MANY believe "you are what you eat" and research presented at the Women in Agriculture Soil and Food Health conference in the Great Southern on January 28 drove home that message.
More than 100 guests from Mukinbudin to Albany attended the Albany Entertainment Centre event, presented by horticulturalist, author and ABC radio presenter Sabrina Hahn.
Guest speakers discussed a range of issues surrounding the importance of soil health and its impact on food nutrition.
Sponsors Australian Mineral Fertilisers kicked off the event with farmer Stephen Frost who emphasised the need for an alternative to high chemical, highly-soluble fertilisers that dominate broad-acre farming.
Mr Frost moved away from using highly-soluble fertilisers on his 275 hectare property at Narrikup 20 years ago, working towards increasing organic carbon in his soils.
He said the change had increased his farm's productivity and efficiency.
"You can have highly productive farming in yield, in return and in biological health with a carefully managed use of chemicals," Mr Frost said.
"We're trying to get a middle-of-the-road approach here and trying to get the best out of everything."
Ms Hahn said a greater focus on soil health was essential for the production of high-quality food.
"We don't think about the soil, we think about the plant which is not the right way to do things," she said.
"We need to understand that if the mineral content is not in the soils, then it's not going to be in the food that we eat."
General practitioner and author Dr Carole Hungerford highlighted the consequences of ignoring environmental health.
She said research had proven exposure to chemicals such as pesticides increased the risk of developing several serious illnesses, such as Parkinson's disease.
Agroecologist and consultant Nicole Masters flew from New Zealand and reiterated the close link between human health and soil health.
"We're seeing this relationship between microbiology and human health is massive," Ms Masters said.
"It's now hard to find a disease that's not related to your gut microbes, so the same research is happening in soils."
She said the agriculture industry needed to increase its efforts to understand microbiology.
"We've got fungal disease in the plants, we've got pest problems, we've got frost.
"There's actually microbiology that will protect plants from frost.
"So we need to start looking at what is that role in microbiology."
Ms Masters said a shift towards "postmodern agriculture" was essential to ensure the long-term viability of the industry.
She said women were instrumental in initiating change in rural Australia.
"I think what we're missing is that feminine energy, and that understanding that things actually are interconnected."
Belay consulting director and Rural Regional Remote Women's Network (RRR) chairwoman Maree Gooch underlined the potential for women to be the driving force in advancing agriculture.
"Rural women can be the change agents.
"Rural women are also the glue," Ms Gooch said.
Ms Hahn summarised her presentation with the same sentiment.
"There is this growing concern, and the great thing is it's women that are looking at the overall health of the entire family," Ms Hahn said.
"Women are becoming these change agents and starting to become very proactive in the actual running of the farm which I think is fantastic.
"We have to bring everyone together to the table, that's the only way it's going to change."
