Duh! It's The Production Method...

In the June issue of ACRES USA the editor discusses Epicurious.com, a food website, recent announcement they would no longer feature beef recipes. The Epicurious editors explained their new policy this way: "This decision was not made because we hate hamburger. Instead, our shift is soley about sustainability, about not giving airtime to one of the world's worst climate offenders. We think of this decision as not anti-beef but rather pro-planet."

Sorry, But that's hogwash! Animals - cattle, chickens, pigs, etc. - aren't inherently the problem. The problem is the cruelty with which many are treating them.

Wendell Berry framed the issue perfectly; "Once plants and animals were raised together on the same farm - which therefore neither produced unmanageable surpluses of manure, to be wasted and to pollute the water supply, nor depended on such quantities of commercial fertilizer. The genius of American farm experts is very well demonstrated here: they can take a solution and divide it neatly into two problems."

Frankly, i suggest Epicurious decision is about their agenda - like Gates and others, to shift public opinion as well as government regulation to support what benefits them financially.

Last year Diane Rogers released her documentary titled "Sacred Cow" that many of you watched. The documentary is full of research how regenerative farms are rebuilding soils and sequestering carbon (the major source of food for soil biology). And, livestock are a major part of the solution - not the problem. She came up with a rhyme - It's NOT the cow, It's the HOW".

So, what does Diane mean - It's the how? Basically, its the production practices used to raise the animals. It's the difference between an Industrial Model and Regenerative Model.

Here's an example of one of more than 900 American beef feedlots - pork, chicken, and eggs are very similar as well.

At any one time there are more than 14 million beef confined in feedlots. Some of the issues include:

•High concentration of animals cause many environmental, stress, and health issues
•40% of our nations corn supply is used to feed cattle in confined spaces
•Corn requires a high volume of nitrogen fertilizer – thought to be responsible for “dead” areas in the Gulf of Mexico
•Mortality rate is 14.2 deaths per 1,000 or 309,560 animals. Respiratory about 50%
•Industrial Ag’s solution is vaccination
•Drivers are: 1) huge corn subsidies 2) consumer demand for cheap food

Here is a picture of how Nature's Gourmet Farm raises beef regeneratively and in harmony with nature:

·100% Grass-Based – using high-quality pasture or stored forage (hay) and all-natural mineral supplements. Beef are herbivores and should not be fed grain
·Stewardship of the Soil – the soil is the stomach of the forage – thus healthy soil creates healthy food. Management practices enhance soil biota (plant and animal life of a particular region). We strive to balance soil nutrients
·Rotational Grazing – pastures are managed to enhance the health of the land, growth of diverse species of forages, and the nutritional value of the beef
· Harmony with Nature – beef are raised in a low-stress, natural environment and treated humanely from birth to market. Fencing and holding areas are designed for low stress movement.

If you are not sure about all of this may I suggest what Dr. Thomas Sowell (a man I greatly admire) asks folks to do and that is do your own research and let the facts make your decision - and not emotion, etc.

We hope you find this helpful and if you have questions or want to see our farm for yourself please feel free to visit.

As always, we thank you for rewarding our hard work with your trust and support.