the major newspapers. They focus on the aspects of the Farm Bill that subsidize those who donât need the help, but in doing so they miss the big picture. Unfortunately, there are always people who will find a way to âgameâ a program. So no, this program is not perfect, and guys from farm states know it. They know the program is too heavily weighted in favor of Big Ag instead of the traditional family farm.
Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Senator Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) have unsuccessfully tried to cap federal payments for farming couples at $250,000 annually. The way the system works now, with slim profit margins, it encourages mega farms. The days when a farmer could make a good living on a few hundred acres are gone. Even âfamilyâ farms commonly extend over thousands of tillable acres. One of the downsides of the current system is a shrinking of rural communities anda waning of the work ethic and family values that spring from such communities. Still, for now, fewer farmers producing more bushels does mean lower grocery bills for us all.
THE MERITS OF SMALL FARMS VS. BIG AG
When it comes to the safety and security of our food supply, we are much more secure with a vast network of small, independent producers than we are trusting big corporations. Thereâs an old adage: âDonât put all your eggs in one basket,â and thereâs wisdom in that statement.
Late in 2008, the nationâs largest poultry producer declared bankruptcy. Pilgrimâs Pride Corporation, with 25 percent of the market share, filed Chapter 11 because of high overhead, weak market conditions, and a heavy debt load. Pilgrimâs Pride supplies Kentucky Fried Chicken, operates thirty-five chicken processing plants and eleven prepared-food plants. Although the company continues to operate, its bankruptcy casts a shadow on the security of our food supply. Two companiesâTyson and Pilgrimâs Prideâproduce about half of the chickens in America today. To borrow a phrase from the financial crisis, they have become too big to fail.
In the crowded Big Ag conditions that produce a chicken for slaughter in four to six weeks, disease could wipe out millions of birds pretty quick. Birds are genetically engineered just as crops are for disease resistance and quick growth, but what happens if a disease mutates and kills them all? Thereâs something to be said for the diversity that family farms have traditionally ensured.
We all realize that there are efficiencies in large corporations, but when it comes to something as personal and important as the food we put into our bodies, we ought to expend every effort to maintain a healthy supply, and that means supporting the independent producer. People seem to be gravitating in that direction. We see more farmersâ markets springing up. More and more, city dwellers look for ways to buymeat on the hoof. Thereâs a certain comfort that comes from knowing how an animal was raised and processed.
The turkeys I see in the wild in western North Dakota bear little resemblance to the birds sold in stores, which have such large breasts they are actually too fat to breed by conventional means and are propagated through artificial insemination. However, âheritageâ breeds are making a comeback. These varieties are typically tastier and bear a closer resemblance to wild turkeys.
As a sportsman, I can tell you that a wild goose, duck, pheasant, grouse, partridge, or turkey makes a far better meal than anything I can find from a factory farm.
PROFIT TRUMPS FOOD SAFETY
As the poultry industry has consolidated, the incidence of food-borne illnesses has increased. A North Carolina State University study found that eight of every ten poultry carcasses in North Carolina were positive for campylobacter, one of the most frequent sources of food-borne illness in people and a leading cause of death from such illness.
According to the World Health
Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Senator Charles E. Grassley (R-IA) have unsuccessfully tried to cap federal payments for farming couples at $250,000 annually. The way the system works now, with slim profit margins, it encourages mega farms. The days when a farmer could make a good living on a few hundred acres are gone. Even âfamilyâ farms commonly extend over thousands of tillable acres. One of the downsides of the current system is a shrinking of rural communities anda waning of the work ethic and family values that spring from such communities. Still, for now, fewer farmers producing more bushels does mean lower grocery bills for us all.
THE MERITS OF SMALL FARMS VS. BIG AG
When it comes to the safety and security of our food supply, we are much more secure with a vast network of small, independent producers than we are trusting big corporations. Thereâs an old adage: âDonât put all your eggs in one basket,â and thereâs wisdom in that statement.
Late in 2008, the nationâs largest poultry producer declared bankruptcy. Pilgrimâs Pride Corporation, with 25 percent of the market share, filed Chapter 11 because of high overhead, weak market conditions, and a heavy debt load. Pilgrimâs Pride supplies Kentucky Fried Chicken, operates thirty-five chicken processing plants and eleven prepared-food plants. Although the company continues to operate, its bankruptcy casts a shadow on the security of our food supply. Two companiesâTyson and Pilgrimâs Prideâproduce about half of the chickens in America today. To borrow a phrase from the financial crisis, they have become too big to fail.
In the crowded Big Ag conditions that produce a chicken for slaughter in four to six weeks, disease could wipe out millions of birds pretty quick. Birds are genetically engineered just as crops are for disease resistance and quick growth, but what happens if a disease mutates and kills them all? Thereâs something to be said for the diversity that family farms have traditionally ensured.
We all realize that there are efficiencies in large corporations, but when it comes to something as personal and important as the food we put into our bodies, we ought to expend every effort to maintain a healthy supply, and that means supporting the independent producer. People seem to be gravitating in that direction. We see more farmersâ markets springing up. More and more, city dwellers look for ways to buymeat on the hoof. Thereâs a certain comfort that comes from knowing how an animal was raised and processed.
The turkeys I see in the wild in western North Dakota bear little resemblance to the birds sold in stores, which have such large breasts they are actually too fat to breed by conventional means and are propagated through artificial insemination. However, âheritageâ breeds are making a comeback. These varieties are typically tastier and bear a closer resemblance to wild turkeys.
As a sportsman, I can tell you that a wild goose, duck, pheasant, grouse, partridge, or turkey makes a far better meal than anything I can find from a factory farm.
PROFIT TRUMPS FOOD SAFETY
As the poultry industry has consolidated, the incidence of food-borne illnesses has increased. A North Carolina State University study found that eight of every ten poultry carcasses in North Carolina were positive for campylobacter, one of the most frequent sources of food-borne illness in people and a leading cause of death from such illness.
According to the World Health
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