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The “high” cost of pork….
….we’ve been warning that, because of increased feed and processing costs, our pork prices will be higher this time. But not this high: http://news.yahoo.com/flavor-experiment-wash-farmer-feeds-pot-pigs-083209301.html Thanks to Keith Smith for the link.
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For my fellow wine drinkers….
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Is it alright to be jealous….
….of your own grandson? Church has the summer experience of a lifetime….working with Jim Gerrish at his Idaho ranch. We’re going to miss his help here and we’re also a little worried that he’s going to want to change everything when he gets back. Wooz is more worried her grand-baby is going to get lost in those mountains back there. And his experience has been limited to our docile Devon herd of 50. Now he’ll be helping watch over thousands of cattle. Seriously, Jim is a rare combination of thinker and do-er. Church is now thinking he wants a career in forages. Whatever he decides, time with the Gerrish’s is…
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None dare call it Big Ag….
….or Big Government, for that matter. The giant hog farms are in the midst of a desperate struggle to save their piglet crop. Reuters is reporting a devastating virus has now hit about 200 farms in a dozen states and is spreading. No one is estimating how many piglets have died but the mortality rate is apparently about 50%. Bigger pigs are affected too….and while they really don’t have a handle on the situation….the folks in the government are quickly assuring us that pork is safe to eat. Whatever their other sins, the members of the Unholy Alliance has its press releases close at hand. Here’s the link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/24/us-usa-hogs-virus-spreads-idUSBRE95N1DR20130624 Industrial…
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Beef on the way….
….starts with pulling the steers out of the main herd. They all come into the pen, and it’s up to me(far right) to let a bunch out at a time checking tags and undersides. They’re held briefly in that alley until Wooz (far center in white shirt) okays the return to the pasture. When we get a steer, it’s aimed to another pen where Kurt Volkert (left) is controlling the gate. Afterwards the steers are moved across the road to a large pasture with other cows awaiting shipment to farms that have purchased our seed stock. Tomorrow the steers will be brought in for loading. We always try to keep the animals together and…
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Fighting the big boys….
…not only a lot of hard work but lots of creativity. We enjoy reading about farmers and cattlemen who are going the extra step to insure the survivability of their operations. In business school I think they call it “line extension”. With the kids gone, maybe Wooz will rent the spare bedrooms? (About as fast as I start mob cooking!) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20130622/DA72T1880.html Thanks to Sue Beal for the link.
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Peek-a-boo….
….well, we took a deep breath and released our month-old piglets into the woods. Not quite freedom though; a two strand polywire electric fence is holding them to about a half acre. They come back for food and water and to sleep in an old stall, but we’ve noticed a decline in feed consumption, probably because of all the acorns they’re finding in their new “digs”. They are clearly reveling in their new-found freedom and we’ll eventually expand their area for roaming. Someday (perhaps) we’ll let them go altogether. I’m already fairly confident they’ll come back in the evening for the safety of their beds. We do have bear, fox and…
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A shed raising….
….nothing so grand as a new barn. Just a shed to keep the elements off handlers and animals at the chute. We’ve put the joists in place and now we’re waiting for the roof trusses to arrive. “We” are Kurt Volkert, a good friend visiting from Germany, Farm Manager Duane Ard, and the architect.
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The trials and tributlations….
….of the Farm Bill. It’s up, it’s down…again. Blocked in the House. The Democrats are blaming the Republicans; the Republicans are blaming the Democrats. Wish they’d decide who’s at fault so I know who to thank. This monstrosity, like all those which went before, deserves a stake in the heart. There’s been a slight improvement in all the machinations along the way. At least some caps have been put on subsidies for big corporate farms but a lot of the pork is still there. The “deal breaker” though apparently has been the Food Stamps half of the bill. Conservatives wanted cuts; liberals wanted an increase. And conservatives wanted Food Stamp…
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The “proper Devon”…continued….
….is “Lord Wolseley”, the champion bull at the Royal Agricultural Society’s Jubilee Show in 1889. Bred by Viscount Falmouth, himself, and sold to a farm in Devon. Click to enlarge and thanks again to Juliet Cleave.