Mark Prado
March 24, 2006
David Evans takes care of baby chicks on his sister Julie's farm in Point Reyes. Their ranch has been in the family since the 1930s. David Evans holds some chicks on his sister Julie's farm in Point Reyes. On Thursday, a forum on 'Food and Farming on the Urban Edge' will look at how family farms fit into the countywide plan. Julie Evans of
"There always is the 'what if' factor," said Evans, who runs Point Reyes Preserves, a line of pickled vegetables and jams from her family's ranch. "We want the support of the county and community and continue the farming tradition in West Marin. That support increases our motivation."
Thursday night in Ross, the Marin Agricultural Land Trust hosted a forum "Food and Farming on the Urban Edge," which looked at how family farms fit into Marin's countywide plan. The plan maps the use of land and natural resources in the coming years.
Evans, along with parents Dan and Dolores, and brother David work what is now known as the "H" Ranch, land that has been in the family since the late 1930s. Dolores is the daughter of Alfred Grossi.
"West Marin looks the way it does because of an indescribable dedication to the land," Julie Evans said. "Ag keeps development away and provides a local food source."
Operations on the "H" Ranch include 400 head of commercial beef cattle; Marin Sun Farms, with 800 to 1,000 free-range chickens; and Point Reyes Preserves, which produces 7,500 jars of goods each year.
In Marin, 167,000 acres of land is made up of farms or ranches, that's about half the land in the county. Of the 276 agricultural operations in Marin, 72 are considered large, with annual gross income of $100,000 or more annually. Another 204 are classified as small, with an income of less than $100,000 annually.
Marin's countywide plan has provisions to help those smaller farmers thrive, allowing for things such as on-site processing plants to help produce products.
"It's not just about preserving what we have, it's about keeping the culture of agriculture," said Alex Hinds, director of
To that end, the county set goals to maintain the existing acreage of lands in ag production and to protect agriculture lands from development.
Diversifying farm operations also will help keep agriculture strong in the coming decades, said Ellie Rilla, director of UC Cooperative Extension, which assists ranchers with a number of programs.
"There are lots of younger generation ranchers now," she said. "The next generation will try to do things that Mom and Dad don't want to do."
That could include moving toward organic or grass-fed operations, which help protect the land and offer a unique product to consumers.
Bon Berner, who heads MALT, said the small farmers hold the key to the future of agriculture in West Marin.
"Whether ag survives or not begin and ends with the family farmer and rancher," he said.