Back in 2007, we wrote about a paper claiming the use of growth promotants in beef production was more beneficial to the environment than grass-feeding.  Virtually the same story is in the most current issue of Beef Magazine.  I find it interesting that Beef doesn’t provide a link to the report, and the link I included to the report in my blog post no longer works.  Nor can I find the report anywhere on the CFGI website.  At least the original Iowa State Report is still available.  Note that this report has nothing to do with the environmental effects of either type of production.

I do not argue that increasing the efficiency of production can be beneficial for the environment and for the economy.  I take issue, however, with propaganda disguised as journalism.  I believe this article (like many on the other side of the debate) to be misleading and less about information than influence.

I have the same problem believing extreme positions on any subject;  be it claims that we will be poisoned if our food is produced using any technology invented in the 20th Century, or disregard of any and all concerns that some technologies have negative effects. 

I just joined a “social network” of Moms who blog.  Although I didn’t initially think of Down To Earth as a “mommy blog”, as I look at the list of other self-proclaimed Mommy blogs, I think we fit in.  The list of group members is below; check some of them out, and maybe you’ll find a new friend or some useful information!  Not surprisingly, “Moms” are out there, doing everything under the sun, and some of them have a lot to say about it.

http://blog.weddingpaperdivas.com/

http://blog.tinyprints.com/

http://www.momstart.com

http://iamharriet.blogspot.com

http://akblessingsabound.blogspot.com/

http://www.coolmomguide.com/

http://www.shortpumppreppy.com

http://johnsonsnutfarm.blogspot.com/

http://mamamentor.com/

http://moomettesgramsmusings.com/

http://ifmomsaysok.wordpress.com/

http://www.dominiquegoh.com/

http://www.stickyfeet2.com/

http://wondermommy.wordpress.com/

http://www.mamasmoneysavers.com/

Feelslikehomeblog.com

jeanstockdale.typepad.com

moomettesmagnificentsreviews.com

a-nut-in-a-nutshell.blogspot.com

http://lizzie-q-homemaker.blogspot.com

http://mainfo.blogspot.com/

Save your money.blogspot.com

http://cheaperthantherapyjen.blogspot.com

http://themomreviews.blogspot.com

http://reviews.coolmomguide.com/

http://fitness.coolmomguide.com/

http://www.blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com/

http://www.bizziemommy,.com/

http://reviews.bizziemommy.com

http://blog.lalababyboutique.com

http://www.thinkorganicbaby.com

http://www.fracturedtoy.blogspot.com/

http://sitedandblogged.com/

http://lovehomemaking.com/

http://www.justtherightspice.com/

“http://www.thehomemakerhelpers.com/”

“http://melodythacker.com/”

http://associatemelody.com/watkins-news-and-product-reviews

http://heritageremedies.com/serendipity/

scarymommycreations.blogspot.com

http://betheweightyouwant.com

guru-sites.com/joy-of-blogging

http://www.manicmother.com//

http://blasianbabynotes.wordpress.com//

http://www.littlemisshannah.com

http://stacysrandomthoughts.blogspot.com/

http://drachma-girl.blogspot.com/

http://1momof5.blogspot.com/

http://saveyourmoneymama.blogspot.com

http://isitmondayalready.blogspot.com//

http://practicingthrift.blogspot.com/

http://conversationswithmoms.com//

http://healthywealthymoms.blogspot.com/

http://www.prettybycritty.com

http://www.3psinapod.com/

http://downtoearthblog.com/

http://dominiquegoh.com/

http://www.andrewsandfamily.blogspot.com

http://lusciousdeals.blogspot.com /

http://tiafihaki.blogspot.com

http://healthywealthymoms.blogspot.com//

In case you haven’t heard, the new Secretary of Agriculture has struck a blow for bringing production back to the people.  On the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birthday, Vilsak literally broke ground at the USDA’s headquarters, declaring a patch of pavement to be returned back to green. 

It is essential for the federal government to lead the way in enhancing and conserving our land and water resources,” said Vilsack. “President Obama has expressed his commitment to responsible stewardship of our land, water and other natural resources, and one way of restoring the land to its natural condition is what we are doing here today - “breaking pavement” for The People’s Garden.”

This is the first in what Vilsak plans to be a community garden at each USDA facility worldwide.  Hooray!  Nice to see the government leading by example, for a change.

One of the advantages of having a “foreign” husband (mine if from Australia) is that through him, I see a lot more of the news from the rest of the world’s perspective.

The Times (a British newspaper) posted their list of the 50 Greatest Food Blogs.  I am already a follower of Serious Eats, but there were some other interesting ones, too.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks is a new favorite for me. “Plowing through life in the country one calf nut at a time”, this home-schooling, homesteading gourmet brings a sense of humor to her food and commentary.  Warning to those with low-speed internet (like we homesteaders tend to have); lots of pictures make this a slow-loading website.

Some other ones I likes were the Homesick Texan and Becks n Posh.  More of the blogs listed originated from the US than anywhere, but the entire world is represented.

But no list is complete.  Here’s a few of my persoal favorites that didn’t make the Times’ list

Organic To Be:  Great recipes, good wholesome food (and it doesn’t have to be organic)

The Nourished Kitchen: Real food, real healthy, real frugal

and Kitchen Gardener’s International:  A food blog in that is deals with growing it as local as it gets–yourself.

What are your favorites?

The more I blog, the more I find myself philosophically aligned with concepts such as local, unprocessed, eco-friendly and small producer/small business.

At the same time, when I spend significant time researching the science behind the sticky issues we address, I often come down defending “big ag”, “corporate” and “government” based on my findings.

Sometimes, the same person that decries the lack of scientific data behind cloning, irradiation and other FDA rulings will take herbal supplements with many ingredients which have not been studied in a scientific manner.  I know producers who grow GMO crops, yet only buy non-rBST milk and talk of the “hormones and antibiotics” in our milk supply.

I know people who want more labels on our food to identify how it is produced, yet they are opposed to the USDA imposing mandatory animal identification, which would be required to implement such labels for meat, milk and poultry products.

I’ve seen cases where both sides of an issue cite the same study to support their own viewpoint.  When that happens, how do you know what to believe?

Here’s how I balance my brain and my gut when I’m evaluating media on an issue:

• Is there fear involved?
• Are both viewpoints represented?
• Is the author or group’s passion so great that everything seems black and white?
• What is the level of defensiveness and aggression in the piece?

The fact of the matter is, science is expensive.  Non-corporate sponsorship (government and private) is a small component of total research dollars, so much research has at least somne corporate money behind it.  When one delves deeply into peer-reviewed research, the data can usually be trusted.  Sometimes, even when the science is sound, the conclusions drawn are biased.  Unfortunately, research into alternative, non-mainstream and low-tech production practices tends not to get funded, so the research projects are often small, poorly designed or not adequately controlled to draw good conclusions.

The bottom line is that most issues are NOT clear-cut, and we all have to make the best, most informed decisions we can.

I just received an e-mail from a well-meaning acquaintance urging me to boycott McDonalds because they are importing South American beef.  The e-mail encourages boycotting McDonalds in order to help American ranchers.  It supposedly originated from the Texas Cattle Feeders and is signed by a Texas A&M University Animal Science professor.  I saw a version of this a couple years ago, too.

As much as I, as a Texas Cattle Raiser, want everyone to eat American Beef, I have to step in and say this is one of those e-mail perpetuated urban myths.  When it doubt, Snope it out. In addition, I know the professor whose name appears on the e-mail from my days as a TAMU professor, and checked this out with him a year or so ago.  He never put his name to this and has nothing to do with it.

Where’s the truth/ (or is it the beef)?  McD’s does import beef to supplement their mainly American beef supply, but from Australia and New Zealand where regulations are actually MORE stringent  and the beef is primarily grass-fed.  McD does so because they say they can’t get enough American beef that meets their standards for lean beef.  Believe it or not, McD’s has about the highest quality standards of any fast-food chain in the country for things like foreign material, leanness and source. (not sure that saying much, though).

As far as every rancher in the US having to signing papers at the auction barn.  There is a feed ban in most countries prohibiting feeding cow parts back to cows.  I can assure you that the average Joe rancher doesn’t sign any papers certifying anything about feed when his cattle go to an auction barn.

I can’t believe I’m defending McD’s, but couldn’t let the myth pervade.  So boycott away, if you want, but you’re not helping Texas cattle ranchers by doing so.

This has nothing to do with food, except that McDonalds is promoting one of the nominated toys:

The Campaign for Commercial-Free Childhood has nominated 5 toys for its TOADY (Toys Oppressive And Destructive to Young children) award for the worst toy of the year.

From thousands of toys that promote violence and/or precocious sexuality to children and push branded entertainment at the expense of children’s play, CCFC has selected five exceptional finalists

You can vote until Feb 8, with the winner being announced Feb 12.  Which would you choose?

• A doll that does everything; save your kids the effort of using their imagination
• A video game from a trusted name in children’s toys.  Even though it is rated 10+, McDonalds is including it in their Happy Meals to simultaneously promote the video game, junk food, and the violent Dark Knight movie series to preschoolers.  What’s next, Lego Deep Throat?
• A toy car that rides roughshod over family budgets and the environment.  Added bonus-no physical exercise required!
• An exercise bike/video game system for preschoolers that makes trips to the park superfluous. Don’t worry, the content is educational, so Mom and Dad won’t have to worry about brain-rotting screen time…or interacting with their preschoolers at all
• A doll that combines two classic gender stereotypes, so girls can learn their place at an early age!

It was a hard choice, but my vote went to the exercise bike.  In a good home environment, limited exposure to violence or stereotypes can be overcome, but simulating being outdoors instead of the real thing seems way over the top.  Guess I’m thoroughly a rancher-mom!

 The Seattle Post-Intelligencer posted a commentary on a food safety laywer’s Top Ten Food Safety Challenges for 2009.  Number two on the list of concerns is local food.  We’ve posted about “Big food vs. Small Food Safety” here before.  Small food isn’t necessarily safer just because it’s locally produced.

The longer I sell at farmer’s markets, the more I am convinced that the accountability I have as a producer who also interacts with the final consumer is both a great asset and great responsibility.  My customers trust me to tell them the truth. I have to look them in the eyes directly when they ask about what I mean by “Angus beef” or “Pastured” or “Natural”.    I can’t hide behind the USDA label definitions while working loopholes to sell something other than what people think they are getting. I also know my customers will tell me next week or next month if I’ve sold them an unsatisfactory product.

By the same token, because I am a producer-vendor, I find that although my customers want beef that fits the general definition of “natural” (no antibiotics, no hormone implants)  they are comfortable purchasing beef from cattle that may have been treated with antibiotics if they were sick, so long as it wasn’t a daily part of their feed ration.   Similarly, most of my customers are quite happy with “pastured beef” which receives a small amount of grain supplementation to maintain a minimal growth rate during droughts and tough times rather than being purely grass-fed.  Those I’ve asked said that if they were purchasing at a larger store, however, they would purchase only a “no antibiotics” and/or “grass-fed” label just to make sure.

Shortening the food chain CAN be a viable alternative to some of the very complicated, but necessary regulations that safeguard our food supply.  I think accountability is a vital part of a viable local food economy.

Food for Thought: Excerpted from Feedstuffs

ANOTHER 40 million people have been pushed into hunger this year, primarily due to higher food prices, according to the U.N.’s Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO).  The group’s just-released estimate brings the overall number of undernourished people in the world to 963 million, which compares to 923 million in 2007.

In the next 40 years, it is estimated that the amount of food that will need to be produced to feed the world’s growing population will be greater than the amount already produced throughout the history of humankind. That is a huge challenge for farmers and ranchers around the world, and as Erpelding [of Elanco] explained, it is only achievable through continued access to technology, improvements in genetics, proper animal care and efficiency in production.

Sustainability, availability and affordability are equally important in feeding the world.  

I often get involved in discussions where technology is painted with a broad black brush.  Technologies, such as hybrid crops, effective veterinary treatments and even GMOs are primarily responsible for the the availability of affordable food.  Technology can support sustainability, like some crops that can grow in salt-poisoned soils or with less nitrogen.

It is important not to reject technology just because it is technology.  It is also important to look at the entire impact and cost of technologies, not just the bottom cash line.  Policies and production decisions should be made based on facts (all of them) and not emotions.

Among a basketball coach, pro-golfer and military doctors, ABC World News has named a vegetable farmer as one of their “extraordinary people who make a difference“.

Bob Blair, whose original story aired in June, runs Volunteer Farm in Woodstock, Virginia.  The farm, with volunteer labor, produces fresh vegetables for those in need.  Since June, they have produced and distributed 35 tons of vegetables with the help of 3,100 volunteers.

Blair started the farm 5 years ago, originally intending it to be a Christmas tree farm.  But, Blair had an epiphany to grow nutritious food for those who need it.  Now, with the help of his volunteers, he provides good, healthy and nutritious food to a local food bank.

In an era of increasing obesity AND food insecurity, I applaud Bob and the army of volunteers that support him.  It’s a humbling reminder that any of us can make a real difference, to at least a few people.  Bob, you’ve inspired me to see what we can with production from our own Wild Type Ranch this winter, to help feed those in need.