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What’s in a name….
….as consumers have become more health-conscious, the nation’s food producers have responded. But not the way you may think. Instead of making their products better, they’ve changed their labeling to make it seem better. And the USDA, FDA and the rest of the government from the White House down have been their willing accomplices. What we used to call “the natural food” sector, until Big Ag co-opted that term, too, is only an infinitesimal part of the total picture. But it’s existence at any level is apparently considered a threat that the Big Guys and the Government (including our Virginia state government, by the way) are determined to stamp out.…
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Sometimes I wonder….
….if it’s worth the fight. The government, which of course is vitally concerned about the food you eat, (sarcasm intended) has come up with still more regulations. What they say, of course, is they’re only thinking of you. But what they’re doing of course, is trying another end run that will favor Big Ag and penalize those small farmers who actually care about the quality of the food we eat. What Uncle Sam plans to do is “inspect” producers and processors in high risk areas. And the cost of us high risk farmers will be $13,000 a year. Big Ag, which makes billions and is the cause of all the…
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Getting to know you….
….our friend and partner in the English Devon project, John Forelle, stopped by and renewed acquaintances with TDA Churchill. He’s a year old now (the bull, not John) and even more than most of our herd likes to come up and check out visitors. John’s home is Folly Farm at Pine Plains, New York and he was racing to beat the snow storm that covered that area overnight.
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The pay-off….
….regular readers know that we’ve made repeated trips to southwest England in recent years and, with two American partners, have selected outstanding pure, traditional English bulls and cows…collected embryos from the matings….and imported them to the United States. And here’s the result: a three-month old bull calf out of Goldings Norah by Millennium Falcon. We just saw him recently at the farm in Georgia where he was calved and we couldn’t be more pleased. Doubly pleased. There on the same pasture was his brother, another Falcon sired bull calf out of a cow from another great, historic British herd, Essington Park. These two, with a third British bull that calved here…
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Hay wars….
…we wrote before about the devastating effect of the drought on our friends who are cattlemen in the mid-section of the country. Most ran out of grass this summer and were forced to severely cut back their herds and even liquidate. Now that it’s winter, and time to feed hay, the situation has become even more dire. Hay rustlers have become a serious problem. And so have the Chinese. The Stockman Grass Farmer reports that the Chinese are able to outbid American cattleman for American hay. It seems it costs just $30 a ton to transport hay by container ship to the Far East. Shipping that same ton of hay…
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The secret ingredient….
….in Thistle Hill cows and beef. But it’s no secret, we’ve been saying for some time we think (next to Wooz’ care, of course) it’s our mineral program. Visitors invariably remark that they have never seen a group of healthier, more vital animals than those at Thistle Hill. We do a lot of experimenting, try various grazing plans, top-seed clover, spray with different natural fertilizer combinations. But the one thing we’ve held constant is our mineral program. It’s a cafeteria-style approach, where the cows don’t have a mixture of all the essential minerals as designed by “experts” but select from trays of the individual minerals. They do actually self-diagnose. Soils vary…
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A Monsanto take down….
….it’s been awhile, but we haven’t forgotten Monsanto. Still riding high and still wreaking havoc on the earth and its creatures. Here’s a rundown on the latest from health blogger Dr. Joseph Mercola: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/01/12/ge-crops-affect-soil-fertility.aspx?e_cid=20130112_DNL_art_1
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Trust me…..
….just get a cup of coffee and shut out your world for a few minutes and relax with the “real world”. http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=BUOQ_yPW_0s Thanks to our good friend Bill Roberts of 12 Stones Grasslands Beef for sending this along.
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The Pitchfork Protest gathers steam…
Our friend, Rich Hamilton of Amelia, Virginia, reminds me that the so-called “Pitchfork Protest” in Fauquier county has gone statewide. A bill is being introduced in Richmond to prevent local governments from limiting the sale of on-farm products and hosting activities. Some “big guns” are joining for a news conference and this press release has all the background. http://fauquierfreecitizen.com/lingamfelter-introduces-the-boneta-bill-in-response-to-property-rights-infringements-by-government/
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Tough but tasty….
….one of the curious things we have noticed about meat, at least to our palate, is that there seems to be a correlation between tough and tasty. That was first brought to our attention by our butcher, Doug Aylesworth of Blue Ridge meats. It was he who first suggested we try marketing chuck steaks. Frankly, we got cold feet after the first cuts arrived back here. More recently, we’ve decided that Doug was right, but they do require careful preparation. Our daughter-in-law, Barbara, came up with a recipe from her mother recently…a recipe for beef stroganoff. It’s simple and, she assures us, delicious. Barbara is one of the best cooks…