Fresh out of ‘The Vegetable Monologues: Jewish Women Farmers’ it is clear that Jewish women have no hesitation in leading this Jewish Food Movement. This session featured a panel of four Jewish women farmers. Abbe Turner, who yesterday led a session on Do-It-Yourself: Making Mozzarella Cheese, discussed her experiences as a Cheese Farmer in Ohio. Anna Hanau and Elizabeth Giancola of the ADAMAH Farm talked about their transformative experiences which led them out of the office and into the field. And finally, Conference chair, Emily Freed shared her experiences on Jacob’s Farm, which just finished its biggest harvest season yet!

Funny enough, fashion came up quite a bit. Anna and Elizabeth talked about the differences between them when a past volunteer came up to them, asking what she should wear to farm. When she looked at Anna wearing loose carharts and traditional work clothes and then looked at Elizabeth who loves to wear skirts into the field, the volunteer just didn’t know what to do! Though this humorous anecdote lightened up the room, the message was clarified by Anna. She said, “After living in NYC where every street corner has a different fashion, my work clothes just felt good and comfortable. And then, when it came to Shabbat, I found I actually wanted to put on a dress or skirt or dress up.” Both overcame the disconnect between the food one eats and the process of growing that food. Anna discussed how she thought her way to be an activist was to work for an NGO sitting behind a computer, but she learned over the years this was not for her. She needed to be out in the field. And, overcoming the stigma against nice Jewish kids working on farms, she left the city and got her hands and feet dirty.

The same is certainly true about the other panelists. When Emily Freed talked about the biggest harvest season for her Jacob’s Farm, she said it was due to her involvement in growing herbs locally, rather than driving them up from Mexico. Since the trucks from Mexico had been having trouble crossing the border, the farm started their own herb field, which they primarily sell during the Holiday Season. The 8-month old crop-field on the 30-year old farm became the biggest seller and harvest in the farm’s history!

One odd question that was asked was what kind of tractor they all drive. Cheese farmer Abbe Turner answered she uses some 1940s tractor, but that she “dreams about big equipment, new big equipment.” As the room roared in laughter, we all appreciated these strong women and their efforts in rejuvenating the connection between Jews and the Land.