Have you replaced beef with venision? Or would you?

[shawnv]

Certain meals I like venison more for and other beef. Most of my beef comes from what I buy from my neighbors who grass feed their and then age it at the butcher. All I can that it tastes sooooo much better. I have considered having a couple cows my spread to have calves, sell one off a year to pay for winter feed and eat the other.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Thanks UP. I'll just bet ya the CEO,s CFO's, COO's, CIO's, etc., eat grass - fed, never/ever beef !!! And maybe the hormones in meat for the last 30 yrs. or so are why girls are getting their first periods at age 10 nowadays. Not uncommon.

 

[UP Powers]

Thanks UP. I'll just bet ya the CEO,s CFO's, COO's, CIO's, etc., eat grass - fed, never/ever beef !!! And maybe the hormones in meat for the last 30 yrs. or so are why girls are getting their first periods at age 10 nowadays. Not uncommon.

I would say that most people I know are very aware of it and someday in my lifetime antibiotics and hormones used in commercial meat production will be banned. It's only speculation and I am NOT a scientist but I will tell you the movement towards those areas is growing and supply can't meet the demand in some scenarios.

I will say a couple of things on the absolute joke side of this organic/natural/certified humane/GAP business. I will address GAP, Global Animal Partnership. GAP is an organization that certifies through a 3rd party that the animal is treated humanely throughout it's life cycle. I don't there is a person on this forum that would want a farm animal treated poorly during it's life up until slaughter. If there is, you are sick. Anyways, lets talk Chicken. GAP level 1-5+ chicken is how a chicken is certified being raised by the farmer. 1 is the lowest 5+ is the highest. Currently there are no level 1 suppliers and most are at level 2, the number drops even lower at 3, and 4 almost non existent, and 5 are a handful. To go from a one to a 2 you need indoor enrichment, "bail of hay" or "exercise balls" you think I am kidding?? So the chickens can get more activity. Level 5 is basically chickens walking around openly and you are catching them and living in a high fence area and are like wild.

It gets better GAP is number 1 organization certifying the meat for a small little Grocery Chain called Whole Foods, ever hear of it?? Oh, please raise your hand if you know that the current CEO from Whole Foods sits on the GAP Board, it is getting better, 2 of the largest suppliers of GAP certified protein also sit on this board. You might as well call Whole Foods and the GAP program the country club of certifications. Now you might think I shop at Whole Foods, hahhaha ONCE and never again. It's a JOKE!

You think I am done??? There are certain number of birds if they don't hit the electric bath and get their throats slit its acceptable. So when you pay 8.99 for a GAP level 3 chicken remember that might be getting one that didn't make the bath or "the animal was in view of watching other animals getting slaughtered." I am ok buying commercially available products from Coleman Farms, (owned by Perdue) which are organic, certified under their humane program, no antibiotics ever, no hormones ever, for a REASONABLE PRICE!

Or just keep eating venison!! hahahahha

 

[wiscwhip]

Very interesting UP, thanks for the insight.

 

[West Branch]

I assume the no antibiotics for beef is in regards to feed additives? They would still treat cattle that have some sort of infection?



I have been in some of the new chicken barns with "enriched cages" that have been built in the last couple years to be California Compliant. It has been a big money maker for some egg producers outside of CA.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/20...ias-new-rules-are-scrambling-the-egg-industry

 

[Daydreamer]

This is all very eye opening. First thing I did was start googling raising chickens for dummies...i eat eggs every morning for breakfast and would prefer never/ever chicken for eating at a later time.

 

[j-bird]

Interesting how an industry insider in almost anything can shed light on a subject! And some of the "games" that go on.

 

[West Branch]

This is all very eye opening. First thing I did was start googling raising chickens for dummies...i eat eggs every morning for breakfast and would prefer never/ever chicken for eating at a later time.

Just an FYI - No hormones are used for poultry (eggs and meat). From what I know antibiotics are usually only used when there is an actual illness. Adding them to feed has no benefit with meat or egg production and it is all about the $$ so producers aren't going to spend $$ on things that don't add to production.

Antibiotics in cattle feed does something with the digestion that helps with weight gain.

Also, I am no expert, the above is just what I remember from talking with various farmers and some online reading.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Yep. A corporation with the " right people " placed on boards that make the rules for that same corporation's industry. Hard to believe, huh ?? :confused: o_O

Can we say FINRA ?? ( Think your retirement money ). Look it up.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

Raising chickens is pretty easy. We don't have layers because I don't want to get into heating the coop over the winter, but it wouldn't be that big of a deal to set something up on a small scale. I will say that our chickens are some tasty devils :) Plus, you actually get real dark and light meat. I brine and roast a chicken every couple of weeks or so....gotta get one out of the freezer now that I think about it.

Do you have a regular chicken coop or so you just let them roost in a shed or barn? Do you have many problems with raccoons or other varmits picking them off?

 

[Reagan]

UP.

Since my deer supply is low this year I had to buy beef from the grocery. I hate doing that so I found this site, Eatwild.com. It has many farms listed in my area. One farm that is run by a former military pilot has caught my attention. He quit a great career to farm healthy foods once he had kids and researched the farming industry.

My question is how can a person know that these farms are what they say they are? I want to buy some grass fed, never ever, good for the family meat.

 

[Daydreamer]

Any pics Stu?

 

[UP Powers]

questions that I would ask the farmer.. Are any animals treated with growth or antibiotics? Where does the animal feed and live?

Correct from above very rarely are antibiotics put in feed, they are expensive and only used when an animal is sick. Most animals are treated as disease spreads very quickly in the herd/flock and it is needed to control. I will say some antibiotics are used in feed when massive outbreaks take place. I don't even know if America even knows right now about the Avian flu that is spreading like wildfire in the egg industry. Some people are predicting that eggs will hit over 4 bucks a dozen in the next couple of months. Eggbeaters or egg substitutes are going to be the hardest industry hit. So, if you like eggs and enjoy them for breakfast, get the checkbook out or be like Stu. :)

The question I personally get asked most. You know so much about this industry how do you protect your family and give them quality food? This answer might surprise some.. but I do shop a lot at Costco. They are an organization that swore off a lot of practices years ago and their buyers and category analysts literally tour farms constantly!! They have great meat, great chicken, bison, lamb, really good produce. It's a safe bet for me and a safe bet for my family. Are they perfect?? HELL NO. Better than 99.999% of the suppliers out there in retail. Yes. Why doesn't Costco follow GAP?? They tried, rumor has it they stopped them because they wanted to advertise it and it was denied!! Reason 121 not to shop at Whole Foods, the other part that frosts me about Whole Foods, Walk down the vaseline aisle first because I can tell you that their margins are some of the highest in the industry. It's a great way to prey on people and their checkbooks, sympathy for an animal. Most people drink the Kool Aid when it comes to 9.99 a pound chicken because it was humanely raised, where the organic antibiotic free chicken is 6.99 a pound but it doesn't say GAP. Its sad, but very profitable for Whole Foods. For the record.. great company for an investor, great company in general for profits. They pass my sniffer on money, just not for my family, and my paycheck.

Just came across my desk today... One of my very good friends is in Vietnam today touring some Shrimp farms. I would bet anything.. that anyone on here has NO clue that the majority of shrimp you eat is from Vietnam. My buddy said he walked down the rows of one farm and he said the place was spotless and literally could have eaten off the floor. Good to hear that people in this industry still care about their facilities. Don't get me going on the seafood industry!!!!

 

[Reagan]

Get going. I love seafood.

 

[UP Powers]

If seafood is farm raised generally it's a pretty good warning that it's not a great choice. Generally fish farms feed more antibiotics to fish on a higher percentage than beef and chicken. If salmon is pink and it's farm raised the fish is fed chemicals and it's dyed to make it that color. Farm raised salmon is almost white or very transparent like almost opaque, it's kinda wild to see it. Most of the farm raised fish are feed cheap feed to make it more profitable.

 

[UP Powers]

Batten down the hatches folks, get ready for the greatest egg debacle you will see in your lifetime!! I will go on record by saying I hope you folks enjoy the price of eggs today, because it ain't gonna be the same coming up. Just read an memo about millions of birds that are going down because of it. And if you think this just involves bacon and eggs in the am or scrambled eggs. HAHHA flip over a box of about anything you own in your pantry, Pasta, Mayo, Baked Goods. But you think... Oh I can sit down and just have some steak and wine.. NOPE. Egg whites are used in the wine industry. This is going to have impact across the nation, every food group, and prices are going up. Trust me when I say this. EGGS are used in EVERYTHING. Why? They are cheap to get and abundant.

This is going to be on the forefront of national news for a while. It's kinda wild to see some of the information being floated out there right now. Prices are going up and fast!!!!! No supply and very broad market with a huge demand. Just think MAYO. Seriously.. imagine every container of MAYO in the country, retail, club, mass merch, food service, gas stations, airlines, fast food, I would venture to say everyone reading this has a jar in their house. It's almost mind blowing to think mayo is going to JUMP in price by leaps and bounds.

 

[Daydreamer]

So I better get going on my chicken coop then eh?

 

[wiscwhip]

Batten down the hatches folks, get ready for the greatest egg debacle you will see in your lifetime!! I will go on record by saying I hope you folks enjoy the price of eggs today, because it ain't gonna be the same coming up. Just read an memo about millions of birds that are going down because of it. And if you think this just involves bacon and eggs in the am or scrambled eggs. HAHHA flip over a box of about anything you own in your pantry, Pasta, Mayo, Baked Goods. But you think... Oh I can sit down and just have some steak and wine.. NOPE. Egg whites are used in the wine industry. This is going to have impact across the nation, every food group, and prices are going up. Trust me when I say this. EGGS are used in EVERYTHING. Why? They are cheap to get and abundant.

This is going to be on the forefront of national news for a while. It's kinda wild to see some of the information being floated out there right now. Prices are going up and fast!!!!! No supply and very broad market with a huge demand. Just think MAYO. Seriously.. imagine every container of MAYO in the country, retail, club, mass merch, food service, gas stations, airlines, fast food, I would venture to say everyone reading this has a jar in their house. It's almost mind blowing to think mayo is going to JUMP in price by leaps and bounds.

Is there any egg products in Miracle Whip? It is as good as mayo on most stuff and even better on many other things.

 

[wiscwhip]

Damn!

 

[sandbur]

Public Radio (Minnesota) has had several program on how hard the avian influenza has been on the economy in certain parts of Mn. I work in those areas and nearly every commercial turkey flock is gone. Processing facilities, feed delivery , many will be out of jobs. Rumors are that local markets will have somewhat of a decrease in corn prices, until things adjust. Turkey barns will need to be shut down for a period and people are wondering in influenza will return with fall migration of waterfowl.