Restock Dates: Please see our Farm Blog where we post our weekly newsletter for the latest updates

Lorie's Mississippi Kitchen

written by

Ben Simmons

posted on

July 2, 2017

Product Update

1) Have you ordered your half beef yet? The first ones will go to the processor June 25th. Individual cuts of our Premium Grass Fed beef is priced competitively with grain fed cuts at Corner Market & Winn Dixie and 28% less than other  grass fed farms. Save up to 35% more at NGF when you choose to buy a whole or half beef. Confirm your order with a deposit is all that is needed to reserve your premium grass-fed beef.

2) Our next batch of pigs will go to market July 16th. Thus, we have opened up orders for half & whole orders (Custom Processed). NOTE: due to an issue with our pig breeder this will be the last batch of custom processed pigs for 2017. The next batch will be Feb-Mar 2018.

Farm Updates –

Bloomberg article: earlier this spring you may remember I mentioned that the #1 threat to my business was lack of slaughter facilities. Well, Joel Salatin recently posted an article from Bloomberg news "In 1967 there were 9,627 livestock (cattle, calf, hog and sheep) slaughtering establishments in the U.S. That same year, Congress passed the Wholesome Meat Act, requiring producers to use a USDA-inspected facility if they sell meat across state lines. A mass consolidation of the meat industry followed. Today, commodity meat is dominated by large companies. Just four companies sell about 85% of America's beef and the pork and chicken markets are similarly controlled by huge corporations. By 2016, there were only about 1,100 federally inspected meat and poultry slaughterhouses in the country." "The explanations for the struggles of the small slaughterhouses vary but inevitably come down to two interrelated factors—regulations that favor large meatpackers and uneven enforcement of those regulations." Read the article here https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-23/there-aren-t-enough-slaughterhouses-to-support-the-farm-to-table-economy

Do you follow Nature's Gourmet Farm Facebook page? I few days ago I posted a recipe using our Premium Grass Fed Rump Roast from Lorie's Mississippi Kitchen (photo above). Follow this link for recipe details and be sure to visit our online store to place your order. BTW, a Chuck, Shoulder, or Loin Tip roast would also be a good choice. http://loriesmississippikitchen.com/2017/06/roast-beef-in-fresh-tomato-gravy-gluten-and-grain-free.html

Eggs - thanks to the many customers who have mentioned how much they enjoy our eggs. Your encouraging words are especially appreciated when gathering eggs on a rainy day like today. Have you tried our eggs?

Quote Worth Re-Quoting – 

“I never could understand why farmers disc their land. That is what we do to build roadbeds to compact the dirt." A Highway Construction Engineer

More from the blog

Farm Improvements

Farm Improvements – Fresh water is a necessity for raising healthy animals on pasture. Until recently, we used an ICB tote on a small tralier that we would refill from our well. During the summer the frequency greatly increases in order to keep the chickens hydrated. So, I called my buddy at Southern Pipe and ordered pipe, fittings, etc. and then rented a trencher for May 16th to install 2,700 feet of 1.25 inch PVC pipe. Along the line we added 15 Plasson Quick Coupler Valves that we will hook to as we move the animals through our pastures.

My Advise How To Jump Start Small Farms In Mississippi

“Who controls the food supply controls the people; who controls the energy can control whole continents; who controls money can control the world.” — Henry Kissinger The fight to change food from addictive to nutritive will most likely be harder than the fight regarding tobacco (smoking) in public places that started back in the 1980’s. Note that my comments are NOT a condemnation of anybody who may use tobacco in any way as this can be a sensitive topic. However, it is personal to me as my Dad smoked at least 45 of his 75 years and died of lung cancer.

Small Farm Republic

Pasture Talk With Our Cows– Tuesday morning I was out checking on our cows and took the opportunity to record a short 2-minute story about the time I saved the life of one of the “pet” cows Number 608. Click to watch here. Small Farm Republic- is a book written by John Klar. A former attorney who contracted Lyme disease, John now farms in Vermont. I spent much of last weekend reading his book. He is very pro-small farms and presented a lot of evidence to support his position. On page 77 he makes a comparison to the number of farms and farmers during the Great Depression versus today. During the Great Depression the American population was 100 million. According to USDA charts