Chesham Town in Transition

Patrick Holden: Future Farming

Patrick Holden is Director of the soil association, he studied biodynamic agriculture at Emerson College in 1972 and started a community farm in West Wales in 1973.

The 93 hectare mixed organic farm is now the longest established organic dairy farm in Wales, with a herd of 65 Ayrshire cows

The Soil Association was founded in 1946 by a group of far-sighted individuals who were concerned about the health implications of increasingly intensive agricultural systems following the Second World War. Their principle concerns were:

• The loss of soil through erosion and depletion
• Decreased nutritional quality of intensively produced food
• Exploitation of animals in intensive units
• Impact of large intensive farming system on the countryside and wildlife.

The Back to the Land videos (1-4) look at current unsustainable farming methods and an alternative method.