Join the homesteading rebellion

How would you like to stand up to the government and join the rebellion?

I’m not talking about confronting ICE agents or holding signs in a No Kings protest. I’m talking about eating healthily, supporting your neighbors and throwing off the shackles of government regulation over your food. Sandy and I are part of a nationwide movement to restore natural, healthy, locally sourced foods to our diets. It’s called the homesteading movement.

When we bought our small acreage here in 2023 it was with the intent of starting a hobby farm, mostly for sentimental reasons. Both of us grew up on hobby farms as children and we enjoy gardening and raising small farm animals. What we didn’t realize at the time is that we were becoming involved in a much larger and fast-growing movement.

The homesteading movement is hiding in plain sight. Although there is no formal organization or membership, many in the movement operate both publicly and underground. The public side can be seen at farmers markets, roadside stands, or on signs in front of one’s property advertising fresh fruits and vegetables or eggs for sale.

It’s the underground side that gets exciting and becomes an act of rebellion against Big Ag, Big Food and Big Brother. The most rebellious thing we do is buy raw, unpasteurized whole milk from a local supplier! The most dastardly thing we do with this legally obtained contraband is make fresh butter and homemade yogurt!

The horrors, you say! I know, right! We’re taking our lives into our own hands and spurning industrially produced, ultra-processed, additive-infused store-bought milk. The government put the kibosh on raw milk because people were getting sick from it when dairy farming became industrialized. In a small way it became part of government control over our lives.

What they don’t tell you is that the milk you get in the store is not natural and it has been stripped of many of its nutrients and things we need to feed a healthy gut biome. But enough about raw milk for now. It’s just a gateway drug to get you into healthier living. Soon we plan to get into heavier stuff like fresh, organic meat from animals that have never been medicated or fed growth hormones, and that have been fed a natural and varied diet. Shh, don’t tell anyone, but some of this we are even raising ourselves.

Homesteaders are basically people who run a small family farm on an acre or two on up to a few hundred acres. Homesteaders grow fresh produce, raise chickens and other poultry for meat and eggs, and have other livestock, such as cows, goats, sheep, pigs, and rabbits. We have started raising rabbits and are in the market for more if anyone out there is selling. We will consider getting hooved creatures down the road.

For some, homesteading is a hobby or a side job. Some do it full time. Some go to the extreme of becoming completely self-sufficient and going off grid. Kudos to them. The more people we can get out of the grocery stores and onto the land the better. I’m not saying grocery stores are bad. They are important and we need them. It just that the closer we can bring the consumer to the farmer the better off we are.

Shopping at a farmers market, like the ones in Bryan and College Station, or buying directly from local sellers generally gives you healthier, organic, whole foods. We need to get away from packaged processed foods, especially things made from a long list of unpronounceable chemicals.

In doing research on hobby farming, Sandy came across the Homesteading Monthly magazine. One of its regular contributors is Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms in Virginia. He is arguably the best-known homesteader and is very prolific, having written several books, columns and other materials. He has a podcast and other social media outlets for sharing information.

Salatin clearly has issues with governmental control over our food and regularly takes issue with Big Ag and Big Food. One of his books is titled “Everything I Want to Do is Illegal.” I love his whimsical and irreverent style of writing. His love of the land and all things natural is inspiring.

You don’t have to have a lot of land to get into homesteading. A small garden plot is a good way to start. Get a few chickens if you can or a breeding pair of rabbits. These small steps can lead you into a bigger world of healthier living. You can join the movement and become an agricultural rebel yourself.