America's Longest-Running Family Farm Going Out of Business

A Dover, New Hampshire family farm is going out of business and being put up for sale.  Sadly, this is not unusual news. What is remarkable is that the Tuttle Farm is believed to be the oldest running family farm in America.

The Tuttle Farm has been cultivated by the Tuttle family for 378 years over 11 generations. It was founded in 1632, when there were only a handful of American settlers — merely staying alive was a major challenge. But the farm survived through a Revolution, a Civil War, and a Depression. It's not just a food producer — the farm is a living piece of history.

The Tuttles run a diversified operation with lettuce, berries, tomatoes, radishes, and legendary sweet corn.  Their soil is fertile and their customers loyal.  So what finally did this ancient farm in? As a wonderful New York Times article points out, it was the modern food industry.

The Tuttles cite a number of reasons for putting the farm up for sale, but all of them stem from "exhaustion of resources": mind, body, imagination, equipment, and finances. Farming is hard work, and in today's environment it is harder than ever for small- and medium-sized family farms to operate.  The big farms have the entire industrial agricultural complex behind them, with lobbyists, heavy government subsidies, and, as is becoming increasingly acknowledged, the power of monopoly.  Competing with that is extremely difficult, but by keeping costs low and returning to sustainable farming methods, many small farms have managed to gain a toehold in the market.

Unfortunately, the Tuttle Farm is decidedly medium, with 240 acres to manage. With that size comes relatively high equipment and labor costs, which forces many farms to convert to environmentally unsound monocultures of one or two heavily subsidized crops, such as commodity corn or soybeans. It also forces farmers to switch to artificial fertilizers and pesticides to increase yields and scrape by on a slim profit margin. But a farm can't last 300 years with those industrial techniques, and they certainly take a heavy toll on one's energy, imagination, and the environment. And so in addition to small signs boasting fresh tomatoes, an increasing number of family farms feature another ad: "For Sale" signs.

There is one bit of good news, though: You won't see any strip malls springing up where the Tuttle Farm once stood. The land is under a conservation easement, meaning it can only be used for agriculture or kept as open space. Organizations like the Land Trust Alliance and the American Farmland Trust (AFT) buy the development rights to farmland and open spaces, preserving these disappearing commodities for future generations and providing farmers a financial boost in the process. Landowners can also donate development rights to such groups or government land conservation programs. And while there isn't much legislation mandating conservation of farm and ranch land, groups like AFT are trying to change that. Sign AFT's petition asking Congress to protect America's farm and ranch land before it is too late.

It is heartbreaking to see such an institution close up shop, but there is comfort in knowing the land will remain open.  It is uncertain who will buy the land, but there is a good chance that the Tuttle Farm could remain in production, generating good food for generations to come. Here's to another 300 years of farming.

Photo credit: Len@Loblolly via Flickr