Patagonia & Healthy Soil

Dear Community,

The below text is an overview of our current journey in relation to PFAS. If PFAS is new to you, please jump down to the link below to read my full article that that gives a background of what PFAS is and how it is impacting farms in Maine.

Growing food is our passion and our livelihood. This past December I received a letter from the DEP letting me know sludge possibly containing PFAS had been spread on this land long before my ownership. Since then our water and our soils have been tested. Our well water test came back clean and clear. The results of our soil tests are still being analyzed. Tissues samples from our crops will be taken next week.

We are doing our best due diligence to make sure we are selling you healthy food. The DEP and Department of Conservation Agriculture and Forestry understand we are production farmers and are being very supportive in helping us to understand the potential presence of PFAS related compounds on our land.

We are currently taking some precautionary measures that is limiting our production. We’ve confidence in the food that we are bringing to market. We’ll keep you updated as we learn more.

This winter I had the opportunity to write about my experience for Patagonia. You can find the full article here. Greta Rybus is the photographer who documented our farm. I could talk with her in the field all day long, and it is this ease of presence and her talent that allows her to capture us in our most true form.

Lastly, I encourage all of us to be mindful of scale and the bigger picture. While a reading of 3 ppm in my arugula may cause pause (which as a reference point, is the the equivalent of 3 seconds over a 32 year time span) a glossy paper plate or disposable coffee cup routinely tests at over 200 ppm.

There are steps we can all take to make our environment healthier.

With hopeful hearts,
Beth and Team Dandelion