Balancing Organic Chicken Feed Rations and Pasturing

from: organicfeedz.biz

“A topic of discussion I see frequently on online discussion boards is how much organic feed to provide foraging poultry. All feeds such as starter, layer, etc. are considered complete feeds, meaning it contains all the nutrients the chicken needs. This introduces the question, why let chickens free-range and how does this impact their growth or egg production?

I contacted Jo Robinson, an industry expert on livestock nutrition and author of many books including “Pasture Perfect” and “Why Grassfed is Best”. She shared with me some terrific tips on why grass-feeding is important and how to balance that with feed rations for your backyard poultry.”

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Conventional vs. Organic Dairy

from: organicconsumers.org

“As the debate between conventional and organic milk consumers gets louder, we spoke with two local dairy farmers and gave each the same questions; here are their positions on their milk.”

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Trend and Tradition Meet at a Queens Farm

from: nytimes.com

“Then a man pulled up a chair and was introduced as Michael Grady Robertson from the Queens farm, provider of the pork.

Meaning what?

“We raise pigs,” Mr. Robertson said.

In Queens?

He smiled. “We’ve got a 47-acre farm,” Mr. Robertson said. “It used to be part of the Creedmoor psychiatric hospital.”

You’re raising livestock in New York City?

“Come visit,” he said.”

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Rebellion on the Range Over a Cattle ID Plan

from: nytimes.com

“Wranglers at the Platt ranch were marking calves the old-fashioned way last week, roping them from horseback and burning a brand onto their haunches.

What they were emphatically not doing, said Jay Platt, the third-generation proprietor of the ranch, was abiding by a federally recommended livestock identification plan, intended to speed the tracing of animal diseases, that has caused an uproar among ranchers. They were not attaching the recommended tags with microchips that would allow the computerized recording of livestock movements from birth to the slaughterhouse.

“This plan is expensive, it’s intrusive, and there’s no need for it,” Mr. Platt said.”

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New unit brings home the bacon

from: capitalpress.com

“A mobile slaughter unit recently purchased by the Pierce Conservation District will make life a whole lot easier for Cheryl Ouellette.

Instead of slaughtering her cows in Sandy, Ore.; her sheep on farm; her chickens in Lacy, Wash., and her pigs in Graham, Wash., the Puyallup meat producer now can get all her animals processed at the unit.

It’s cheaper, she said, and much more convenient.”

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Panel reins in livestock mandates

from: capitalpress.com

“Livestock producer groups are breathing a sigh of relief after the House Energy and Commerce Committee amended its food safety bill to exempt livestock operations from inspections by the Food and Drug Administration.

The provision in the Food Safety and Enhancement Act would have given FDA authority to conduct on-farm inspections, quarantine operations, require a traceback system and create additional record keeping.”

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Finishing cattle in a hoop barn

from: brownfieldagnews.com

“Because his cattle are not exposed to weather extremes, the Monroe County farmer has seen better overall performance in the cattle he feeds out in this hoop barn. By making these changes and improvements for the environment and cattle comfort, Bryan has reaped some economic rewards. The cattle are more feed efficienct and gain better now, helping justify the costs associated with the higher feed costs experienced in the past year and a half.”

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Monthly milk costs (state by state)

from: ers.usda.gov

“Methods of estimating the monthly milk costs of production (COP) in each State use the most recent annual estimate as the baseline, along with indexes that reflect price and production differences between months and the baseline.”

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Going Organic

from: theweek.com

“Are organic foods really healthier, or is it all a high-priced fad?”

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Southern Minn. organic farm attracts wildlife

from: dglobe.com

“It has all the markings of a working farm — 70 milk cows, crop fields, tractors, hay baler, combine.

But there is so much more on the Martin and Loretta Jaus farm northwest of Gibbon. Marshes are humming with the spring nesting activity of wood ducks, teal and mallards, while toads make loud mating croaks.

In the prairie-plant pastures and stands of trees, there’s a constant flitting of bobolinks, bluebirds, swallows, yellowthroat warblers and mourning doves.”

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Prices sour demand for organic milk

from: boston.com

“Three years ago, organic milk was like white gold: Health-conscious customers wanted it, supermarkets couldn’t get enough of it, and anyone who could sell it was making a killing as a shortage swept across the country.

At the time, Kimball Brook Farm was at the center of a bidding war as companies courted the farm’s owners, JD and Cheryl Devos. They decided to join Horizon Organic, which offered a $33,000 signing bonus, more than $100,000 to pay for three months of special feed for the cows, and other perks.

Almost overnight, though, things have changed. Sales of organic milk have plunged and farmers who got lucrative deals from a dairy industry that was thirsty for the stuff now can’t get rid of it. The volume of organic milk sold nationwide is projected to drop nearly 15 percent this year compared with 2008, according to some industry estimates. Already, one Vermont farm has closed its organic business and others are expected to follow, threatening what was one of the few bright spots in the state’s struggling dairy industry.”

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A New Crop of Farmers

from: washingtonpost.com

“More Md., Va. Women Turning to Agriculture, Bringing Organic Meat And Harvests of Heirloom Vegetables to Markets in the D.C. Area.”

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Organic Maui farm teaches and feeds

from: www.starbulletin.com

“Callender initially didn’t consider agriculture as a career, but her interest in environmental science led her in that direction. Living off the land during her formative years rewarded her with a deep understanding and appreciation for fresh, healthy, living foods grown in a sustainable way. That awareness serves her well in her position as the diversified agriculture supervisor for Kapalua Farms, a subsidiary of Maui Land & Pineapple (MLP).”

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Grass-fed beef faces taste test

from: www.timesunion.com

“Oh, the things I endure to do this job. Consider the following assignment:
Go to a restaurant to eat three steaks and three burgers, then talk with a dozen fellow diners about how the beef tasted.

Sounds onerous, no?

The gathering, held the other week at the Albany Pump Station, was one of the final components of a long study being conducted by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Albany County about the local viability of grass-fed beef. “

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Switching to organic pork production has potential advantages and drawbacks

from: extension.iastate.edu

“As the market for organic products continues to increase, some pork producers might want to consider a change to that type of production. Research results from the Organic Trade Association show sales of United States organic products, including pork, grew more than 17 percent from 2007 to 2008, and the consumer demand is expected to continue despite the current economic downturn.

Iowa State University (ISU) animal science professor Mark Honeyman said consumer desires can lead to increased demand for organic pork products.”

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