Rinnet isn’t the only one who’s flocking to the fields again. Neighbors, families, retired growers and textile makers regularly pass each other in the narrow lanes to Maron Farm.
community
The interest and support from others was a highlight for Helen, as he previously discovered agriculture was a lonely business. Like the company, these connections bring increasing strength to the story of resistance in this unfolding.
“We are not interested in replicating a huge factory as a bottleneck, whether or not one person makes all the money.
From providing hand and time during harvest seasons to donating long-term processing machines, the farm has begun to germinate the seeds of generosity. “People come to the farm and volunteer and create this kind of incredible tide wave.”
Given the scale of their ambitions, this hope is warmly welcome. “I thought a lot about how we could bring the industry back in a more resilient and more sustainable way,” Helen says.
She is keen to encourage diverse, small supply chains that have been replicated many times at the community level. Grow the industry sideways and strengthen its strength rather than upwards.
Enthusiast
Diversity is also important in sectors. On the island 92% of farmland It is used in the production of meat and dairy products and is not a feat to transfer the status quo into agroecological agriculture.
To quote from Nutrition NI Kelly Melville, Irish fields can be considered a kind of monoculture. But it is not uniformity that leads to resilience, but diversity. New policies, unpredictable weather patterns, and price increases. Old Irish farmers were kept nearby when they were called flax “rent crops.”
It is difficult to reconsider each stage of production. Flax requires 13 treatment stages, and needs to be more easily recovered than the other stages.
Charlie spent hours and hours restoring a 1940s surge in restoring a 1940s turbine. Spinning is the next big hurdle. Art, which appears to have disappeared forever, saves several modest individuals.
Helen and Charlie have a mile-long list of enthusiastic customers knocking on farm doors for the spindly woven Irish linen fabric.
Decided
“We have noticed that people’s interest not only celebrated the heritage, but also gained more attention from locally produced, sustainably produced fabrics, and what can form part of the truly beneficial food and agricultural system.”
Many farm visitors came again to rescue until the spinning obstacles were overcome. From using raw refined fibers as a fur alternative to fashion clothing, to exploring its potential as a composite alternative to traditional carbon fiber, and to exploring its role in sealing plumbing joints, the stone is not inverted when it comes to restoring the flax Irish faith.
“What I really look forward to is that when I meet big companies they all trust me.
Helen’s belief is contagious, as Irish writer Abby Oliveira can prove. Her poem Opposition of the Apocalypse She reflects on the story of Maron Farm.[This project] It happened to me on a personal level, and I was disappointed and resigned to an environmental crisis. I was amazed at their resilience, their determination to change lifelong habits, and most importantly, helping to raise the rising tide that lifts all the boats. ”
This resolve is diminishing into the epicenter of innovation for the future of food and agriculture on the island of Ireland.
This author
Amber Hayward is an environmental writer working on communication. Gaia Foundation. Her recent works include contributions to the book We feed the UKPublished by Papadakis.
We feed the UK It is an unprecedented alliance between art and agroecology. Gaia Foundationcombines photographers and poets with the inspiring custodians of seeds, soil and the sea. What emerged from these radical encounters is unexpected. A story of ten periods rich in fundamental rebellion against the domination of industrial agriculture. These stories could sow systems that positively affect the mysterious climate-to-community issues through foods that nourish human species than humans and humans.
In Tyron in rural Northern Ireland, Helen Keys and Charlie Maron own a diverse tapestry of food and fiber, bringing resilience, heritage and community back to the Irish agricultural system. The eighth story in the series was filmed over 12 months in the lens of documentary photographer Yvette Monaghan and her poems in the beautiful words of Irish author Abby Oliveira. Opposition to the Apocalypse. Yvette exhibition Beautiful blue linen It will be on display in Belfast, which is exposed until March 22, 2025. Complete collection of photos and poetry It was exhibited at the Royal Photography Society between April 3rd and June 22nd, 2025.
