Stewards of the soil

I was very happy to see the title The Sacredness of Soil (April); and found the lead article to be a wonderful reminder to all of us about how much we can gain spiritually when we feel the connection with the earth through our food.
But I would just like to add a word in defense of the contribution of our agricultural producers, who are often portrayed as enemies of the environment, especially when information about our food supply includes generalizations about how our soil, as well as water, air and biodiversity are all being jeopardized by farming.
Of course there are abuses in agriculture as in any other area, but there are many agricultural producers who act as stewards of the resources of soil, water, air and life. I think we could all learn a lot about the sacredness of soil from those families who try to make a living from the land. Community-supported agriculture is a wonderful first step, but only a limited number of producers have the resources necessary to get this kind of support.