• The war against red meat…

    …seems to have gathered some steam in recent years. Undoubtedly there’s new…and serious…money (Bill Gates) behind the campaign. We haven’t given much thought to what has always seemed like a religious cult…but here’s an Australian who confirms what I only suspected. Vegetarianism goes way back in history but really only flourished near the end of the 19th century when it attracted the attention of the 7th Day Adventists…and yes (following the money) Big Businessmen in Battle Creek, Michigan. Their business was cereal…does the name Kellogg ring a bell?  In fact there were about 100 cereal manufacturers in the new industry…all centered in Battle Creek…and all now Adventists and vegetarians. That…

  • Meat sales soar…

    …according to a survey of supermarket and on-line buying.  Meat during this pandemic year has gained about 20% in sales volume…it’s now 35% of the food dollar and twice as much as chicken. https://www.supermarketnews.com/meat/meat-sales-reach-record-highs-2020-increasing-192 It’s interesting that on-line sales have really increased while at the same time people are more concerned about healthy food. Now note this summary is based on dollar sales…not pounds.  But now that younger people have broken the restaurant habit, will they continue cooking at home?  Will their interest in healthy foods continue? Most smaller farmers we know haven’t been able to gear-up production to get a piece of this action.  Nor do they have the…

  • The danger of Super-Sizing…

    It’s been some years now since Michael Pollin set the beef industry on its ear with his article in the New York Times expanded into the book The Omnivores Dilemna. Speaking  in England…Pollin pulls back the curtain on the real story behind McDonalds French fries…or as they’re called over there…chips! David

  • Couldn’t have said it better….

    …mostly I ignore the rants of vegans and the extreme animal rights people…because they’re beyond reason.  But I was tempted to sound off after Joaquin Phoenix used his Academy Award victory to launch a diatribe against those who eat meat. In fact commercial farming of vegetables is far more destructive of the earth and its environment than responsible grazing. But Joel Salatin, a neighboring cattleman who is a leader in the grass fed industry, did the job for me. https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/blog2/2/14/2020/joaquin-phoenix-hates-you-nbsp

  • The nonsense about meat…

    …which mostly we ignore because, like politics, it’s an argument you can’t win. Vegans who first based their belief on animal cruelty, eventually branched out to make health claims which weren’t substantiated by any evidence. Now, though, comes the results of another massive research project which cannot find any link between red meat and cancer, heart disease or diabetes. In fact, the researchers also gave a pass to processed meats. There’s also an interesting side note: the scientists say it was hard to come up with any conclusions because all the basic research that has fueled the opposition to red meat is flawed. David

  • Second pass…

    …after a 45-day rest period, we’re bringing the main herd to where we started six weeks ago. The clover stand predominates…probably 60-70%. Church took the phrase “overseeding” too literally last winter. We may adjust paddock size this time around. We could use more trampling effect. Again trampled grass is particularly beneficial in the hot weather as a kind of armor coating for bare soil. It also breaks down and is beneficial for carbon sequestration and organic matter. Wanna keep those microbes happy! And all that clover adds nitrogen to the soil…saving tons of fertilizer which keeps the treasury happy! That much clover dominated the regrowth of our grasses…but the cows…

  • Did you know that grass-fed beef is one of the top ten sources of tryptophan?

    I have to confess that I didn’t know that grass fed beef is on the top ten list for sources of tryptophan…I always think of turkey. Tryptophan is the amino acid that goes on to become serotonin, the “feel-good” hormone which is low in depression, and melatonin, which helps us sleep at night. Other sources besides grass fed beef and turkey: lamb, chicken, tuna, pumpkin seeds, eggs, crab, cheese, and spirulina. In addition to getting enough tryptophan in your diet, it is important to pursue lifestyle strategies to minimize inflammation, because when inflammatory pathways are turned on, the tryptophan gets hijacked down an inflammatory pathway to make kynurenine and quinolinic…

  • Eat. More. Fat.

    ….they’re having the same difficulty in England as here in the States….breaking down the “settled science” that fat makes you fat.  In fact, the right fat makes you thin…and healthy. http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/672772/eat-more-fat-Britain-obesity-health-epidemic-cholesterol-NHS

  • Forty years too late….

    ….just think of all the hamburger you didn’t eat (trying to be good).  A University of Minnesota study back in the 70s demonstrated that you can lower your cholesterol by cutting back on beef alright.  But the people with the higher cholesterol actually lived longer.  The old study was just discovered and published.   More settled science bites the dust! https://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2016/04/18/breaking-news-from-1973-burgers-are-good-for-you/?singlepage=true