-
A Cornwall kind of a mood….
…don’t know whether it’s Juliet Cleave’s video below or that I’ve been working on the Traditional Devon photo albums over at www.traditionaldevon.com … but I was feeling a little “homesick” this morning. But nope, this isn’t Cornwall. Fortunately, our farm manager Duane Ard sent a long a picture he took on his way home past our pastures on a recent evening. This will do, until the next trip!
-
Why can’t the English….
…learn to speak English? To quote Henry Higgins. If you’ve watched the video from Juliet Cleave of Kew Herd just below you may have been puzzled, as we were, by her statement that Devon eliminated poaching. We never consider our Devon fierce enough to discourage thieves so we wondered what Juliet was feeding hers’. Poaching has nothing to do with rustlers, she explained. Or with hunters shooting at her herd. Poaching is a term used in Cornwall to describe the damage cows do to muddy ground. And if you haven’t watched Juliet’s video, we urge you to watch now. It’s a real treat.
-
It’s show time!
One of our English friends, a partner in the Traditional Devon project, has just produced a YouTube video that we think is wonderful. Juliet Cleave, of Kew Herd in Cornwall, comes from a long line of Devon breeders, and in her video she combines great archival pictures with her current herd. Make sure your sound is up: http://youtu.be/S_kKoeRcmwM
-
The apocalyptic threat….
It’s already happening, of course; that is, antibiotic-resistant diseases. And it is a major reason why Thistle Hill never feeds its animals, cows or pigs, antibiotics. But it’s routinely added to the feed most people use with their herds….that and the fact that most of the grains used in animal feed are genetically-modified. In England, their chief public health officer is warning that there’s a perfect storm brewing: not only are the bugs getting tougher, research on newer, stronger antibiotics has just about stopped. http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/jan/23/antibiotic-resistant-diseases-apocalyptic-threat A side note, growing out of the recent series here on labeling: many meat suppliers claim that they do not use antibiotics or drugs on…
-
But is it the final “final rule”?
For years, the government has been trying to lay down animal identification and transport rules that would have imposed a particular burden on the small farmer and favoring Big Ag. But now it does appear that most of the burdensome regulations have been stripped out of the final rule thanks to the work of the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Farm. What’s left is a requirement that animals shipped across state lines must be accompanied by identification and health papers…something we already do….but no longer is the government demanding premises registration and a report every time we move a cow from one pasture to another. They really wanted to do that! Being…
-
It’s all right here….
….your assigned reading for tonight is the following article by Dr. Joseph Mercola. He reports on the finding that Americans have the poorest health of any of the other industrialized nations. Now, of course, our government finds that that is good reason to have more government. But Dr. Mercola thinks otherwise….he says that basically, the problem is the government. I urge you to read this: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/01/23/united-states-health-ranking.aspx
-
Trying not to be boring….
….and what’s a bigger turn-off that people talking about their diets? So I’ve been trying to be quiet about my current campaign to lose about 40 pounds (3/4s of the way there). But I did want to note this column by Peter Ballerstedt in Kit Pharo’s weekly newsletter. Ballerstedt makes the point that, even if you don’t lose weight, a low carb, high fat diet is good for you. For the science, be sure to click on his link. Do you (or someone you love) have three of following conditions? Abdominal obesity: a waist circumference over 40 inches in men and over 35 inches in women. Serum triglycerides 150 mg/dl…
-
Gerrish visits Thistle Hill….
….Jim Gerrish, that is, the nation’s leading pasture expert. We’re fortunate to count Jim among our friends. He’s the one who convinced us eight years ago to “go red” before red was cool. More than that, Jim’s counsel on a wide range of grazing issues has been invaluable in both raising our Devon and finishing animals for meat. Above, he’s just great company and the world really won’t miss the few bottles of red we destroyed during his visit. After staying the night (and checking out some of our herd and pastures as the sun went down), Jim went on to star in a series of programs put on by…
-
What’s in a name – 3
….our friend Jim Yancey of Cooney Creek Farm chimes in with some related information about misleading labels. These things apparently have been around for awhile but I have never focused on them. We “googled” and can vouch for the authenticity of at least these items, starting with the Jolly Green Giant….I mean, what could be more American than the Jolly Green Giant? “Green Giant frozen vegetables are from China. Never buy the grocery store garlic unless it is clearly marked from USA or Canada; the other stuff is grown in people poop (even worse than chicken poop). China is the largest producer of garlic in the world. Buy only local honey, most honey is shipped in…
-
What’s in a name – 2
…continuing our rant about labeling (See What’s in a Name below)… Our daughter, Carolyn, is a cancer surgeon in Texas though her career has moved more and more to nutrition and integrative medicine. She is now the director of the Baylor Medical Center integrative medicine department and it was in that role she was interviewed on a Dallas radio program the other day. Naturally, she was singing the benefits of grass fed beef and was surprised when one of the callers to the program said he was a grass fed beef farmer and at that very moment was delivering meat to one of his customers. Almost seemed like a plant,…