This morning I posted a statement on twitter that Canada’s supply management system allows dairy farmers to have a decent income.  This was based largely on discussions I’d had with members of dairy farm families about their experiences.  It spawned an extensive, fascinating discussion that mixes stats with personal experiences, and is reproduced here.

@JamieMurton farmers are battered and hurt here in NY. Some still pay debts from 2009 $10 milk.

— NYFarmer (@NYFarmer) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649945205345505280

@ceressys @JamieMurton ROI?

— NYFarmer (@NYFarmer) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649947166266511360

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649949332976873472

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649949954602090496

@ceressys @JamieMurton thank you, will read. Here in NY we can see empty farms for miles . A different economic impact

— NYFarmer (@NYFarmer) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Considering most farmers work 8-10 hrs per day, 7 days a week 50k is just over min wage.

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649953963094183936

@LindseyDV @ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Is dividends on their investment in the farm included in that $50k?

— CoⓋiren-19 D'souza™ (@Milkabot) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649955786043621376

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer thats certainly not the wage we earn on our farm

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649956864889888768

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649957576004763648

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer that assumes only one person required for all labour. Most dairy farms require more than 1 person to run

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer as with all businesses and types of employment there is a large variation in income earned

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Does that include off farm income?

— CoⓋiren-19 D'souza™ (@Milkabot) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @Milkabot @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Thats all types of Agriculture?

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @Milkabot @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer don't forget please that I need part of my net income, +amort to repay debt

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @Milkabot @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer so not just plain net cash in my pocket at the end!!

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @Milkabot @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer also if 2-3 in the business, 2-3 shareholder to split the net. So lame to bash!!

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

@summitfred @ceressys @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer He's not bashing, he's just merely pointing out his observations! 😉

— CoⓋiren-19 D'souza™ (@Milkabot) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @Milkabot @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer but so will be the case of many business owners!!! That not always work 70hr/wk…

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

@Milkabot @ceressys @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer yes but easy to see that he's trying to make controversy that a farmer make 50k/yr

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649959946071748608

@Milkabot @ceressys @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer with millions of assets to manage plus weather and animal problems make impredictible

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649960185117691904

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649961558974533632

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649962298203840512

@ceressys @Milkabot @LindseyDV @JamieMurton @NYFarmer and I say some, not all. !!

— Frederic Paris (@summitfred) October 2, 2015

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649963837836394496

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649966522677469184

https://twitter.com/ceressys/status/649969098391199748

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer PDO members likely more efficient than non-members. Robots may = less hrs but higher operating costs

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer PDO members likely more efficient than non-members. Robots may = less hrs but higher operating costs

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Thanks for sharing the data, it is interesting and i think supports that SM works to provide fair wage

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

@ceressys @JamieMurton @NYFarmer Farms that want more wages can work to become more efficient & new and smaller farms dont starve

— Lindsey Hiemstra (@one_oak_farms) October 2, 2015

Why are you eating that? Find out in my new course on North American food history, offered in winter term at Nipissing University.

Eating connects us – to the earth, to the plants and animals that live on it, and to the people who produce our food. It connects us, above all, to the people who came before us who decided what was good food and how to make it. This course will not tell you what to eat. It will tell you where pizza came from, how white bread transformed the central plains of North America, and how pancakes were used to fight back against exploitation. We will explore how food is grown, cooked, and eaten in North America, why religions and cultures eat the way they do, and why so much of our food now is not so good for us or for the planet. Also, we will cook and eat (good) food.

The journal Climatic Change is focusing an issue on perspectives on climate change from Indigenous people in the US, who it argues are both uniquely affected by climate change (as so many are poor) and are in a good position to understand it (as so many have a close relationship with the natural world).

The Senate Scandal in the New York Times, with an appropriate picture of the PM.

Just last night I was talking with a colleague, criticizing economists who feel they are qualified to comment on environmental issues.  Then along comes Paul Krugman, who as it turns out worked on the issue as a grad student, with a fascinating review of a book that attempts to assign costs to climate change.