The Feasibility of a Pastured Animal Production Model By Monica @ 3:35 PM
I was linked by a friend to a great article in Mother Earth News entitled The Amazing Benefits of Grass-Fed Meat. I think the article focuses too much on climate change, but the other benefits described in the article with regard to animal health, human health, soil erosion, and landscapes are still huge. I highly recommend it. It also highlights the soil fertility issues I've wanted to raise for some time. And to think we would have been decades ahead on rotational grazing techniques by now without grain subsidies.
I've been busy with so many other tasks and my blogging here has been very light. I promise that I'll blog on HR 875, rBGH and its supposed mitigation of climate change -- and the feasibility of a grass-fed model from a production perspective. A commenter on Dr. Eades' blog says he wants a more authoritative analysis on this last point, not just layman comments. I'm currently collecting peer-reviewed literature on the issue of productivity in pastured, organic models vs. grain-fed models.
In the meantime, here are some simple facts presented by Michael Pollan, who discusses the productivity of Joel Salatin's Polyface Farm in Virginia. This is an organic animal farm using rotational grazing. Other farms such as Nature's Harmony Farm also use this technique now. I'll grant that this farm exists in a rich, moist temperature zone. However, the results are still impressive and as the Mother Earth News article above points out, there is a lot of marginal grassland in the United States that is not used for grazing. (This includes land pulled out of production under 10 year contracts through the USDA's idiotic CRP program.)
Let the video load and move forward to 10:50 where the interesting stuff starts, then finish it to the end. Quite inspiring.
In other words, 1/2 cow, 1 pig, 3000 eggs, 200 broiler chickens, 10 turkeys, and 10 rabbits per acre. The bird production per acre might be a bit higher than ideal per this commenter's suggestion. Nevertheless, can we conclude from the facts of this example that organic=starvation, as Earl Butz, former Secretary of Agriculture under presidents Nixon and Ford, said? I think not.
Monica - I highly recommend reading 'Comeback Farms' by Greg Judy who describes how a conventional farm can be turned into a high-density mob grazing operation with benefits for the animals, soils, plants, aquifers, and people involved. All without any inputs, not even a tractor or barn. Just grass, water animals and some portable fencing. A way to revolutionize our animal production and improve the planet and our food supply in the process. Sure seems like a win-win situation to me.
A win win win win situation to be exact! Better for us, better for the animals, better for the environment which our health depends on, and better profits for the farmers! You can't argue with that.
3 Comments:
Monica - I highly recommend reading 'Comeback Farms' by Greg Judy who describes how a conventional farm can be turned into a high-density mob grazing operation with benefits for the animals, soils, plants, aquifers, and people involved. All without any inputs, not even a tractor or barn. Just grass, water animals and some portable fencing. A way to revolutionize our animal production and improve the planet and our food supply in the process. Sure seems like a win-win situation to me.
Brooke, thanks for the suggestion! I believe it. This sounds a lot like what Joel Salatin does.
A win win win win situation to be exact! Better for us, better for the animals, better for the environment which our health depends on, and better profits for the farmers! You can't argue with that.
Post a Comment
<< Home