In the film, Roman Balmakov, EpochTV host of “Facts Matter,” takes viewers on a journey across the nation and the world to show how farmers and ranchers are being forced out of business under the guise of climate change prevention. He shows how quickly a food crisis can occur in the name of protecting the environment.
“I have never seen a film on our issues that has been done as well, or that will be as broadly broadcasted across the world as what we saw tonight,” Margaret Byfield, executive director of American Stewards of Liberty, told The Epoch Times following the film’s premiere on Sept. 22.
The film was screened to about 200 people who attended the second-annual three-day summit. The event, which was hosted by Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller and American Stewards of Liberty, kicked off on the evening of Sept. 21 at the Marriott Hotel near DFW airport.
Stop 30X30 is a movement to stand against the Biden administration’s “radical” land grab that is part of a greater global agenda. The group is working to educate private farmers, landowners, and the public about the tactics being used to take control of private lands.
Mr. Balmakov, who also directed the film, told The Epoch Times that he was inspired to make the documentary after learning that governments worldwide are actively working against the farmers and ranchers who are supplying food to the world.
“You would assume the government would want to help the farmers,” Mr. Balmakov told The Epoch Times during a red carpet interview. “The biggest surprise to me was how far this has already gotten.”
In January 2021, President Joe Biden initiated the 30X30 plan by signing an executive order, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” to put 30 percent of U.S. lands and 30 percent of U.S. oceans under federal land and use management by 2030. The act is implemented through federal easement programs and acquisitions and the Endangered Species Act, which the Biden administration says is necessary to protect the environment.
“This is simply a bureaucracy empowerment act that has nothing to do with land conservation,” Heartland Institute President James Taylor said before the film premiere. The Heartland Institute, an Illinois-based nonprofit, promotes personal liberty and limited government.
Mr. Taylor said support for the 30X30 plan has grown beyond the Biden administration. The Democrats have been joined by “some Republicans who want to show they have a heart, who want to show that they’re concerned about the environment, [but] they really don’t get the issue.”
In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom initiated his own 30X30 plan, which he claims aligns with broader commitments for economic prosperity, clean energy resources, and food supply.
“It’s really not about food security. It’s really the opposite. It’s about eliminating the small land owner and giving all the control of these lands to the big conglomerates,” Ms. Byfield told The Epoch Times.
She said that environmentalists are pushing propaganda that connects with people on an emotional level and that they often don’t question the motivation behind these groups.
“The whole environmental movement is based on a guilt trip,” Ms. Byfield, who is also featured in the documentary, said. “Because who wants to ruin the Earth? It’s a move to get rid of the middle class, and I think that became really clear in the film.”
Mr. Miller, who has served the state of Texas since 2015, told The Epoch Times that Texas farmers and ranchers are already taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint without demands from the government.
“This is a solution looking for a problem,” he said. “We’re already solving this in the agriculture world. We’re reducing our carbon footprint. We’re reducing fossil fuels. We’re reducing nitrogen. We’re reducing synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, and all that stuff. We’re doing it, and no one had to tell us to do it.”
In the film, Mr. Balmakov visits several farmers in the Netherlands, where the Dutch government has declared a “nitrogen crisis.” The small country has been the biggest exporter of meat in Europe, but that is changing.
Farmers are losing the land their families have worked for decades—sometimes centuries—because the government has vowed to reduce nitrogen emissions by 50 percent by 2030.
Fourth-generation Dutch farmer Martijn Vorkink, who is featured in the film and traveled from the Netherlands to attend the premiere, told The Epoch Times that the farmers end up selling their land to the government because it is worthless when they can no longer use it.
What Can Be Done?
During a post-film panel discussion, Ms. Byfield said the government continues positioning regulations to push farmers off their land and out of business but that there are steps that can be taken to fight back. Also on the panel were Mr. Miller, President of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association Loren Patterson, and West Virginia Agriculture Commissioner Kent Leonhardt. Mr. Balmakov moderated the discussion.“It’s time for small farmers to say ‘no’ to the free money,” Ms. Byfield said.
And everyone can become educated on the issue and vote for legislators who will stand up for U.S. farmers.
“Protect the past and protect the future,” Mr. Patterson said. “Once you’re empowered with education, you can do something about it.”
“We have to get the word out. This is a real thing, folks,” Mr. Miller said. “Wake up, America, or it’s going to be ‘WTF?’—‘Where’s the food?’”
The public premiere of “No Farmers No Food: Will You Eat the Bugs?” will be broadcast on EpochTV at 8:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Sept. 25.
