How an Opera Singer Found Connection Through Farming

Hannah Greenshields was pursuing a career as an opera singer when the COVID-19 pandemic changed her plans. Now, as co-founder of The Food Farm on Australia’s New South Wales Central Coast with her partner, Tim, she raises regenerative beef, chickens, and eggs while building a farming business centered on soil health, biodiversity, transparency, and community. “You might be wondering how an opera singer becomes a farmer,” says Greenshields. “It all started in 2020 when I was on my first-ever regional tour…it got cut short because of COVID. And so, like a lot of people at the time, I had to pivot.” Without farming experience or land of their own, she and Tim leased a quarter-acre plot to begin growing potatoes. They soon realized they had no equipment to harvest, so they invited members of their community to dig up the crop themselves. What started as a small local gathering became something much deeper. “The people didn’t leave,” says Greenshields. “They stayed, playing in the mud. Adults were laughing with each other. Children were rolling around in it. And they were connected…to each other, themselves, and connected to something they didn’t even realize that they’d lost. There was a connection to being part of the living world.” The experience convinced Greenshields that farming could not only produce food but also help connect people with one another, nature, and the origins of their meals. She believes openness helps people build trust in agriculture. Today, The Food Farm processes everything it produces on-site and welcomes customers to visit the farm shop and see how food is raised. “People often ask us, ‘how can you eat an animal that you knew?'” she says. “And we ask with curiosity, ‘how can we continue to eat food and animals that we don’t know?'” For Greenshields, reconnecting people with food means acknowledging that humans are part of the ecosystems that sustain them: “It’s something that the modern food system hides from us. We are part of the cycle. We are part of the living human biodiverse cycle,” she says. The farm is also creating opportunities for people who, like Greenshields, never imagined a future in agriculture. Its team of 13 is made up largely of young women with no previous farming experience who “inspire us every day,” says Greenshields. “It’s a beautiful example of what happens when you invite young people back to the farm.” And Greenshields’ musical background continues to shape how she thinks about healthy ecosystems. She compares regenerative farming to resonance in music, where harmony depends on every part working together. “Resonance happens when breath moves through the body, and it becomes alive. When there’s tension, the song can get louder, the sound can get louder, but it becomes less alive. And that’s the same way that soil works,” says Greenshields, describing her farm as a beautiful ecosystem of microbes, fungi, worms, humans, and animals working in coherence. For Greenshields, nourishment is ultimately rooted in presence, which means being connected to the food, the land, and the people who make meals possible. “We all know the feeling when we bite into a tomato that truly lived,” she says. “You pick it off the vine. It’s warm. It’s juicy. You bite it, and it drips down your throat, and it tastes like literal sunshine. And that nourishment requires presence.” Watch Greenshields’ story below and find others from our farmer storytelling events on Food Tank’s YouTube channel. This article is part of Food Tank’s ongoing Farmer Friday series, produced in partnership with Niman Ranch, a champion for independent U.S. family farmers. The series highlights the stories of farmers working toward a more sustainable, equitable food system. Niman Ranch partners with over 500 small-scale U.S. family farmers and is committed to preserving rural agricultural communities and their way of life. Articles like the one you just read are made possible through the generosity of Food Tank members. Can we please count on you to be part of our growing movement? Become a member today by clicking here. Photo courtey of Hannah Greenshields