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Better living through chemistry…
More and more, I find myself wondering how long man can continue playing with Nature before we pay the ultimate price. Experiments with that ultra-flu virus make me think that way. So does reading that scientists in the Netherlands have developed a glob they think is artificial beef. The first hamburger will be ready to serve in the Fall. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9091628/Test-tube-hamburgers-to-be-served-this-year.html There’s a somewhat limited market for a $400,000 dollar hamburger but mass production will kick in and take care of that. But what would be the real price of such a burger? And I don’t mean all the un-calculated real costs in energy and transportation and minerals involved in production. I…
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A bull’s life…
…ain’t bad at Thistle Hill. First, there are fences so the women can’t run too far. We’re using two very young bulls this year and each has a very limited work load. (You call this work?) But with all the AI and embryo transplants, they should have no more than about 10 cows each to cover. This is U6. He has Rotokawa 688 back a few generations on both sides of his pedigree. The cows and heifers are all 974 descendants, so it should be quite a pairing. U6 is with the heifers and first-calf heifers; U2 is across the road handling the older cows. We think one of the…
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Devon cattle in England…
Continuing the dialogue from the previous post…. The four cattle-judging events in England each year are very formal events. The judges, as you can see, wear bowlers and black suits. All the animal handlers and owners dress in white smocks. Wouldn’t want a judge looking at my cow that way! This judge is Gavin Hunter, whose own herd, Tilbrook, is one of the very best in the United Kingdom. We have now partnered with Gavin to bring embryos from his champion cow Cashtiller here to the States. For years, Cashtiller won everything in sight (not with Gavin judging) and many consider her the best cow in a generation. Devon were first…
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First, let’s be clear…..
…Prince Charles is not one of my favorite characters on the international scene. But he is a farmer and raises Devon. He and I attended the Royal Cornwall show a few years back. (Full disclosure: he arrived by helicopter; I came in a bus. BUT THAT IS NOT ME IN THE COW HAT!) I digress. The point of this post is that we’ve just seen a copy of the speech the Prince made on “food” at Georgetown University last year. It is one of the best treatise I’ve read on the subject and, if you’re new to the subject and this blog, grab a cup of coffee and settle down for…
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You should know….
….that all the big producers are patting themselves on the back for their humane treatment of animals. McDonald’s has joined Chipotle in campaigns to get their suppliers of pork to stop keeping their pigs in gestation pens. They’re crates really, about two feet wide, so the sows can’t even turn around. From the Wall Street Journal: McDonald’s Corp. is pushing its pork suppliers to stop confining sows in small pens known as gestation stalls, moving to address concerns raised by animal-welfare advocates—and catch up with some competitors. The burger giant on Monday said the pens are “not a sustainable production system” and there are alternatives that “are better for the welfare…
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Two old cowboys “chew the fat”…..
While I can be hard on government ag agents, it was one of those critters (since reformed) who set us on the path to grass fed cattle and, indirectly, Devon. His name is Jim Gerrish, a consultant now, who lives and works out of Idaho. Jim visited Thistle Hill almost 10 years ago, when we were still a traditional operation using chemicals, feeding grain, and not really interested in eating our own meat. That really shocked Jim at the time and he immediately pointed out a cow that we should slaughter and taste. Jim also recommended moving our calving to the Fall, to spare the cows the stress of Virginia’s…
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Lindsay’s Shepherds pie….
….we had a delightful dinner recently at Lindsay and John’s home and as always Lindsay went the extra mile to make even an informal get-together special. The candlelight and the lovely hostess you’ll have to supply, but here’s Lindsay’s recipe for Shepherds pie that we’re going to try soon: (Note: Lindsay does not measure when she cooks…it would be in metrics anyway…but by taste) First, she says, begin with Thistle Hill ground beef (a good beginning) browned with salt, pepper, nutmeg and thyme. Saute onions, brown some fresh mushrooms, and steam carrots and peas. Next, make a brown gravy in which you add Norwegian brown goat cheese (try Wegman’s if you…
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What we do at Thistle Hill…..
….is help people create quality Devon herds. And this two-month old heifer, at Tomina Farms in Kentucky, is an example. She’s by a bull we sold Regina and Tom Tesnow just over a year ago and we get frequent updates. They’re not only happy with the results but with the bull’s temperament and role in their pasture; so happy that they’re thinking of collecting semen from him. Best, of course, is to create your own bull on your own pasture but that takes a little skill and a lot of patience and luck. The greatest impact ever on our herd took place about four years ago when we spotted and bought…
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New to the heifer pasture….
….and we guess it’s because all four of our new piglets are female. They continue to tour but in a somewhat smaller circle and are now right at home with our yearling heifers. They quickly learned to stay clear of the hind legs and are quite bold….as long as the cows are in front. They’ve also made friends with our guard donkey, Jack, and they even nuzzle each other from time to time. But no matter how far they roam, the piglets are able to hear the sound of our Gator when we crank it up back at the house. And they’re waiting for dinner in their pen when we drive…
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We get hits….
You may not have noticed, but we had a “commenter” recently from Australia; it refers back to a post months ago. But it prompted us to check the hit counter to see just where our readers live. Not surprisingly, just about 90% are from someplace in the U.S.; we aren’t able to tell where. After that, the leading countries were Canada, New Zealand, Japan and the United Kingdom. Farther down the list were a few surprises: India, Russia, China and Uruguay. Our intention remains to give our neighbors a “feeling” for what’s going on at this grass fed beef and pastured pork farm in their midst and encourage more healthy diets…