYMORE.
YOU'VE LOST 30 FAMILIES
IN YOUR COMMUNITY.
SO NOW THE BUSINESSES LIKE THE
HARDWARE STORE, THE RESTAURANTS
NOW AREN'T ECONOMICALLY
VIABLE ANYMORE.
SO THESE ARE THINGS THAT WE
DON'T OFTEN MEASURE BY ECONOMIC
EFFICIENCY AND WE CAN'T MEASURE.
BUT WE NEED TO KEEP THOSE VALUES
AND GOALS FRONT AND CENTER AND
KEEP ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY IN ITS
PLACE.
>> EFFICIENCY SUSPECT A MEASURE
OF -- ISN'T A MEASURE
OF HAPPINESS.
IT MAY BE A MEASURE OF THE
OPPOSITE OF HAPPINESS.
SO I THINK WHAT WE NEED TO
BECOME RATHER THAN TALKING ABOUT
EFFICIENT FOOD SYSTEMS IS WE
SHOULD TALK ABOUT FOOD SYSTEMS
THAT MAKE US HAPPY AND -- AND
RAISING A GARDEN AND SHARING
YOUR PRODUCE WITH YOUR NEIGHBOR
MAKES ME HAPPY, AND HAVING A
FOOD SYSTEM THAT PRODUCES LOCAL
KNEW TELEVISIONOUS FOOD THAT
I -- NUTRITION FOOD THAT I CAN
BUY MAKES A LOT OF PEOPLE HAPPY.
THAT WOULD BE MY ADVICE TO
PEOPLE IS GET OFF THE WORD
EFFICIENT AND TALK ABOUT SYSTEMS
THAT MAKE US HAPPY AND HEALTHY.
FUNDED IN PART BY THE NORTH
DAKOTA HUMANITIES COUNCIL, A
NON-PROFIT INDEPENDENT STATE
PARTNER OF THE NATIONAL
ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES.
AND BY THE MEMBERS
OF PRAIRIE PUBLIC
