In part, this is due to the dearth of American-made tools. While John Deere and some other tractor brands are manufactured in the US, their tractors are notoriously expensive. And for many years, farmers were obligated to buy only licensed parts and use only certified repair shops to work on their equipment. For cash-strapped farmers, the inability to service their own equipment was often a crushing financial blow. Although there have recently been reforms to this policy because of “right-to repair” advocacy, many farmers are still distrustful of these large manufacturers. There are also precious few locally made options for hand tools that are more suited to a homestead or small human-scale farm. 

If we want a future with more farmers, more fresh, healthy food and stronger local economies, we need infrastructure that supports small growers. Locally made tools, from hoes to tractors, are an important part of that support system and confer many of the same advantages as locally grown food. Meet three US-based toolmakers who want to change the landscape of tool buying and making to better support their local farmers and communities.

Conor Crickmore filming an educational video on his farm. Photography courtesy of Neversink Tools.

Conor Crickmore, Neversink Tools, Claryville, NY

Conor Crickmore is a farmer, first and foremost. At Neversink Farm, he works 1.3 acres of highly productive organic vegetables with help from a handful of part-time employees. Many folks know Crickmorefrom his popular series of farming instructional videos. These videos grew out of projects that were started for fun and, eventually, spurred on by positive feedback, grew into extensive informational courses. Crickmore described a similarly organic progression when establishing his tool business, which started in his garage. “On my farm, there were just certain tools we needed. We were not intending to start a business; we just wanted to cover the costs of making them,” he says. But demand for his tools was high and, six years later, Neversink tools employs seven people in a shop outfitted with specialized equipment such as composite molds and a metal-stamping setup. 

Because Neversink Tools manufactures the tools it sells, it has e the flexibility to constantly tinker with design and update tools quickly. One of its most popular tools, the patented Mutineer hoe, features a system of interchangeable heads so farmers can choose the one best suited to cultivate in every condition. The lightweight heads can be carried on a carabiner, making it ideal for human-scale farms. 

The Neversink team focuses on improving or upgrading existing tools or making specialized tools that fill a need on small intensive-production farms. “If we are going to make something that’s already out there, we are solving a problem. We don’t make something just because.”

All the work at Neversink Farm is guided by the ethos of constant improvement. There is a beautiful optimism in all of its content that tells farmers that they, too, can be successful and run a profitable business. “Farmers are creating incredible businesses and complicated infrastructures that support their hard work,” says Crickmore. 

Seth Pauley at his forge. Photography courtesy of Red Pig Tools.

Seth Pauley, Red Pig Tools, West Linn, OR

Pauley is a blacksmith who forges his tools with an anvil and hammer, using equal parts artistry and strength. Pauley makes all the Red Pig products by hand with help from a couple of apprentices who are learning the art of smithing. Many of the designs are taken from old-world tools that are hundreds or thousands of years old, although Pauley also makes custom orders upon request.

Red Pig tools are designed to withstand the hard work of producing food. Handles for its hoes and other tools can be chosen to match the user’s height and can be easily replaced. Pauley hopes to disrupt the disposable consumer mindset and empower folks to service their own tools and take pride in artfully made objects, just as they take pride in their gardens. He recognizes that his tools are more expensive than the same item from a box store, but he says that, over time, the value is greater. “You can get a good tool that can last you a lifetime… You can sharpen it. You may even learn to use a welding rig… There’s a lot of things you can learn to do to make a good tool last.” To support folks along this journey, Pauley makes himself available for phone calls and shop visits and tirelessly educates folks at garden shows and other venues.

He emphasizes that well-designed, well-built hand tools can help reduce the barrier to entry for small farmers, for whom tractors and power equipment can be financially out of reach. “You don’t have to be limited by the cost of the equipment,” he says. “You don’t have to play the same game as the bigger farms.” 

He, too, is optimistic about the future of sustainable farming. “I am seeing a lot of younger people who are more interested in growing things and doing something outside of a traditional 9-5 office job,” says Pauley. “There’s a lot of people who are interested in doing things or making things and that’s only gaining traction.” 

A RonnA Ronnie Baugh tractor on the warehouse floor. Photography courtesy of Ronnie Baugh Tractors.

Horace Green, Ronnie Baugh Tractors, Paint Rock, AL

At 89 years old, Horace Green sees his tool company as a part of a wider picture that can help bring back small, productive rural economies. Growing up in rural Alabama, Green remembers how the transition from mule to mechanization helped small farmers. But he also keenly recalls how the “go big or go home” era of ag policy decimated rural communities. He emphasizes finding the right tool for the right scale. Ronnie Baugh offers lightweight, tractors that can be customized by their width, height and center of gravity. 

Even in the US, the price of a full-size tractor is still out of reach for many small-scale farmers. Smaller, two-wheel tractors as well as hand-push tool carriers are in development at the shop. A former software engineer, Green firmly believes in open-source design and is committed to the right to repair. The new products are made using common parts such as bicycle wheels, which will allow farmers to source, build and repair components themselves. These push-driven cultivators can be upgraded using a bicycle motor and the adjustable toolbar can be swapped over to a larger two-wheel tractor. While the barrier to entry is low, the company still prioritizes quality. “We build for the life of the farmer, not the life of the product,” says Green. 

The post On the Ground With Toolmakers Helping Small Farmers Keep it Local appeared first on Modern Farmer.

My whimsical project began when I was given an old pressure cooker, which I converted into a still with the addition of a meat thermometer and copper refrigerator line. I then collected a massive quantity of Hoary mountain mint, a tall, sprightly plant that grows along the roadsides near my Southern Appalachian home. This took a whole morning, notwithstanding the time spent talking with a neighbor who passed by; when I explained what I was doing with the prodigious quantity of plant matter I had collected, he regaled me with tales of moonshiners who had run their stills in the mountains. 

Unlike distilling liquor, distilling essential oil for personal use is legal. But like the moonshiners before me, I, too, was trying to capture lighting in a bottle. At the end of the hot summer’s day, my work had yielded a small jar of mint-infused water known as a hydrosol and just a few drops of essential oil. The scent was so refreshing that the process seemed worth it. 

I didn’t start out a perfume-ophile. I’d been put off of commercial offerings because the smell of Axe body spray and Victoria’s Secret perfume had floated down the halls of my high school more strongly than teenage hormones. But the purchase of a bottle of essential oil led to some incense sticks and, eventually, I found myself in the health and beauty aisle of my local co-op sniffing aromatherapy blends and solid perfumes. 

Finally, I ventured into professional perfumes. This selection provided complexity, depth and subtlety that the commercial offerings of my youth lacked. But, as I shopped, I encountered a quandary familiar to eaters: “How do I choose sustainably and ethically produced products?”

A selection of aromatics including yarrow, sassafras and sweet clover (left); pine resin and boughs (right). (Photos: Melissa Julia)

In essence, the debate about sustainability in perfume boils down to this: It takes a massive amount of material to produce essential oils, and the most prized materials are often threatened plants and animal products. On the flip side, synthetic chemical ingredients are often untested, derived from petroleum byproducts and can contain phthalates and PFAs, which many folks eschew due to health concerns. Companies are not required to provide ingredient labels, so making informed choices is especially difficult. 

To shed some light on this topic, I spoke with Dr. Anjanette DeCarlo, who serves as chief sustainability scientist at the Aromatic Plant Research Center, where she conducts field research and ecological supply chain analysis on aromatic species. Much of her work has centered around the chronically overharvested Frankincense tree, which grows in the Middle East, Africa and India. When ingredients are harvested from developing countries, environmental and labor abuses can be myriad. “There is a dominator mindset that is very neocolonial,” DeCarlo says  of the companies that work as middlemen to buy raw product from villagers. This story is not unique to aromatics. “You could substitute the word ‘Frankincense’ with ‘chocolate,’” she says, and the injustices would be the same. 

Part of the problem is overuse. “MLMs [multi-level marketing companies] like YoungLiving have mainstreamed essential oils,” says DeCarlo. The internet was also a major catalyst for the explosion of interest in perfume, according to Saskia Wilson-Brown, founder and executive director of the Institute for Art and Olfaction, a non-profit that serves to facilitate open access to scent and perfumery projects. The rise of celebrity branding and the fast-fashion mentality that has bled over into the perfume industry has also served to increase consumption. “There used to be the concept of the signature scent,” says Wilson-Brown, but now it’s been replaced with the concept of a “scent for every occasion,” which drives sales. 

While it’s tempting to think that overharvest and labor concerns can be avoided by using synthetic versions, it’s not that simple. Take musk, for example. This sensual and earthy fragrance used to be obtained from animals, chiefly the musk deer, which, as a result of overhunting, is now endangered. Today, it has been largely replaced by synthetic analogs. According to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, an advocacy group aimed at making beauty products safe, these common chemicals may disrupt hormone systems and may be reproductive, development and organ system toxicants. The group notes that they are “highly bioaccumulative” and have been detected in drinking water, soil, breast milk, body fat and the cord blood of newborn babies. 

Greenwashing and misrepresentative labeling are also a problem. According to DeCarlo, “Sometimes, a company will have one part of their supply chain certified but apply those certification labels to all of their products.” Essential oil fraud is common, with synthetics being passed off as naturals. 

But before I started to despair that all essential oils and perfumes were off the table, these experts informed me that there are some great resources for those seeking sustainable scents. The Coalition of Sustainable Perfumery maintains an Endangered & Threatened Fragrant Species Red List for aromatic plants. The International Fragrance association, IFRA, provides info about safety and sustainability reports on its website. 

Additionally, there are some companies focusing on sustainable fragrance. Canadian company BoreASENS produces essential oils from cast-off branches left by foresters and uses a circular distillation system that allows for less carbon-intensive production. Camino Verde produces essential oils from rosewood and moena alcanfór. The oils are part of a regenerative agroforestry system in the Amazon made up of native trees, with the goal of regenerating forests and improving livelihoods for the company’s indigenous partners. A larger national company, Lush, is another leader in the sustainability space. 

The author and her canine companion. (Photos: Melissa Julia)

Using less, buying from small indie perfumers and as local as possible, asking companies questions about supply chains and their practices, doing your own research and being willing to pay a higher price for consciously made products are  all practices that can have an impact. Luckily, “some of the most interesting and beautiful perfumes come from small indie perfumers,” says Wilson-Brown. As the market for these handmade perfumes grows, there are opportunities for farmers who grow medicinal herbs, vegetables or even hemp to diversify by providing aromatic materials directly to perfumers or small suppliers. 

While these suggestions are helpful, finding ethical products is still a challenge. My personal strategy has been to explore the scents all around me. Growing sage to dry and bundle, placing boughs of cedar on the woodstove or just stopping to crush a handful of Queen Anne’s lace seedheads and inhaling deeply are sustainable ways to treat your senses. These moments help me celebrate the tapestry of the seasons as they play across the hills of my home. I find the ephemeral nature of the flora here enchanting—change is constant, and one plant germinates while another dies back. Just as we pickle garden bounty, make wine and lovely preserves to enjoy in the winter, we can use scent as a celebration of nature; a spray of my green walnut fragrance is so visceral and evocative, it’s like summer running a finger down my spine. 

While “take time to smell the roses” is a well-worn platitude, the aromas around us can surprise, intoxicate, uplift and nurture us, if only we take the time to notice them. Whether you are a perfume buyer or a fresh-cut grass-smeller, the extra bit of attention you give to sourcing your scents will make them all the sweeter.

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