Toni Farmer Teaches Food Resilience From the Backyard
On April 6, Toni Farmer launched a new series on her popular Instagram account, where she teaches gardening. Farmer, who also teaches a course on sustainable agriculture at the University of Pennsylvania, calls it “The Plan,” with the subtitle “How we protect food access for our families and communities if this becomes a crisis.”
The “this,” as Farmer explains in her brisk opening post, is an ominous amalgam of threats to our food supply: U.S. tariffs that have driven up food prices, climate change, and now, a war in Iran that is cutting off fertilizer for the farmers who grow our food.
Then, with the urgent but reassuring delivery of an EMT responder, she promises help: practical tips on growing food in the backyard and planning meals, but also insights into the dynamics of a food system under stress—and the inestimable value of bonding with your neighbors.