Zachariah Ben

Zachariah Ben is a 6th generation farmer and sandpainter from Shiprock, NM. He is of the “Giant People” born for the “Red Running Into Water” clan. His maternal grandfather’s clan is the “Red House People” and his paternal grandfather is of the “Salt People.” Zach has over 10 years of experience in traditional Navajo farming and is the Co-founder and Owner of Bidii Baby Foods, a domestically incorporated limited liability company and agricultural cooperative on the Navajo Nation. Bidii Baby Foods manufactures a product line of organic Indigenous baby foods. Zach manages a 30-acre organic farm in Gadii’ahi, NM. Zach also serves as a Consultant with WESST where he supports other Indigenous entrepreneurs as they establish their businesses.

Plenary

REZilient land stewardship: Walking in two worlds

In this presentation, we will discuss traditional Indigenous farming practices, that are often currently referred to as “Regenerative”. We will also discuss the unique challenges to farming on tribal trust land (including access to capital, infrastructure, land/water rights), and solutions to overcome them, using Bidii Baby Foods LLC as an example. Lastly, we will briefly discuss the issue of walking in two worlds: maintaining traditional food production practices, while complying with modern day food safety requirements.