Hi, I'm Sarah Gardner.
Ready to get your
hands dirty?
Ready to start a new career?
Well, coming up we
will introduce you
to some people sharing
the story of agriculture
and giving others a
brand new start in life.
We'll take you to California
where armed forces veterans
are leaving conflict behind
to benefit from
life on the land.
A Hmong community in
Minnesota finds that
farming gives them a
connection to ethnic foods
and brings a community
closer together.
Come along to Massachusetts
where one farm school
teaches students to
appreciate the environment
and makes them
better consumers.
And while we're in
an educational mood,
Sharon Profis steps to
the head of the class
for a great avocado recipe
that might be perfect for
dinner or entertaining.
It's all coming up on
America's Heartland.
♪♪
>>America's Heartland
is made possible by:
>> CropLife America -
Representing the companies
whose modern
farming innovations
help America's farmers
provide nutritious food
for communities
around the globe.
>> The Fund for
Agriculture Education
A fund created
by KVIE to support
America's Heartland
programming.
Contributors include
the following:
♪♪ You can see it in the eyes
of every woman and man ♪♪
♪♪ In America's Heartland,
livin' close to the land ♪♪
♪♪ There's a love
for the country ♪♪
♪♪ And a pride
in the brand ♪♪
♪♪ In America's Heartland ♪♪
♪♪ Livin' close...
close to the land ♪♪
♪♪
>> If you join us regularly
on America's Heartland,
you know we love to share
stories that give you
insights into where your
food is coming from.
And we've taken you cross-
country to meet farm and
ranch families as well as
visiting programs that
really tell the story of
agriculture in America.
And that story
runs the gamut:
from the great work being
done by the National FFA
in providing opportunities
for high school students
to work in agriculture,
to farmers in Florida
and Massachusetts
opening their farms to groups
that harvest excess crops
and make that food available
to help feed the hungry.
Each of these provides
a hands-on experience
to people who knew nothing
of agriculture before.
Well, we're going to share a
few more with you this time,
but there's a bit
of a difference.
They focus on programs
that can dramatically
change individual lives.
Let's start in
Southern California
where one farm experience
is changing the
lives of veterans.
♪♪
>> Colin and Karen Archipley
operate a small organic farm
near San Diego,
called Archi's Acres.
>> Our mainstay product
is living basil and
that's what you see here.
And what I mean by
living basil is that
we grow it in a soilless
system, we harvest it,
we have the bare root and
that stays with the plant
and that's how it
goes to market.
We also grow kale,
avocados, tomatoes...
>> Bok Choy...
>> Bok Choy,
a few other crops
but our mainstay crop
is our living basil,
that's our, that's
what we're known for.
>> Hi Terry, it's Karen
with Archi's Acres...
>> Karen's definitely
a people person
and I'm more of a
hands-on type of person.
And so our personalities
complement each
other very well.
>> The couple decided to
begin a new life in farming
while Colin, a decorated
Marine veteran,
was on his third tour of
duty in Iraq back in 2006.
But despite shifting his
focus to the farm after
returning from the Middle
East, Colin was aware of the
difficulties faced by some
of his fellow veterans.
Colin saw that
many of the soldiers
with whom he'd served
were struggling
in their efforts to adjust
to civilian life and jobs.
>> A lot of the people
he had served with were
re-enlisting not necessarily
because they wanted to
but because they
couldn't find employment.
And so what happened
was we actually made
a training program for
people to do what we did.
>> So Colin and
Karen created the
"Veterans
Sustainable Agriculture
Training Program".
The program
provides instruction
on sustainable
agriculture practices.
The field work and plant
knowledge help veterans
transition to careers in
the agriculture industry.
>> If we made this small
business and we're, y'know,
making a living at it,
then we could do something
to help these other people
leaving the service as well.
And so we developed a
six-week training program,
so it's full-time,
40 plus hours.
>> And they learn
about niche marketing,
they learn about how to value
your crop, what to grow,
why you're going to choose
one product over another,
we cover everything,
it's intense.
>> Programs like these
address some new realities
in American agriculture.
The growing demand
for organic foods
and community
supported agriculture
has prompted the creation
of many new small farms,
In addition, an aging
farm population
has created a need for
younger workers in
both management and
production positions.
>> When you take
that uniform off,
nobody sees those stripes,
nobody sees those decorations
and so they have to
reinvent themselves.
And in agriculture,
you can do that.
>> I think by focusing
on agriculture,
we tap them into our
network and hopefully
that helps them feel
like they're part of a unit
then they see the mission
and they feel like they're
part of something greater.
>> We're lost when we
get out, a lot times.
I didn't really know
at all what I was doing,
had any inclination really
of where I was gonna head.
>> Former program graduates,
combat veterans Ian Kursel
and Justin Grimes are now
employees at Archi's Acres.
They know all too well
the difficulties
in transitioning back
to civilian life.
>>I'm doing something that's
good here, I'm trying to,
we're trying to do it
in a responsible way
to the environment
and to the community,
so anything I can do
that fosters
cooperation and sharing,
that's who I am, that's
what I want to be about.
>> I like the symbiotic
relationship between
the plant and myself,
and the more love
I gave the plant,
the more love it gave me
and paid back to me from
everything that I gave it,
'cause if you don't
give it anything,
it doesn't give you
anything back.
>> Current program students
Rebekah Schwab and
her husband, Jacob have
both seen military service.
They view their
training here,
in traditional and
hydroponic farming methods,
as important to their
new career directions.
>> It's a lot of good
knowledge and
with this it's going
to give us, you know,
a better opportunity to
actually have our own
business and be successful.
>> And they don't just teach
you about hydroponics.
Like they really go into
soil management, too.
Like what you need
in your soil
and to sustain it and
how to keep it growing.
Like everything,
very organic.
Kind of taking it
back to the basics.
>> You know, I want to
continue to serve my country
and I can't think of much
more of an American story
than somebody going and
serving their country
and then coming back and
creating a small business
especially within
agriculture.
>> Did it change my life?
Absolutely.
If I hadn't of come here
I wouldn't be doing
what I am now;
I wouldn't have the
confidence to do
what I want to do with
farming in the future.
But it definitely filled
a need inside me that
wasn't filled out in the
civilian world otherwise;
I don't feel as lost as
I did- it's very rewarding.
♪♪
>> Here's the dirt on
California dirt!
The Golden State
is home to more than
two thousand separate
soil types which
make it possible to grow
hundreds of different crops.
Dirt aside, California
has a lot of cows -
more than one
and a half million
making it the country's
number one dairy state.
California also
leads the nation in
the production of grapes,
some for your table and some
for those California Wines.
♪♪
>> Minnesota is
a prime producer in
the world of agriculture.
Sugar beets,
wheat and soybeans
are major crops and
don't forget poultry.
Minnesota leads the nation
when it comes to
raising turkeys.
But Jason Shoultz says
the North Star State
is also home to a
program that provides
an agricultural start to a
particular group of people.
>> [singing in Hmong]
>> It has the look and feel
of an Asian market
halfway around the world,
but this bustling
center for food,
music and culture is in the
heart of St. Paul Minnesota.
With 45-thousand Hmong
residents, Minnesota has one
of the largest populations
of Hmong in the U.S.
And for people selling their
goods - the Hmongtown market
is a direct connection with
their cultural customers.
Here at the
market you'll find
traditional Hmong
plants and produce.
But, what if these farmers
could work together
to expand their reach
beyond the market?
That's the idea behind the
Minnesota Food Association's
Big River Farm about an
hour northeast of St. Paul.
On a warm Spring
weekend afternoon
you'll find Vince and
his brother, Tu Xiong,
working with their
vegetable plants
with big hopes for
a successful season.
>> So we kind of just
planted this way.
Tons of cilantro here.
We got peas, we got
tomatoes, we got carrots.
I got about 20 varieties
of vegetables.
>> Vince sees a big potential
for farmers cooperatively
working together
to market their crops.
>> A lot of farmers
that grow a lot,
I think that they end up
throwing it away
because they
don't have market
or they don't know
how to find a market
because they know
how to farm,
but they don't
know how to sell.
And I have a background
in selling and you know
I can- I know I can get
the bigger customers
if I just get them to
work together as a group
then we have more
selling power.
♪♪
>> The Hmong-American
story is a poignant one.
After supporting the
U.S. war effort in Vietnam,
much of the Hmong
population found itself
forced out of Laos during
the communist takeover.
After years in refugee camps,
thousands were allowed to
come to the United States.
Today Minnesota is home
to a major share of the
nearly 200 thousand Hmong
living in this country,
many of whom brought
farming skills with them.
>> In their culture it's
more of a just a way
to provide food for the
family and maybe some trade.
But since it is you know,
something that they know and
like we're trying to help
them do that as a business
as a way to sustain
themselves and their family.
>> [Woman speaking Hmong]
>> She says that the
big difference between
what I'm doing here,
I think it's more
like organic
in comparison to
what she's doing.
>> Tou Yang and his mother,
Mor Yang grow vegetables
on a plot of land at the
Big River Organic Farm.
The challenges to change can
be generational or cultural.
It can take time -
and more importantly
evidence of success --
to convince growers to
adopt new practices.
>> It's always a balance
of communicating our way
but also understanding
there are many ways.
And I think we have
a lot to learn
from other cultures as well.
>> I know some people
have had problems,
saying that this is
too tall for them...
>> The Minnesota Food
Association offers minority
farmers plots of ground
along with training classes.
Today farmers are
sharing their techniques
on tackling weeds that
invade their gardens.
>> So, you know, I go
along and just kind of be,
have a little tension
holding the handles
up a little bit...
>> Tou's weeding
implement is this hoe.
>> This is actually made
by my uncle in Thailand
and he shipped it to us.
So it's like a
traditional tool...
>> It's a traditional hoe?
>> Yup, that Hmong
people use so,
>> Oh... Wow.
>> Yeah, this is really,
this is actually unique.
>> It's not just
farming practices
that combine the old and new.
Alongside things like
carrots and onions
you'll find traditional
Asian crops.
>> I don't know the
American name,
or Latin name for it,
but we pickle it.
>> What's the, what's
the Hmong name for it?
>> Jo Po.
>> Jo Po.
And so this will grow up
to be how big here?
It's pretty small now.
>> It could grow up to
be about this tall.
>> Oh wow.
>> Yeah.
>> And it's a leafy green.
>> Leafy, crunchy green if
you, when you pickle it
>> So you pickle it
and eat it year round.
>> Oh yeah, oh yeah...
>> In the quiet countryside,
people working together
to grow markets and
encourage new methods,
in a state with such a
rich agricultural history -
the truth is many
Minnesotans are unaware
of their neighbor
Hmong-American farmers.
>> They're very quiet
people and so I think
they are largely
going unnoticed.
And maybe they you know
are fine with that.
You know, they're
amazing people,
and so I think it would
benefit most Minnesotans
to learn more about their
culture and to embrace them.
♪♪
>> Minnesota is one of the
top ten wheat growing
states in the nation,
much of which goes
into the bread,
rolls and pastries we enjoy.
Speaking of which, do you
like toast for breakfast?
Well the first pop up
toaster was marketed
in Minneapolis,
Minnesota back in 1926.
The toastmaster sold for
$13 dollars and 50 cents.
♪♪
>> Education is a
wonderful thing,
so while we're sharing
stories about people
acquiring new skills in
the world of agriculture,
let's take a lesson from
our Sharon Profis
on a recipe that you
can try with one of
mother nature's most
popular pieces of produce.
♪♪
>> Avocados are definitely
not just for salads.
I like to include them
whenever I can,
but one of my favorite
ways to highlight them
is with avocado egg rolls.
It's a vegetarian take
on an Asian classic and
it's a huge crowd pleaser.
When you're
shopping for avocados,
what you want to look for
is that it gives a little
bit when you squeeze it,
but it's not
completely over-ripe,
it should be a
little bit firm.
The thing is though that when
you're shopping for them,
a lot of times you either
stumble upon avocados
that are way too hard
or over-ripe,
so when that happens
go ahead and purchase
the ones that are
way too tough.
Then when you take them home
put them in paper bag
with an apple or a banana
and within a day or two
they'll be ready to go.
For this recipe I have
four Hass avocados which
nine times out of ten
is what you'll find
in the grocery store.
They're really creamy and
they're super good for you.
Now when you're prepping
avocados, of course,
the goal here is
to get the skin off
and my favorite way
to do that is to just
first cut it in half,
and if the avocado's ready,
it should just come
apart like that.
Now for this recipe
we want to cube it.
So I'll just
run my knife...
along the flesh,
to create cubes,
then grab a spoon and
just scoop it out,
that's the easiest, fastest
way to peel and avocado.
Avocados are definitely
the star of this dish
but we're going to add
a few more ingredients
to balance it out.
First I have
sundried tomatoes.
You can find these
either jarred in oil,
like I have here, or
dehydrated, in which case
you just put them in water
and reconstitute them.
So, I'm just going
to julienne them
and cut them into
thin strips like that,
before putting them
in with avocados.
This is going to add a
little savory element;
it's going to balance
really nice.
And the oil is
really nice here too
because it'll add
even more creaminess
and play well with the fat
content of the avocado.
For a little kick of spice,
we'll add a jalapeno.
When you're prepping
a jalapeno,
if we don't want to
include the seeds
just stand it up on
your cutting board
and cut around the inside.
The seeds will be separated
and all you'll be left with
is exactly what you want.
We'll just cut the jalapeno
into a small dice.
♪♪
We'll also add in about
half of a red onion,
and you'll see a
lot of these flavors
are similar to what
you'd find in guacamole.
Jalapenos, onions,
cilantro that we'll add
are classic combination.
It's going to be great
in these egg rolls.
♪♪
And finally we'll
add some cilantro,
especially when
you're frying;
you want to add herbs
to counter-balance
the oil and the fattiness
that you get from the dish.
We'll add a few seasonings,
couple tea-spoons
of garlic powder,
salt, and of course,
fresh ground black pepper.
As you mix the ingredients,
the avocado will begin
to fall apart and create
a creaminess that'll
bind all of these beautiful
fresh ingredients together.
The filling is ready to go,
so let's go ahead and
fill up those egg rolls.
So, just grab an
egg roll wrapper,
with one corner facing you,
then take a heaping
spoonful of the filling.
Now grab the corner
closest to you and
fold it over the filling...
then bring in both sides
before rolling it up.
And finally,
I've mixed an egg with
a little bit of water,
and that'll be our glue
to keep this all together.
There you go,
we have an egg roll.
Frying the egg rolls
is really simple.
I've already put about
a quarter inch of canola oil
in a heavy bottomed pan,
which is what you want
when you're frying,
and we'll just gently
start frying our egg rolls.
I'm not deep frying them
to at least make this
a little bit healthier,
we're just waiting
for the egg rolls
to turn a golden brown.
♪♪
When you're removing
these from the pan,
put them on a
paper grocery bag.
For some reason they
end up being more crispy
than if you were to
drain them on a paper towel.
Let's go ahead
and plate them.
I like to serve the
avocado egg rolls
with some kind of dip;
in this case I
mixed sour cream,
green onion,
cilantro, and lime
to add a little fresh kick
along with those egg rolls.
To serve them,
I cut them in half
diagonally with
a sharp knife,
and what that does is
it lets you show off
that beautiful
green interior,
and just line them up
right around the dip.
This dish is such a
great way to show off
the creaminess and richness
the avocado has to offer.
It's perfect for a party
or whenever you're in
the mood for avocados.
Now what's left
to do is eat.
♪♪
>> If you've never worked
on a farm or ranch,
it may be difficult to
understand the hard work
and skill set you need to
succeed in agriculture.
But many people
do have a dream of
getting back to the land.
For some it's a
career change.
For others it's just a chance
to have a farm experience
and better understand
agriculture.
Our Rob Stewart
says those are just
some of the lessons
to be learned at
a very special farm
school in Massachusetts.
>> Ahh, good chicken!
>> The Chicken Coop...
>>See that's so she can
kind of pull her
neck in like that.
>> Is the classroom,
at the farm school
in Athol, Massachusetts.
[bell ringing]
Here cow bells
replace school bells
for the fifteen hundred
inner city kids
that come here every year,
to learn and live
real life on the farm.
What kind of reaction
do you see when the kids,
you know, they come up and
they pick up a chicken
for the first time,
they're from Boston,
never touched a chicken.
>> I know it's fantastic,
I mean it totally
freaks their package.
It's a brand new world
they are opened up to.
>> Lily Slocom is one of
28 students from Boston
taking part in the
three day program.
>> What do you guys like
to do best with the cows?
>> It's hands-on for this
three day field trip.
Youngsters sweep the barns,
care for pregnant cows
and learn how food makes
its way from farm to fork.
Did you have any idea
that so much went in to
bringing you the
food on your table?
>> Well I knew that
people worked for it,
but... it's a lot of work
to do one little thing,
so like, one ear of corn
takes so much work,
and it's a lot more
than I thought.
♪♪
♪♪
>> Here, we're not
trying to train farmers,
we're trying just
to let children
experience the beauty
of the farm fully,
and feel part
of a farm fully.
Down the road we really
are trying to give people
the tools to farms,
spend their lives farming.
>> That "down the road"
Ben is talking about
is Maggie's Farm.
Ten adults taking part
in a year-long program
that prepares them
to farm on their own.
>> Make a big arc,
y'know, with your arm
and just throw the seeds.
>> For 20 years the
farm school has
been teaching
sustainable agriculture.
True to the concept
of ag education,
this 300 year old
house is their dorm,
and this century old barn -
is home to living lessons.
>> We think of it as kind of
replacing the family farms
that are disappearing
all over this country.
We're trying to replicate
that model where a family -
parents,
who are passing down
this tradition of
farming to their kids,
so that's how we're
doing it here.
♪♪
>> It's a lot of
weeds in here too.
>> Juli-Ann Waddell gave up
her life behind the desk -
designing high end
children's clothes,
and uprooted her
two teenaged kids,
for a new slice of life.
>>So we moved
1,300 miles away
to come have our adventure.
>> To learn how to farm.
>> Yeah, yeah.
I think it's very
important for everyone -
but especially for this next
generation that's coming up,
for them to understand
where their food comes from
and be connected to
their food source.
And I think that is
unfortunately something that
we've lost in just a very
short amount of time.
♪♪
>> Clear out all the old
dead canes that have
already fruited for us.
Does that make sense?
>>Today, these adult students
are pruning raspberry bushes,
in a field covered with snow.
But for Juli-Ann, a life
lesson is already growing
about planting seeds for a
new passion and a purpose.
>> We'll see
where it all leads,
but I feel even though
that this is a kind of a-
y'know, it's a program
where we're learning,
I feel like we're doing
something very important.
I go to bed every
night feeling like
I've done something
that is special.
>> What is it you want
people to leave here with?
>> I want them to
leave here knowing that
they can be effective
in the world.
As farmers, as the
producers of food,
but also as people who
can make a difference.
♪♪
>> Before we go,
just a reminder to
spend some time at our
heartland website.
That's AmericasHeartland.org
Video from all our shows,
lots of great
recipes from Sharon.
And remember to check us out
at some of your favorite
social media sites as well.
Thanks for traveling
the country with us.
We'll see you next time
on America's Heartland.
>> You can purchase a DVD or
Blu Ray copy of this program.
Here's the cost:
To order, just visit us
online or call 888-814-3923
♪♪
♪♪ You can see it in the eyes
of every woman and man ♪♪
♪♪ In America's Heartland,
livin' close to the land ♪♪
♪♪ There's a love
for the country ♪♪
♪♪ And a pride
in the brand ♪♪
♪♪ In America's Heartland ♪♪
♪♪ Livin' close...
close to the land ♪♪
>>America's Heartland is
made possible by...
>> CropLife America-
Representing the companies
whose modern
farming innovations
help America's farmers
provide nutritious food
for communities
around the globe.
>> The Fund for
Agriculture Education
A fund created by
KVIE to support
America's Heartland
programming.
Contributors include
the following:
