DS Family Farm
Worried about what you are "really" eating? Have peace of mind with pasture grazed meats.
What’s Really in Your Meat?
If you are eating Pasture Grazed beef, we are confident there are no hallucinogenic party drugs in your meat!
Consumer Reports is at it again. Two years ago we wrote a blog post about Consumer Reports – Beef Report (Feb. 2017). That report focused on how beef cattle are raised, sustainability issues along with what labels are meaningful when choosing beef products. Consumer Reports validated our Pasture Grazed approach to raising beef. The report also confirmed the Animal Welfare Approved and Certified Grassfed by AGW labels as meaningful!
This past November (2018) Consumer Reports published this article: “Are Banned Drugs in Your Meat?” The reporting is summarized into a 16 minute video, “What’s Really in Your Meat?“.
Some take home points:
- Consumer Reports investigators found USDA had meat sampling data showing beef, pork and chicken contaminated with banned drugs above the Food Safety and Inspection Service safe levels.
- There is some debate over the reported drug data according to government representatives.
- Doug agrees with Consumers Report (CR) that it is not a data issue. The data is most likely accurate, it seems to be a government agency struggling with how to implement results from new and improved testing procedures.
- The report says it is not “always clear” how the banned drugs get into meat.
- Doug agrees with the report that the drugs could enter the animals from the water they drink or the soil. But a search of PubMed suggests more research is needed to determine if the water pathway is responsible for the levels found in the meat sample data.
- Will Harris of White Oak Pasture is featured in the video suggesting the drug source is likely at the “farm” level, administered or part of the feed. We respect Will’s opinion. If you have not seen this video of White Oak Farm, it is worth your time: One Hundred Thousand Beating Hearts – YouTube.
- What should you do as a consumer?
- Unfortunately we disagree when the report (and video) suggests consumers reduce their intake of meat due to health and environmental reasons.
- Doug would like to see the research that suggests meat production is an environmental issue and meat is unhealthy when it comes to Pasture Grazed animals! In fact there is research readily available that shows the opposite.
- Meat animals raised in natures image are a very important nutrient source for human health and regenerating our nations lands.
- It is the HOW not the COW.
- What do we mean by the “HOW”? It’s not the cow’s fault.
- It is how the cow is raised.
- It is human management that is the problem.
- The cow is simply a natural resource provided by God.
- Raise and manage a cow according to natures pattern (cows eat grass, manure and move on) and you end up with the most environmentally friendly and nutrient dense product available on the planet.
Good work Consumer Reports
We applaud Consumer Reports for their investigation and hope that this will encourage more meat consumers to source healthy, environmentally regenerative meat grown by local farmers. This is truly what we as consumers should be doing.
We vote for the type of food system we want every time we put something in our mouth. Spend your food dollars to change the system. We know this is happening, as described in our Mothers On Mission post from just last year. The food industry is responding, keep voting by purchasing locally from farmers you know and trust.
In this latest investigation, Consumer Reports has expressed what we have been trying to convey to our readers since day one. IF YOU ARE:
“Worried about what you are ‘really’ eating? Have peace of mind with pasture grazed meats.”
DS Family Farm
Sardines of the Plains
Sardines are a great source of omega 3 fatty acids but hey, why not enjoy some great tasting Pasture Grazed Beef from DS Family Farm?
Omega 3 fatty acids are important because (prior posts):
- Omega 3 is the anti-inflammatory fat
- Fatty acids are “essential” to our health
- (there are no ‘essential’ carbohydrates)
- A Standard American Diet (SAD) = high inflammatory Omega 6 fats
- Combat the SAD diet by sourcing low omega 6:3 food, such as Pasture Grazed beef.
Yes, salmon and tuna provide an even better source of omega 3 fats but (1) no ocean’s on the plains of Nebraska and (2) fish have mercury issues. Dr. Mercola recommends Sardines over large fish as sardines are lower in the food chain where mercury has not yet accumulated.
Pasture Grazed Beef vs. Sardines
DS Family Farm “Pasture Grazed” beef matches the omega 6:3 ratio of sardines at 2:1 (omega6:omega3). We have not tested beef for mercury because beef are low on the food chain just like sardines! Our pasture grazed beef only consuming what nature provides, forages. And yes, Dr. Mercola endorses pasture raised meats for both the omega 6:3 ratio and higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA).
Why we test Omega 6:3 each year
Providing a true “grassfed” product for you, our customer, is why we do what we do at DS Family Farm. Based on current research, testing the fatty acid profile of beef will give a good indication of what the animal consumed leading up to harvest. If the animal only consumed forages, the omega 6:3 ratio will be low. The lowest 6:3 ratios will be from cattle harvested when the nights are cool and pastured on growing legumes. Based on our test results from 2015 – 2018, you can rest assured when purchasing Pasture Grazed Beef from DS Family Farm you are receiving a true “grassfed product”.
Looking for additional assurance that our beef only consumed forages for their entire lives?
- Visitors are welcome to inspect our operation at any time.
- Please call ahead to schedule your visit!
- DS Family Farm is annually “Certified Grassfed by AGW”.
- Learn more about the certification process at A Greener World.
Is the omega 6:3 ratio really an important health claim?
- Again, we test the Omega 6:3 ratio after harvest to ensure our customers that our beef is what we claim, a true “grassfed” product.
- For your health, please do your research. We believe anyone can improve their health by eliminating any bad items from our diets. Eliminating highly processed foods common to the Standard American Diet will improve ones overall intake of omega 6 vs. omega 3 fats (see last year’s omega 6:3 update).
- For further reading consider this issue of Mark’s Daily Apple.
Other recent findings concerning omega 6 and omega 3 fatty acids and diet:
Dec. 2017: Impact of Omega-3 Fatty Acids on the Gut Microbiota
“In summary, based on conducted studies, the omega-3 PUFAs can be considered prebiotics. Therefore, the consumption of an omega-3-rich diet has been thought to be beneficial for health, but the gut microbiota changes in humans associated with omega-3 PUFAs are poorly understood. Future research with well-conducted clinical trials is needed to analyze the relationships between omega-3 PUFAs and the gut microbiota.”
Nov. 2017: Omega-3 Index and Anti-Arrhythmic Potential of Omega-3 PUFAs
“Recently published papers included in this review suggest that there is a permanent interest of both clinical and experimental cardiologists, to explore the anti-arrhythmic potential of omega-3 PUFAs. Although apparent progress is observed and the majority of findings suggest benefits of omega-3 PUFAs, there is still not enough evidence for their routine implementation into the clinic.”
Mar. 2016: An Increase in the Omega-6/Omega-3 Fatty Acid Ratio Increases the Risk for Obesity
“Obesity is a preventable disease that can be treated through proper diet and exercise. A balanced omega-6/omega-3 ratio 1–2/1 is one of the most important dietary factors in the prevention of obesity, along with physical activity. A lower omega-6/omega-3 ratio should be considered in the management of obesity.”
Apr. 2018, Abstract: Increasing omega-3 levels in meat from ruminants under pasture-based systems.
“There is mounting evidence that regular consumption of n-3 FAs is beneficial for growth and development as well as the health and welfare of humans of all ages. The dietary background of ruminants significantly influences the concentration of n-3 FAs in red meat. Meat from forage- or grassfed ruminants has a greater concentration of n-3 FAs than that from their feedlot or grain-fed counterparts and can also offer a favourable n-6:n-3 ratio in the meat. Scientific literature shows that the advantages of consuming n-3 FAs enriched meat (foods) outweigh the disadvantages.”
New Pasture for New Year
Ready for the new year?
Do you have goals or ideas to try something new in 2019? We hope you do! At DS Family Farm we are always in change mode or trying to be.
When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.
Benjamin Franklin
Over the past few months we have developed some new pasture area right around the house. This area has been in the USDA Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) for over 30 years. In 1987 it was seeded to a native grass mix. When we moved to the site in 1997 we planted a number of trees as windbreaks or what is known in the area as a “shelterbelt”. After the dirty 30’s dust bowl there was a huge effort across the Great Plains to plant shelterbelts to help slow the wind. Many of these old shelterbelts have been removed but we bucked the trend and actually planted one. Shelterbelts provide a number of benefits beyond slowing the wind including:
- Wildlife habitat
- Pleasant views
- Block noise (road traffic)
- Trap snow
Bringing in the herd
It is our guess that this land has not had any significant animal impact for over a hundred years now. With the new fence in place we can begin the process of rotating the herd across this area. Yes we will graze through the trees along with the grass! The shelterbelt has grown up with all kinds of diverse vegetation over the past 20 years, the cattle will love it. Using proper grazing management, the herd impact will only improve the entire area.
The grasses are in desperate need of beneficial animal impact that the cattle herd will provide. With lack of grazing, the grass stand is stagnant with bare crusted soil areas between individual grass plants. Cattle hooves are designed to break this soil crust and stomp the stagnant grass making a more desirable seed bed to grow new grass.
A key monitoring site was established east of the house several years ago. We are photo monitoring and recording basic grass species composition at this site. In addition we have taken soil samples and will track the changes to the grass and soil as the animals return and make their impact.
Again we wish you the best for the new year and urge you to get out there and make the change happen that you have dreamed about.
If you are in the area, please stop by and check out the herd that is always on the moooove.
Grateful
Thank You Kiwanis Clubs of Lancaster County!
As the 2018 Honor Farm Family we are grateful for the recognition. It truly was an honor to join 150 other guests at the 52nd Annual Farm City Breakfast early morning November 20, 2018.
We have great respect for the Kiwanis organization and their work in our community:
“Improving the World One Child and One Community at a Time.”
The event was hosted by the Lincoln Center Kiwanis club with many Kiwanis members attending from the Lincoln area. Also attending the event were FFA students from the Waverly, Raymond Central, Norris and Career Academy Chapters. Two local FFA members presented reports on their chapter activities.
It was my pleasure to provide a Keynote speech during the breakfast. This was the first formal public presentation of DS Family Farm and Pasture Grazed Beef. We entertained some great questions from the audience after the presentation. Based on the questions, the message of Pasture Grazed and Raised Animals hit home with some folks.
I did get choked up as the speech closed. When I showed photos of the families who have visited and purchased meat from our farm, the feelings took over. We receive true honor from the families we have met and built friendships with over the past few years. When our journey to raise healthy animals, meets people on a journey to find healing food, that is WHY we do what we do. That is when Doug gets choked up.
It certainly is nice to be recognized by others! Especially by a respected organization such as the Kiwanis. Again thank you Kiwanis Clubs of Lancaster County for the opportunity to speak about Pasture Grazed Beef and for the Honor Farm Family award.
Fake Meat vs Weird Beef
A scary topic for Halloween… fake meat vs. weird beef (in this past blog post, we call our Pasture Grazed Beef “Weird Beef”, read the post to see why).
Veggie burgers and Tofurky have been around for 35+ years but recently there is renewed interest in fake meat and companies are stepping forward. Just last month we were invited to exhibit our farm at a showing of the Eating Animals movie/documentary. The movie emphasized the downside of the industrial ag meat system. The movie focused on the environmental and animal welfare issues. Scientists will dispute the above two points but you can watch the movie and decide how well these ideas were presented.
As an alternative to industrial ag meat the movie highlighted a few farms raising animals similar to what we are trying to do here at DS Family Farm. Raise animals in natures image rather than trying to force nature into a factory model. The movie also took significant time to promote alternative meats or fake meat:
- Plant-Based meat
- Plant protein isolates (mainly pea)
- Adding beet juice to give a “bleed” to the product
- Cultured or Lab Grown
- Growing “meat” from animal cell tissue
- This technology is still developing
Why Fake Meat?
Fake meat and Weird Beef (we raise weird beef here at DS Family Farm) are sought out for similar reasons:
- Animal Welfare
- Environmental
- Human Health Issues
We are happy to provide customers an alternative meat product (Weird Beef) just as fake meat companies are doing for their customers. Give the customer what they want.
Unproven (fake meat) versus Proven (Pasture Grazed Meats)
Here’s the bottom line. Folks may seek out fake meat for the above listed reasons, but I would question how highly processed plant proteins or lab produced cell tissues can meet the desired results for the three items listed above.
- Does pressing canola oil and other plant parts and reforming them into a meat like substance aid Animal Welfare?
- Please list a study where cropping systems (without integrating animals) regenerate soil rather than mine the soil.
- Our experience when dealing with health issues, the number one thing to do is eliminate highly processed foods.
Pasture raised livestock can and has been proven to address all three of the above listed concerns. It’s “how” the “cow” is managed that results in positive outcomes for animal welfare, the environment and ultimately human health.
Do you eat fake meat and why? Please comment on the DS Family Farm Facebook page.
Happy Reformation Day!
Eating Animals – Movie
The Eating Animals movie trailer opens with views of shiny metal buildings, manure lagoons, a cattle feed yard and caged poultry. A voice asks, “Is this farming?” and then finishes with “I say no.”
Doug and Sheila will view “Eating Animals” this weekend at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center on the University of Nebraska Campus. The movie is based on the bestselling book by Jonathan Safran Foer. Following the Saturday Sept. 22, 1 PM screening, DS Family Farm will be joining other local farmers for an open reception, 3 – 6 PM.
Looking for something to do Saturday? Stop by, visit us and other local farmers at this unique event. We will have samples of Pasture Grazed Beef!
No Corn, No Soy, No GMO
Of course our Pasture Grazed (Certified Grassfed) Beef is raised without corn or soybeans and GMOs are not an issue. When it comes to chicken, well they need more than grass and forages. Cattle are herbivores, chickens are omnivores. Over the 9 years we have raised pasture chickens, all have been raised with Non-GMO feed.
Why No Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) in feed? Pretty simple:
- Customer Demand
It was easy to find GMO free feed with just a little extra work. We also heard there was customer demand for chickens raised without Soybean feed. When we asked for soybean free feed, well that was a little more difficult because soybeans are a cheap source of protein.
Why No Soybean in feed?
- Lots of reading on the soy issue at the Weston A Price Foundation website:
This past spring we decided to develop our own soy free feed. Just as we started to figure out how to drop soy, a potential customer messaged us asking if we had chickens raised without corn in the feed!
Why No Corn in feed?
- Customer Demand?
- Because we like a challenge?
- Everything has corn in it! Why not grow something without corn!
We fed the spring batch of chickens with typical feed that included soybean & corn and then fed our own corn and soy free feed part-time. The chickens did fine and yes, the taste was fabulous according to our customers.
With the extensive use of GMOs in our nation’s corn and soybean crops, it seems that even if you source GMO free corn or soybeans, there is probably some cross contamination? To truly be GMO free, it just makes sense to eliminate both Soy and Corn from the feed mix. As for the overall GMO debate, you might be interested in GMOs and “The Precautionary Principle” website or (PDF).
2018 Fall Pasture Poultry will be corn, soybean and GMO free.
What will these birds taste like?
Why did we say “Pasture Poultry” and not pastured chickens? Stop by the farm and check out our latest adventure…
Resting Degraded Land
In a earlier post we pointed out that much of our pastures are in a Degraded State. This is just a fact, most of the agricultural lands of the United States have been “mined” for over 100 years, grasslands included. The first step in fixing a problem is to admit you have a problem. In the 2010 air photo below, we point out some areas that have been “rested” from cropping and grazing for over 25 years. Did “resting” the land help?
Obviously just leaving the land alone is not a solution to our problem. Taking some insights from other regenerative ag folks, we decided to try to bring these “dead” areas back to life. It was obvious that erosion and earlier dirt work in the area had totally stripped the original top soil. Much of the soil surface in this area had “chalk” or limy rocks with very little grass growing.
Our recipe for healing some of this degraded area:
- Bring in carbon (hay)
- Add animal impact (the herd)
Since the site is still in the Conservation Reserve Program, we can only graze the site every other year and pay to graze. Obviously there is not much grazing value here, but we want to add animal impact to start the healing process.
The hay attracts the cattle to the area, otherwise the herd would only briefly walk by. As the herd stays in the area, hay is spread and stomped into the bare soil. The hoof of a 1000 pound cow fractures and breaks up the crusted bare soil. The cattle also add their pee and poop. Everything needed to regenerate a degraded land site.
Fast Forward 2018
In the photo below we have circled the area where hay was placed in 2016. There are very dark green “weeds” growing in this previously dead area. Some of the weeds are over waist-high compared to the very short grass around the rest of the area. Weeds are natures “band-aids”! They arrive to help “heal”. Our cows like to eat most of the “weeds” that grow here on the farm. Weeds are nutrient dense, bringing nutrients from deep under the soil surface. Weeds, natures way to recycle lost nutrients back to the soil surface.
Did I mention that our cattle like to graze weeds?
The above photo was taken shortly after the herd was given access to this part of the pasture. You can see we still have plenty of bare ground between short grass in much of the area, but the system seems to be working. Over the next month we will add some round bales and bring the cows back through for a second graze and hay stomping party.
So, are cows bad for the environment? Cattle just do what cattle do. It comes down to how cattle are managed. We enjoy grazing cattle in the pattern that nature has given us. Graze fresh grass (and weeds) and move! With a little luck and the magic of animal impact, when the herd returns, the grass is better than the last time they visited!
Birds, Bees and Butterflies
What a great time of year to be in the pastures! Butterfly season is in full display. What is your favorite color? Brown, white, yellow, blue, black, orange or yellow? God’s diversity is amazing. To bad butterflies are so difficult to photograph, they just don’t like to sit very long. You are invited to come visit our pastures to watch the butterflies, just let us know you are coming and we can point you in the direction of the best flowers.
Our main concern with visitors is personal safety. “Biosecurity” is not an issue on a farm operating with a regenerative approach. We are trying to build immunity into the animals and overall farm by encouraging nature to diversity from the bacteria in our soil to the trees along the stream.
We hope to see you soon and leave you with a number of photos of past visitors and some of the birds, bees and butterflies you just might see here in the pastures.
BIRDS
On this May 2018 birding adventure we saw:
- Orchard oriole, Dickcissel, Chipping Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Eastern Kingbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Grasshoper Sparrow, Bobwhite Quail, Brown headed COW Bird, Grackle and our first Monarch Butterfly of the year.
More bird photos on our Instagram feed:
- Baltimore Oriole male and female
- Eastern Meadowlark nest with eggs (hmm, guess we need to get a photo of a Meadowlark!)
- Young woodpecker found in a downed tree
- Young Mourning Doves in nest.
- Brown headed COW Bird (on fence, left side of brown cow).
- Bobwhite quail nest with eggs.
- Bobwhite quail trying to distract Doug from her clutch of chicks.
- Listen for chirping Dickcissel and Bobwhite quail whistle in background of this video.
- OK, not at our farm, but Nebraska Sandhills Cranes during migration.
- No longer at our farm, but boys use to show these at the fair.
- Sure to see these at our farm twice a year and could end up in your freezer 😉
BEES
We love the native bumblebees. So docile, just going about their work. The two pictured above easily caught Doug’s eye driving through the pasture. Could these be Black and Gold Bumblebees? Please email Doug if you can identify. Here is another photo from a different angle on Instagram.
BUTTERFLIES
On Instagram:
- Painted Lady and Monarch
- Black Swallowtail!
- Monarch caterpillar on milkweed.
- Monarch on purple thistle with NE State Flower in background.
Hopefully you have enjoyed these photos!
Again, feel free to contact us to take a walk in our pastures for a first hand view of how the herd is actually a key part in the continued health of the birds, bees and butterflies!
We will leave you with a photo of another very key insect we stumbled across recently. We feel that all the pretty photos above are good indicators that we are truly working with nature in our operation. But the appearance and continued abundance of this special friend is a well-known indicator that our management is moving in the direction of Regenerative Agriculture.
Let’s just say Doug was very excited when he saw this guy working with the herd! Watch for a future post for further details. As always, if you have any comments or questions, please write us on our FaceBook page.
Sustainable Agriculture
According to recent marketing (TV, radio and newspapers), about everything is or can be “sustainable”. The word has been used so much one must research how each company or organization defines “sustainable”.
Question: What are you trying to “sustain” (continue, keep or save)?
Just as many of us struggle with health issues, the “health” of our nations farmland is struggling. Do you think there might be a correlation between human health and soil health? If you have a health issue, the last thing you want to do is “sustain” your current state. The same goes for our farmland. Current levels of agriculture production is “sustained” by oil based products such as pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.
Many indicators point to the fact that our farmlands are in a “degrading” state.
- Dirty streams, lakes and ground water (aquifers)
- Gulf of Mexico ‘dead zone’
- Rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere
- Soil erosion from farmland
Our Degraded Pasture
Listening to a presentation by farmer/rancher Gabe Brown (YouTube TedX link, 16 minute video), helped bring this “degraded” landscape message home to me. Below is a soil degradation map of the world, looks like our farm fits in the “Very degraded soil” category.
Gabe’s message forced us to look at our pastures in a new way.
What do you think of our detailed degraded farm/pasture map below?
Yes, we now look at every part of our farm from Degraded to Extremely Degraded.
Since we see our pastures differently now, we are taking steps to “improve” our pastures. Sustaining what we now have is no longer an option in our mind. Many farmers and ranchers in this new movement have latched on to the term “regenerative agriculture” (search FaceBook to see all the different “regenerative” groups).
Here at DS Family Farm, we are fine with the term “regenerative ag” or whatever other name comes along. The main thing is that we approach our farm management in a way to promote the opposite of degrading the soil, pastures and animals. A quick search for the opposite meaning of “degrading” comes up with the term “exalt”.
We say good-bye to “sustainable ag” we are on a mission to “exalt ag” or “regenerative ag” or whatever you want to call it.
In future posts we will try to flesh out this topic in more detail.
Please, if you have a question or comment on this topic (or any other topic), please drop us an email or post a comment to our FaceBook page.
