This is the best article I have found to educate consumers on what the different labels on beef mean.  We are a natural producer.  We do not use antibiotics (unless medically necessary), hormones or steroids.  We do believe that cattle should receive grain, with all the work that it takes to raise cattle we want our consumers to receive a great product.  We feed grain along with hay and pasture.  Our cattle are always free to roam and lay under the trees when they want to.  We do not however as some would say pour on the grain, we feed enough grain to sustain our animals along with quality hay and pasture.

We enjoy being able to educate our consumers about our practices of raising cattle and our goats.  In our opinion I think what most people are concerned about is that cattle are not raised in overcrowded feedlots.  The only way to be sure of that is to buy fresh and buy local.  Buying local to us means within the state of Maryland.

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Producers Face Scrutiny From Public Over Antibiotic Feeding

Stephen B. Blezinger, PhD, PAS

The use of antibiotics in food animal feeding has been a common practice for years. It has also been under fire from a variety of scientists, doctors, consumer groups and the media for years.

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Nutrition information per serving: 318 calories; 12 g fat (5 g saturated fat; 5 g monounsaturated fat); 114 mg cholesterol; 468 mg sodium; 4 g carbohydrate; 0.1 g fiber; 48 g protein; 13.9 mg niacin; 1.0 mg vitamin B6; 2.6 mcg vitamin B12; 3.1 mg iron; 57.2 mcg selenium; 8.8 mg zinc.

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I may ruffle lots of feathers with my post today, but I have decided that I’m expressing how I feel about this.  I’m so glad that my husband and I grew up in a time that we could work on our family farm and take care of livestock and run equipment.

It seems to me that we are raising children to rely on technology (cell phones and computers) instead of their brain and hands.  Where do you think Veterinarian’s got their start, they started young working with animals and realized they had a love for the animals and the science behind animal husbandry.  That could be all gone with the new law.

It is a proven fact that the earlier you start a child learning the easier it is for them to grasp the concept and move on.  That is why children in Kindergarten are learning far more than I did in Kindergarten.  I learned to tie my shoes, finger paint, take a nap, have milk and graham crackers and to leave my Mom for a few hours a day to be with other children my own age.  Now children are reading by the time they get to Kindergarten and doing simple math facts.  This is not just about children working on their family farm, this is about a society of children that will grow having to learn skills at 18 that they could have already learned and be proficient at as a younger person.

Working on a farm teaches children time management skills, leadership skills, public speaking skills, critical thinking skills, writing skills, team work, money management, etc…  We allow children in the state of Maryland to get their driver’s license at the age of 16, that is a dangerous piece of equipment if not operated properly and yet the law says they can operate the vehicle.  It is a proven fact the teenager’s are the cause of more automobile accidents then any other age group accept for the elderly.  But what do we keep doing we keep offering strategic driving courses to help improve the younger driver ways to be a better driver, not get them off the road.  Does this mean that we will allow the Government to tell us how we can raise our children, what about the students in school that are studying food production?  They use knives, blenders, can openers, ovens and such.  I’m just showing here how ridiculous this is and that we are letting our Government tell us how to live.  This is more than just about children being raised on farms, this is about standing up for our freedom as American’s.

Not only would this law punish the family farms but it would hurt society as a whole.  It would be very naive to think that all food costs wouldn’t increase if this law goes into effect.  To pay your child as part of the farm is a lot cheaper than to hire an adult to work on your farm.  Then you have the whole issue of are farms then going to hire individuals that are not US citizens to work their farm because that is all they can afford?  It seems to me that we have people in our Government that are not for the people by the people.  They seem to have their own agenda and forget who they really work for.  I think that is one problem with our officials getting to make a career out of their elected position.

I highly encourage you to read the proposed bill and this article and then get in touch with your representative and tell them this can’t go through.  There are a lot of ramifications to this that people need to wake up to.  I am personally proud to say that our children wake up each day and care for our livestock that helps to feed our community and our family.  I sure can vouch for the fact that our youngest son has developed great time management skills when he wants to watch his favorite TV show and knows that he has to care for the livestock first.  It is our way of life and glad for it.

THE DC

All our steers we raise finish out at about 1300lbs live weight.  We do not feed antibiotics to promote growth, we do not feed antibiotics at all.  We only give antibiotics when medically necessary and so far that has only happened once on our farm.  We do not use hormones or steroids either to promote growth.

Our beef is able to finish well because of the Angus/Hereford genetics that we breed for.  We focus on the quality genetics that will provide us with the best beef possible that we can raise.  Genetics of the cattle plays a major role in how well they finish and grade.  We think the best thing that consumers can do for themselves is to buy local.  You don’t have to buy an entire side of beef.  You can buy it by the cut and store in your freezer.  When you get to know where your meat comes from and how it is raised you feel like you are a more educated consumer.

We choose not to use antibiotics on our animals unless they become sick for a reason.  We feel if we did that we would only be contributing to the antibiotic resistance that has become a problem in our society.  We eat the beef we raise as well and want to know that it is as healthy as it can be when we eat it.

There is a big push to eat local and eat fresh, do yourself a favor and decide that eating fresh and local is important to you.  You only have one body and we are what we eat.  We are more than happy to chat with you about our practices of raising our cattle and goat, don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have questions.

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