First held in 1985, the annual Farm Aid concert has so far raised over $40 million to promote the importance and success of family farms while inspiring the rest of us to learn about where our food comes from. Through its “Growing the Good Food Movement”, the Farm Aid organization aims to increase access to family-farmed food by getting it into urban neighborhoods and grocery stores, where corporate-owned food is the norm.

“We’ve built a strong family farm movement to grow our economy, ensure our health and protect our environment. Farm Aid brings these Main Street values to transform the Wall Street-controlled farm and food system,” said Farm Aid President Willie Nelson. “The Farm Aid concert is our chance to shine a spotlight on the independent family farmers who are essential to the well-being of our country.”

Instead of the typical fast food-like concessions of soda, hot dogs, and chips, this concert features its own version of a concession stand. Farm Aid’s HOMEGROWN Concessions will have farmers on hand to sell family-farmed, local and organic foods directly to concertgoers, providing them with the opportunity to chat with the very people who feed us all every day.

“The Farm Aid concert brings farmers and eaters together to grow the kind of agriculture that builds stronger communities and a healthier food system,” said Carolyn Mugar, executive director of Farm Aid.

Part of being a good steward of the environment is choosing foods grown organically and on family farms, goals which Farm Aid has worked hard to promote for the past 26 years by running the longest benefit concert series in the U.S. Let’s do our part and support their mission this year by supporting our local farms and farmers whenever possible.

Image Credit: Paul Natkin/Photo Reserve, Inc/Farm Aid

The post Farm Aid 2012 Aims To Transform Wall Street-Controlled Food System appeared first on REVMODO.

An ad by Denver-based chain restaurant Chipotle Mexican Grill has been named the best TV campaign in the world at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ad, titled Back to the Start, takes a haunting yet moving look at factory farming, reminding us just how far removed our food supply is from the farms of yore. The animation is set over an amazing Willie Nelson cover of Coldplay’s ‘The Scientist,’ which is a perfect match for the ad’s message. It depicts a farmer turning his family farm into a factory farm, realizing what he has done, and then transforming it back into an animal and environment-friendly one.

“It was timeless with heart impact and gut impact,” said Khai Meng Tham, the chairman of the jury. “The best winners at Cannes always have a message, I think, and factory farming is such a big issue everywhere in the world. For a fast food company to do this will, we hope, change the industry, change the world.” Bill Clinton, who was attending the event to give a seminar, named the campaign as his favorite as well.

Chipotle is well-known not only for its giant burritos but also for using as many natural and locally-sourced ingredients as possible. The company’s mission statement, Food With Integrity, covers all aspects of its business, from animal welfare to environmental issues. According to the document, it has a supply chain of over 7,000 farmers which helps it serve more naturally-raised meat without the use of antibiotics or added hormones than any other restaurant company in the U.S. Having eaten there myself, I can say that the food does taste a lot better than standard fast-food fare.

Whether or not you choose to eat animal products, I think we can agree that eliminating the factory farm model from the way we process food can only benefit us all. Check out the Chipotle ad below.

Image Credit:Chipotle

The post Chipotle Sustainable Farming Ad Featuring Willie Nelson, Coldplay appeared first on REVMODO.