Myra Goodman
Earthbound Farm
In 1984, two city kids from Manhattan found themselves on a two-and-a-half acre farm with a roadside stand in beautiful Carmel Valley, California. Those two city kids were Myra and Drew Goodman, and that farm became Earthbound Farm, where the self-taught farmers believed that growing crops organically, in harmony with nature, would produce the healthiest food possible.
Earthbound Farm was the first company to successfully package pre-washed salads for retail sale in 1986, and they have been credited with popularizing spring mix salads nationwide. The company has grown from humble beginnings to become the largest grower of organic produce in North America, with more than 200 farmers cultivating 40,000 organic acres. Earthbound Farm organic salads, fruits, and vegetables are now available in 75% of supermarkets across the country, and their farming practices avoid the use of more than 14 million pounds of agricultural chemicals every year. Striving to help change how America farms and how America eats, Earthbound Farm’s mission is to bring the benefits of organic food to as many people as possible and serve as a catalyst for positive change.
The Goodmans have been honored with several awards, including Global Green USA’s Corporate Environmental Leadership Award in 2003; in 2008, they received the Organic Trade Association’s Organic Leadership Award; and in 2023, they are being inducted in the Social Ventures Network Hall of Fame as Environmental Evangelists.
Myra is the author of two popular cookbooks; Food to Live By: The Earthbound Farm Organic Cookbook (2006, Workman Publishing), and The Earthbound Cook: 250 Recipes for Delicious Food and a Healthy Planet (2010, Workman Publishing). In collaboration with her daughter, she is currently working on a third cookbook that focuses exclusively on plant-based recipes, which is due out in early 2023. The Goodmans have two children, Marea (22) and Jeffrey (19), and still live on the original farm.
Myra Goodman is the co-founder, with her husband Drew, of Earthbound Farm. She currently serves as executive vice-president and chief creative officer. Originally from New York City, Earthbound Farm started in 1984 when Myra and Drew began farming organically on their 2 -acre backyard garden in Carmel Valley, California. Today, their organic produce is farmed by more than 150 farmers on 30,000 acres and is available in 76% of American supermarkets. Annually, Earthbound Farm's organic farming avoids the use of more than 10 million pounds of conventional agricultural chemicals.
“Starting our family brought the value of eating organic food into even sharper focus. Children are more vulnerable to developmental damage from pesticide residues on food; their bodies are still growing, their metabolisms are faster, and because of their smaller size, they eat more fruits and vegetables per pound of body weight than adults do.
When we first started farming, Drew and I knew instinctively that we didn’t want conventional agricultural chemicals in our backyard or on our food. We wanted to grow food we’d feel good about, and so we taught ourselves to farm organically.
It’s my personal passion to bring the benefits of organic food to as many people as possible and serve as a catalyst for positive change. We’re trying to change how America farms and how Americans eat, because we believe organic food is the healthiest choice for people and the planet."From HEALTHY CHILD HEALTHY WORLD. Reprinted by arrangement with Plume, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Copyright (c) 2009 by Healthy Child Healthy World.
To read more from Myra and many others, pick up your copy of our book, Healthy Child Healthy World: Creating a Cleaner, Greener, Safer Home, today.
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