The title of the documentary, The Need to Grow by Rob Herring and Ryan Wirick, is suggestive. Its abstract character is enough to apply in a general and also in a particular way. The Need to Grow applies to both the personal and to so many individuals. At the moment, the need for growth in food production is imperative because, for some time, we have been in decline in terms of global management, and in our case (Puerto Rico) national in scope. This has serious consequences on a personal development.
The documentary is specific in terms of the urgency needed to attend to the health of the planet. It is estimated that there are 60 years of yield possible to arable soil; it is pointed out that the planet has lost a third of the arable land in the last forty years, mainly due to non-sustainable agriculture based on the extractive, non-renewable mentality and the industrial scale of mono cultures with pesticides. This, as opposed to organic agriculture that proposes a renewable and regenerative character, oriented to the biodiversity of crops. A modality that has proven to have better performance, with less energy use and less emission of pollution to the environment.
Global measures are needed to redefine agricultural policies everywhere to counteract the deterioration of the planet.
Faced with the urgency of the crisis, as a few pragmatists understand it, a series of visionaries have come out who not only point out the seriousness of the issue, but move to actions that can help solve it. They range from large-scale projects such as the Green Power House (a project in Montana that generates energy with the sun and recycling garbage, combined with the activation of algae and coal in extraordinary fertilizers), such as the activism of Alicia and Monica Cerrator collecting signatures so that the cookies of the Niñas Eschuas program do not have genetically modified content. We also see exemplary farms like La Alegría and we’re aware of inspiring testimonies from Michel Smith, Erik Cutter, Vandama Shiva and David King that give us a clear idea of the state of affairs.
The project is explicit it’s proposal of solutions. Of course, global measures are needed to redefine agricultural policies everywhere to counteract the deterioration of the planet. Protests against Monsanto are everywhere. But it is also up to us as citizens, to call on government to get out of its slump and recognize the disaster it has caused by the abandonment of agriculture. That there is a need for investments to be multiplied, for farmers to be compensated with justice for their efforts, that the sector be equipped with advanced technology, that the land be safeguarded and its prodigious function is carried out. All complex and collective measures that involve the difficulty of reaching agreements and executing with consequence.
It is also important to explore community gardens, particularly the gardens in schools in order to sow the passion for the land early.
At the most immediate level is the personal. The home garden that you don’t have to ask anyone for permission to grow. It is urgent to recognize the virtues and benefits of local consumption, the value of freshness, flavor and quality of nutrients and support for farmers in the yard and agricultural markets. The production of compost only requires a little discipline and obtaining the packaging that enables it. It is also important to explore community gardens, particularly the gardens in schools in order to sow the passion for the land early.
The situation is critical, threatening, but it’s never too late. Resonate in the documentary are some slogans that are relevant: Everything comes from the Earth, You can’t fight against Nature, Diversity in Safety, We can do it Better, Local is Better, Many speak, Few do, I am part of the Solution.
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Copyright 2025 by Jose M. Umpierre. Need to Grow graphic used under the fair use proviso of the copyright law. All other mages in this blog are in the public domain.