There are so many choices out there when it comes to what we put on our table to feed our families. With Thanksgiving coming up, I thought I would share what I think about food and its importance. First of all, I say thank you to all the farmers out there who help keep America's belly full!! There is not a more noble profession out there. Now I pose a question to you the consumer. Where does your food come from? Most Americans would probably answer the grocery store. That is the answer most 3rd graders give us at Farm-City Day when we ask them where their milk comes from. But there are several steps in the chain to get that food to the grocery store shelves. With all things, it begins with reproduction. We farmers choose the best genetics to grow the best quality product possible. The advances in genetics now allows us to look at the best gene combinations to breed for the best animals. We can look at things like marbling (fat streaks in the beef), milk production ( which cows will give the most milk), tenderness of the meat, etc. Once those choices are made and the calves are born, we work hard to give them the best chance at survival. We feed them, house them, watch them for diseases, vaccinate to prevent disease, and we love them. We love our animals and they become part of our family. If we didn't love them, we wouldn't be farmers. It takes a special kind of person to tend to animals.
There is a great debate even among farmers at what is the best way to grow food. Most farmers just go the conventional route. Calves are sold and go to a feed lot where they fatten until they are ready to go to slaughter. From there, the meat is packed and goes to the grocery store. Now, the meat in the grocery store is a safe product. It undergoes lots of rigorous testing to ensure there are no antibiotics. The same goes for milk you buy in the store. Samples are taken at each farm and if antibiotics are found in the milk, it goes down the drain. Some farmers prefer a special niche known as organic farming. They use no antibiotics, vaccines, or genetically modified organisms. My only issue with organic farming is that it would be impossible to feed all Americans with this method of farming.
As a farmer, my advice to everyone would be buy your food locally. There is a movement known as the Locavore movement. You buy food all locally grown or farm fresh. Know the farmer who grew it, see where that animal lives, see what kind of food the animal ate, know if your animal was ever sick, if it had been given any antibiotics, know who handles the food you are eating,. That is a problem I see with conventional methods. By the time you buy something in the grocery store, it has passed through several different hands. If you buy directly from a farmer, you know exactly where that food has been. My family has raised our own beef for years. Jersey beef is some of the most tender meat you will ever put in your mouth. I know exactly how that beef was raised and handled. I encourage each of you to research farmer's markets and local farmers who sell farm fresh foods. I am working to make our family's farm less dependent on the grocery store. The milk you buy in the stores is marked way up. The only person making money on that milk is the processing plant not the hard working farmer.
I really just want to share my story and the wholesome products my family produces. I want to tell people how we raise our animals. The pride my family takes in our way of life and doing what we love. So the next time you see me, ask me any questions you might have about where your food comes from! I am a farmer which makes me an expert at answering those questions. The problem these days is there is so much misinformation out there and so many people removed from the farm. The wrong people are often telling our story(HSUS, PETA, etc). If we as farmers don't stand up and tell our story, I guarantee someone else will! And they will tell it all wrong.
Until next time, Sara
