Paper, a farm product

Yes, paper is a farm product. In northeastern Oregon Potlatch Lumber Co has a 17,000 acre tree farm where they grow poplar trees for making paper. Ok, they don't make the paper but they grow the trees for that purpose. I have been driving past 5 miles of the edge of this property for many years watching the trees grow, and now they are being harvested. This tree farm is in the desert but close to the Columbia River where they get the water to grow the crop using drip irrigation which is very efficient. At the edge of their property they have erected a sign that says that the crop was planted in 1997, harvested in 2005 and replanted in 2005. This large tree growing project provides a nice boost for the economy in the area and eventually thousands of tons of paper. When they ask me at the store if I want my purchases in paper or plastic, I say paper. The world already has too many plastic bags that do not biodegrade.