Got Meat?

In light of our last post, I've had several customers ask me where to get clean, fresh, local meat.  The answer is always the same.

It ain't easy.

That said, I'd like to highlight a few small farms that are practicing various types of local farming.  This is by no means an exhaustive list, so if you live in the southeastern part of Michigan, by all means chime in with some recommendations.

For lamb meat of any kind, there are two local favorites.  First, there is the Chapman farm in the South Rockwood area.  They've been in business for year.  They've typically sold commercially but last year they told us they were trying to sell directly to the consumer (that's you!)  They said then that if you just rolled on up to the house they'd sell you what they had.  Call first though.  I haven't spoken to them since last year.

There is also Hannewald.  They frequent the Greenfield Village farmers market each fall.  They are wonderfully nice people and their meat is terrific.  I'm not sure what they have in terms of buying packages (shipping or pick up) but they are worth a call.

If it's beef you're after, some friends of ours bough from a ranch out west.  I had some of the meat myself and it was very tasty.  They do ship frozen meat and I think they are very reasonable with their shipping prices.  The name is Scott River Ranch and you can check them out here.

There is a family that is doing all of the above as well as pork, milk, cheese, honey, eggs, and poultry.  I highly recommend them for a one stop shop for all your needs.  They are the Turtle Bee and Honey Tree farm.  They don't ship.  You have to pick up your products at the farm.  They ask you to buy farm shares.  You give them an agreed upon sum of money and then simply place your order.  They keep record of what you put in and how much product you take.  I think it's a great program that I may be able to emulate one day.  Maybe...

When it comes to buying local fresh meat, eggs, and dairy I've got to say the pickin's are slim.  I have some folks I get eggs from but they have small flocks.  I encourage you to look around.  I'm trying to talk a friend of mine into doing more farm to consumer transactions.  I'm very encouraged in our conversations that we are of like mind.  I'm hoping he'll be someone I can recommend in the future.

As for us, we're still looking for a farm in the area.  Next year I hope to have chicken and turkey for you.  And who knows....maybe we'll get crazy and raise something else.  What about you?  Do you have anyone to recommend?  I'm sure we'd all love to hear about it.  Not local?  Who do you use in your area?  What's your experience?

Depending on Food

I’m not one to really get into conspiracy theories.  I enjoy them as much as the next guy I suppose, but I’ve never been able to buy the story that something like three people control events of the entire world.  It’s certainly possible.  Yet as I look at history in an objective light, it looks to me like you have groups of people all trying to do what’s best for themselves.  This all converges to create the impression that world events are being tightly controlled. 

A classic example for those of us in America is our dependence on foreign food. 

This issue has been taking center stage of late as legal mandates require that produce distributors label their goods with the country of origin.  My family recently devoured a small crate of Clementine’s from Spain.  Those Spanish folks grow some tasty citrus.  Importing produce has been going on in America for centuries now.  It’s not new.  But in the past it was special.  It was a treat.  Chocolate from Spain, citrus from South America, Banana’s from Brazil, and Pistachio’s from the Middle East were special items purchased by those who could afford them for special occasions.  Today, in our global marketplace, these items are part of our every day diet.  They are expected in large quantities on our store shelves.  And when we go to someone else's home, we instinctively expect that those items will be present.

But it doesn’t end there.

No longer do we purchase specialty items from overseas producers, we now get our standard fair across our borders.  I submit, by way of example, the infamous corn.  While we produce tons of corn domestically every year, it has become law that grains producers set aside a percentage of that corn for ethanol.  Fuel refiners are offered incentives for mixing ethanol in their gasoline.  So the government subsidized corn production and then subsidizes the use of ethanol in gasoline.  Thus the American tax payer (that means you and me y’all) is paying for corn and gasoline over and above what we pay at the cash register.

 

Now, with all this corn being set aside for fuel, we have a hard time finding enough corn to make feed for our livestock (not to mention human consumption).  So, we supplement by purchasing corn in bulk from foreign countries.  One such country is Mexico.  While I am not against the Mexicans growing corn and supplying a demand, I have a hard time swallowing that I am now subsidizing corn, paying for corn, subsidizing fuel, paying for fuel, and paying import tax on corn brought in to feed myself.

Is it just me or does that seem like it’s asking a lot?

I know I’m simple minded.  Maybe that’s why I keep envisioning a Simple Life.  But why can we not just grow crops?  Let the farmers charge a reasonable price (including profit) and let the people buy them.  Let the government pay the same price.  I know…crazy talk.  But it’s a bit like a home budget.  If disaster strikes, I know where all the money is going and I can divert it to meet the immediate need.  If I’m dependent on others for my money, I may not know exactly what they can and will provide.

So you see that I don’t think that taking away food independence from the American people is a grand scheme of communism or something similar.  Rather it is people fighting for their own agenda rather than the good of all.  This can be seen in a very recent predicament we now find ourselves in. 

Still using Mexico as our example, we import a lot of produce from them.  Produce, in many cases that we could grow on our own soil.  But like us, they are working through unusual weather patterns.  A cold snap has been disastrous on their crops.  Thus, we pay the price with them.  Since we can’t divert our own corn to meet the crisis (since must be used for ethanol) we will start seeing food prices increase for our meat.  Why?  Because our feedlot system is based on corn.  We will now pay big money for corn.  And we will pay big money for meat.  If we could freely produce our own corn, we could meet this crisis head on and divert the corn from green fuel to meat. 

This is what it means to be food dependent.  We do not rely on ourselves to meet our needs, but rather we depended on other governments and economies to do our thinking for us.  Shame on us. 

So what can you and I do?  Grow our own food, even if it’s just tomatoes in a bucket on the back patio.  Support local farmers through farm markets and co-ops.  Think locally, buy locally, and support your local businesses.  This is the key to gaining back our food dependence. 

"If people let the government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as the souls who live under tyranny."
Thomas Jefferson (1778)

The Fight

I'm getting excited about raising chickens again this year.  Last year was really a trial run for us.  We did a small batch (well I guess that's relative....100 chicks in our basement did not feel like a small batch!) for a small group of people, mostly to see if we could pull it off.  As many of you know, we did "pull it off" with an enormous amount of grace from God AND lots of help from friends and family.  So, we're ready to go again this year!

I've been working through pricing structures for the products.  We're introducing turkeys into our mix this year, but since I don't have a baseline for them, they're a bit harder.  But I'm REALLY excited about the chickens.  I have a couple of things I've thought through.  They go something like this:

• We're not in this things for money.  Although I would like to make a go of a home/family based business, the truth is that we want to see a community built around a vision from God.  We believe we can meet needs for those around us through a network of folks brought together by the leading of the Spirit...even if they don't know Him!
• We want to meet people where they are.  Isn't it interesting that most health food stores, stores conscious of natural food sources and sustainable farming practices, are typically located outside wealthier suburbs?  There are some who are fighting the fight in Wayne and Monroe counties, but they are in the minority.  
• That said, we need to be competitive in our pricing structure.  We are trying to figure out a cost that will allow people of moderate incomes (like ourselves) to purchase high quality chicken.  
• People in our area are often on a budget.  It's hard to say "Well, we don't exactly know what they'll weigh in at so just be ready." when we're talking about purchasing the chicken.  It might be easier to charge a flat rate. 

That said, I THINK WE CAN DO IT!!!  I've been doing some research at local stores, trying to understand the pricing.  I've checked out Sam's club, Foodtown, and Kroger thus far.  Now, we will likely never be able to price our chickens like your average bottom line Tyson chicken.  They're too cheap.  But they're cheap for a reason.  Their chickens typically live in a giant warehouse styled coop with little to no light and air.  They have a few inches per bird for mobility (they need about 2 feet!) and they are fed things that we might not recognize as "food".  So they get a production line business model together and they can do them cheap.

While the production line worked great for cars, it has depleted the average chicken of any sort of nutrients when it hits your local freezer. Even those chickens labled as "Natural" have several drawbacks which I won't get into here.  But, as I price out the "natural" chickens in the freezer, I think we can beat them. I think we have a shot at selling chicken at a reasonable price competative with the big guys.  Check this out!

Here you can see a Perdue whole chicken for $1.99/pound.  While I can't get a per pound price that low, I can charge less than $15.02 for 7.55 pounds of chicken.  WE CAN SELL FOR LESS THAN THE STORE!

Okay, yeah, I'm pretty excited about that.  Plus, I can promise that our chickens will indeed be all natural, free range, and anti-biotic free.

So what are your thoughts?  Does that excite you?  Let me know.  We'd love to hear back from you!!  Leave your comments here, or check out our Facebook page!

Purpose

I know; with all the blogs out in the blog-o-sphere why create yet another one? I suppose there are many reasons for me to create a blog. I'm not interested in keeping you up to date on the latest events in my relatively ordinary life. I'm not terribly good at being clever. Instead, I want to encourage you in a way of life that appeals to me, namely, the simple life.

You, my dear reader, are likely incredulous at this point. "Is there such a thing as a simple life? Is that impossible in this era of time?" Well, the truth is that my friends and family have, by now, calmed down from their laughing fit. No, I'm not sure I'd call my life simple; but that's the point. I'd like to. It's a goal I have.

So what does it mean to live a simple life? Well, to be clear, I'm not talking about a lack of activity or a lack of technology. In my mind it has something to do with relationships. As we've "evolved" or "progressed" in our thinking, we invented new ways to ensure that we don't have to interact with anyone. You don't have to look any further than the grocery store. As I place my items on the belt, I have a screen that explains to me what my bill is, minus the coupons. I scan my credit card and sign the pad in front of me. The teller hands me the receipt and says "Have a nice day." Done! At no point in this transaction have I made eye contact with her (whew). She's given me her script, but we've not actually communicated.

I am seeking something different, something more visceral. I'm seeking humanity. Does it still exist? Let's find out...