Flippin' Sweet

Here are some grilling tips that will make you feel like you know secret ninja moves from the government.

 

Smell that flame-grilled deliciousness!
Photo courtesy simplebbqrecipes.com

July is here and that means grilling season is in FULL swing! At my house grilling season is 12 months long but we all know summer is the BEST time to enjoy the weather, have a cold drink with friends and family and fire up the grill.

 

What better to toss on the Traeger than some juicy burgers?  You can never go wrong with a hunk of ground beef! Or can you?

 

Making sure your meat is at the proper temperature is important for ALL cuts and species, but it is especially crucial when cooking hamburger because of the surface area exposed to potential bacteria. If pathogens are present when the meat is ground, it will cover more surface and mixed throughout the meat.

 

Bacteria is not exclusive to ground beef, of course. They are everywhere in our environment; any food can harbor bacteria. In animal products, pathogenic (illness-causing) bacteria, such as Salmonella, Shiga-toxin producing Escherichia coli (STECs), Campylobacter jejuni, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus, can be present. These harmful bacteria cannot be seen or smelled.

 

Not to worry, though, because properly cooking the meat will kill the bacteria. However, it is still important to keep cold meat cold and hot meat hot. The “Danger Zone” or temperature range where bacteria multiply the most rapidly is between 40 and 140 °F. This means you should store ground beef at or below 40 °F and then cook it to a safe internal temperature of 160 °F to destroy any harmful bacteria. Even if you think it’s okay to eyeball it, it’s not. You can’t read temperatures or see bacteria by looking at your burger, so just don’t risk it. Anyone else have Danger Zone stuck in your head now?

Always use a meat thermometer
photo courtesy wikihow.com

In the U.S., beef you find in the store (and what you get from the meat locker if you get your own cattle butchered) is treated in a USDA-inspected plant to reduce bacteria. Methods like organic acid washes, water washes, steam pasteurization, steam vacuuming, and other antimicrobials are used so we can be confident that we are buying the safest product out there.

Now, if you’re looking for new grilling tips to try here are some of my GO TO tricks to get great burgers every time.

• Crack an egg in the ground beef before forming your patties. It helps the meat stick together when they’re cooking so you don’t have to fuss with crumbly burgers.
• Want your burger to still be juicy, not dry, at 160°? Me too.
• Don’t over-handle the meat while preparing it. It could make it tougher
• Try waiting until your patties are formed to salt or season the meat. Not only do you avoid over-handling the meat, it prevents the salt from dissolving muscle proteins and turning your burgers from moist and tender to sausage-like and springy. (This will also help create an awesome carmelized crust on the patty, which is great!)
• Unless you just can’t live without them, don’t add junk like onions, herbs, eggs, breadcrumbs, etc. to your ground meat. It FORCES your to over-handle the mix. With the right seasoning, you won’t need that extra stuff anyway! But again, this is totally up to you.
• You know how burgers shrink when they cook? Poke your finger in the center of them making an indention. This will help it hold its shape.
• Don’t squish the burgers with a spatula while they’re cooking. It will squeeze out the bit of fat that make them thick and juicy.

The perfect patty
Photo courtesy: Landolakes.com

P.S. If you’re looking for a new grill to try out your new tricks on, my favorite grills are Traeger. They use wood pellets so they rock if you’re not in love with the taste (or smell) of charcoal.

Happy summer grilling!
¬
–Kenzie Curran

We Meat at Last

Memorial Day Weekend, The 4th of July, and County Fairs, the age of BBQ is upon us and there’s nothing as American as grilling on the back porch with friends in summer. Today the American food supply is among the safest in the world, however that doesn’t mean that foodborne illness isn’t a major risk for consumers. In fact, the Federal Government estimates that there are about 48 million cases of foodborne illness annually—the equivalent of sickening 1 in 6 Americans each year. And each year these illnesses result in an estimated 128,000 hospitalizations and 3,000 deaths. In order to prevent foodborne illness it’s important to remember safe meal preparations, and some of these listed on this blog may not be as common as you think.

Premature Browning and Persistent Pink

Myoglobin is an iron- and oxygen-binding protein found in the muscle tissue of vertebrates  and plays a large role in determining beef color in the raw and cooked state or meat. When exposed to air, myoglobin forms the pigment, oxymyoglobin, which gives meat a cherry-red color.
Premature Browning occurs when meat appears brown on the outside, but hasn’t achieved a safe internal temperature. Some ground beef patties can develop an internal, brown cooked color and look well-done at temperatures as low as 131 ̊F.

Consumers view ground beef patties that are pink in the middle as being undercooked and unsafe when these patties may be fully cooked and safe to eat, this process is called persistent pinkness. As long as the internal temperature on meat products has reached 160 ̊F (165 ̊F for Poultry Products) then it’s safe to consume. Remember, you can’t tell whether meat is safely cooked by looking at it, always have a meat thermometer ready to use.

Cross Contamination
Cross-contamination occurs when harmful bacteria from one food crosses on to another. Cross contamination occurs when handling raw meat, especially poultry meat, because it contains more liquid than other meats. Unfortunately, there is no way of telling that meat is contaminated with Campylobacter or Salmonella. Therefore, it is advisable to treat all meat as potentially contaminated. When handling meats it’s important to have separate utensils that handle the meat in both raw and cooked state, this includes plates, tongs, and other utensils. Also, it’s important to keep other foods away from raw meat when preparing foods including using separate chopping boards.

Defrosting

It’s common to forget to thaw something for dinner and some consumers grab a package of meat or chicken and use hot water to thaw it fast. And for some consumers who remembered to take food out of the freezer, leave the package on the counter all day. Neither of these situations is considered safe, and these methods of thawing may lead to foodborne illness. Raw or cooked meat, poultry or egg products, as any perishable foods, must be kept at a safe temperature during thawing. As soon as meat begins to thaw and become warmer than 40 °F, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to multiply.

Perishable foods should never be thawed on the counter, or in hot water and must not be left at room temperature for more than two hours. Even though the center of the package may still be frozen as it thaws on the counter, the outer layer of the food could be in the "Danger Zone," between 40 and 140 °F — temperatures where bacteria multiply rapidly. When thawing frozen food, it's best to plan ahead and thaw in the refrigerator where it will remain at a safe, constant temperature — at 40 °F or below. There are three safe ways to thaw food: in the refrigerator, in cold water, and in the microwave, cook meat that has been thawed in the microwave immediately.

Grilling meat is fun, and shouldn’t cause problems for your family or friends this summer. Follow these tips and your BBQ and smoking days should be a breeze, don’t and you’ll make a “missed steak."

Cheers,
Conrad
 

 

Hormones in Beef: The Rest of the Story

Alright, so I want to talk a little bit about hormones in beef cattle.  I mean we all know a lot about them, mass media tells about them almost daily, about how they are bad for us and how they increase the risk of cancer.  But what has always puzzled me is why we only hear about hormones in the beef industry, and about how hormone consumption in beef is going to kill us.  Well I want to tell you a little bit of the rest of the story.  Yes, it is true conventionally raised beef does contain hormones.  It contains 1.9 nanograms per 3 ounce serving.  This is compared to all natural certified organic beef which contains 1.5 nanograms per 3 ounce serving.  That is a difference of .4 nanograms per 3 ounce serving.  That is decimal point with eight zeros and a four behind it (.000000004).  There is not much of a difference.  Now compare that to a food like soybeans.  Soybeans contain phytoestrogens which have been proven to be hormonally active in humans, per three ounce serving of soybean oil there are 168,000 nanograms of phytoestrogens.  Per three ounce serving of cabbage there are 2016 nanograms of estradiol.  Both of these foods contain no meat and are used frequently in vegetarian and vegan diets.

According to USDA numbers an average per capita 60 pounds of beef is consumed per person per year in the United States.  That works out to be 320-three ounce servings per year per person.  Which in turn comes to approximately 1077.17 nanograms of estradiol per year from beef consumption.

Now I want to compare that number to something that is practiced by thousands of women every day in the United States: birth control.  What I have here is a progesterone based birth control product.  It contains .035 mg of estradiol per pill and is based on a 28 day cycle so there are 21 active pills in a dispenser of this product.  If you consider a woman who uses this product for one year, that is 252 pills or 8,820 nanograms of estradiol per year.  Remember the amount estradiol per year from beef was 1077 nanograms per year. Approximately eight times more estrogen from progesterone based birth control than from beef. Now let’s consider a woman who takes an estrogen based birth control pill. They contain 35,000 nanograms of estradiol per pill which for the same 252 pill year works out to be 8,820,000 nanograms of estradiol per year.  That is approximately equal to 875,868 lbs of beef.  Or on a hot carcass weight basis, that is like eating 1100 steers per year per person.  That works out to be just a little over three steers per person per day.  So in summary for every one pill of estrogen based birth control consumed it is like eating 3 whole cows by yourself, daily. 

If you want to trim hormones out of your diets, beef should probably not be the first place you look. 

Thanks for reading and please let us know if you have questions and leave your comments below!

~ Nick Henning

…The chicken or the egg?

Poultry is not my expertise, nor is it my favorite meat to have at a meal. However, I recently started a position at my company in poultry marketing, and I have to say, the industry is fascinating.

According to the USDA Livestock, Poultry and Dairy Outlook June Report, the United States produces more pounds of chicken, 37.8 million (2013) to be exact, than any other meat. Add the layers with more than 6.8 million dozen eggs (2013), and you have a very large and concentrated industry.

Some background on the poultry business is helpful in understanding how your chicken and eggs are produced. This is a vertically integrated business, meaning companies control almost every point of production. (See the diagram below.) Poultry growers, or the people who raise chickens, can be contracted by a larger company, but it’s important to realize that the individual sites are usually operated by families. By owning and/or operating every point of the business, including breeding, growing broilers, raising layers (the chickens which lay the eggs), and the processing and packaging, a company can increase efficiencies and decrease costs.

 

Diagram Credit: http://ag.ansc.purdue.edu/nielsen/www245/lecnotes/unit2.html

Through advances in research and technology, the business of raising chickens and turkeys has changed dramatically over time. See this video for an inside look at a primary breeder farm, one of the only parts of the poultry industry not included in the vertically integrated system. This farm focuses on producing females for broilers (the chicken we all eat) and males for breeding. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ7rrHYmFiQ)

I know many people question the poultry industry on the way they do certain things. However, one thing we can’t question is how much food they produce to feed people across the world. The turnaround on producing a broiler is under 14 weeks which means we can have a lot of chicken in a little amount of time.

 When it comes to making meat, they ain’t no chicken… Get it? J

Your fill-in poultry “expert,”
Cassie Kniebel

Meals that Matter - Tyson Cares

Tyson Foods, Inc., unveiled a new truck in April of 2012. It's a 53-foot semi-trailer and it recently departed Tyson's headquarters in Arkansas towards disaster-stricken Moore, Oklahoma.

Meals that Matter

On board the truck? 20,000 pounds of meat, grills, volunteers, sanitation supplies, tents and Wi-Fi.

Josh Tyson, Chairman of Tyson Foods, announced that the company has always had a disaster-relief program that respond and mobilizes when people need it most. The Meals That Matter truck just puts a new face to the initiative.

Meals That Matter

Hot meals and a few supplies. I can't think of a better way to help those suffering in Moore than that.

Way to go Tyson!

Tera

Rain makes corn.... and is a good thing!

I've started off a rather somber post with a song - I hope you enjoy having it stuck in your head for the rest of the day - also, I LOVE the intro to this song. These farmers are really adamant about the critical role rain plays in food production.

Corn makes lots of other things besides whiskey by the way; cereals, baking powder, vegetable oil. You get the point.

As you've probably noticed, there hasn't been much rain in the midwest this year - or in general, actually. In fact, a report from the USDA as of August 1 highlighted pointed out the following sad facts:

- 65% of U.S. farms are in areas experiencing drought
- Severe or greater drought is impacting 65 pecent of cattle production, and about 75 percent of corn and soybean production.
- As of August 1, more than half of U.S. counties had been designated as disaster areas by USDA in 2012, mainly due to drought.

I live in God's country (Kansas) and we've needed rain badly for the past 2-3 months. In fact, the state of Kansas has placed all 105 counties into a drought emergency status and all but 3 Kansas counties have been declared a disaster. The good news is that it's supposed to rain tonight; the bad news is that when we really needed the rain, it was nowhere to be found.

In May, which is a very crucial time on the corn growing timeline (most corn is planted in late April), Kansas received a statewide average of 1.10 inches of rain. That's not very much to get good seedling growth started. June and July didn't treat us much better which has really had a negative effect on both corn and soybean growth.

For visual explanation let's look at this ear of corn

that came from this field near my hometown in Anderson County, Kansas. That's my husband's hand and that ear of corn is only about 4.5 inches long. This is a sad, sad sight for farmers.

Folks, it's August 8. Corn fields aren't supposed to look like this for another six weeks or so. There are just a few tiny specks of green in that field, some fields don't have any green in them and the corn stalks are half the height of this field.

Then compare to this ear of corn from Wood County, Ohio, where they've gotten  more rain this year than we Kansans- about 2.6 inches in May. That number is still a decrease from their normal precipitation but if you look at the difference that an inch of rain can have on a corn crop, that's a pretty important inch!

Here they are side by side - again, the corn from Ohio is on the left and although it's not near the size that farmers would like, it is better than our poor little Kansas ears.

            

So what does all of this rain and crop talk mean for you, the consumer? Unfortunately, food prices will likely increase in the long run and let me explain how.

Livestock producers (beef, pork) are having to cull their herds to avoid spending so much money on feeds. This could lead to a short-term increase in the meat supply which will lower costs. However, in the long run, once the shortage of corn and soybeans reaches the retail end (cornmeal, flour, cereal) we'll likely see an increase in grocery prices.

Furthermore, if producers are selling off parts of the herd now, they will have less to sell in 10-12 months which will probably lead to a long-term increase in meat prices.

So, if in the next 6 months you notice meat prices decrease only to increase again, please don't be upset with the farmer or grocery store. Farmers, especially livestock producers, are getting hit very hard this year. Many crop producers have insurance but that type of reassurance isn't available for beef, pork and poultry producers. They must feed their livestock regardless of feed prices because they're committed to utmost care for their animals. To read more about the strain on livestock producers and the perilous conditions that Mother Nature has created, you can read this blog post by pork producer, Chris Chinn.

We'd love to hear your thoughts and concerns about the drought or your situation. Leave us some comment love!

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Fourth of July Safety

This post has a double meaning: food safety and fire safety.

 While we all know that July is in the heat (literally) of the summer and is the perfect time for grilling and fireworks, we need to be mindful of two points.

1. Remember to use a food thermometer when you're grilling. Sure, it's hot and you want to get the meat off the grill and onto your plate. But you could be in another kind of rush later on if  you don't make sure that your foods have been cooked to proper temperatures to kill any bacteria that may exist. Here are the proper cooking temps for your 4th of July activities:

      Ground beef/pork/lamb - safe and savory at 160 °F
      Ground turkey/chicken -  165 °F

      Steak - Medium - Rare 145 °F
                  Medium - 155 °F
                  Medium - Well 165 °F
                  Well Done 170 °F - I included this for reference sake, but it hurts to do so!

       Poultry - Chicken & Turkey, Whole 180 °F
                  Breast Meat 170 °F
                  Thighs, Wings & Legs 180 °F
                   **Salmonella is killed at 165 °F

       Pork - roasts, tenderloins and chops - 145 °F  (no higher; nobody likes dry pork)! 

2. Fireworks are awesome. I'm actually a pyromaniac and am one of the first people to buy fireworks on the day the stands open. But we're in a drought now and we all know that fire + dry pastures/hay fields = horrible fast-spreading disaster. If you are in a county with a burn ban in place, consider driving to a neighboring county and watching a sponsored fireworks show. I'm likely going to the Wamego, KS show (it's one of the best in the state). One night of fun shooting off bottle rockets and roman candles isn't worth the devastation of charred fields.

With these safety steps in mind - have a great holiday! And as always, remember the true reason for the season. We are a free country thanks to those who have gone before us and those who continue to fight for our freedoms.

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Will You Eat Beef in 2012?

I hope so. I know I will - I'm addicted and I know I'm not the only one. I live in a town with a very heavy population of farmers, farm kids and rural dwellers who are all very proud promoters of beef. Don't forget about the countless burger joints in Manhattan that are frequented by a hungry college town. However, with all the love we give beef, consumption is predicted to fall this year. Why? Instead of telling you, I'll just let you read this article.
Is Beef Still on the Table?

Within it you'll find scientific data to show that beef producers have become much more efficient with their natural resources. You'll also find out why beef consumption could decline, while pork and poultry are holding steady.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Grocery Shopping: No Longer Just for Women!

Men,

  Congratulations, you are no longer completely relegated to only the traditional tasks of car care, plumbing and lawn mowing. Although this unfortunately means we may have to wash a dish or fold a load of laundry every now and then, it also means we get to be involved in something we been wanting to for a long time......buying groceries!

   According to a consumer report by Yahoo and the market research firm DB5, in a survey of 1,000 fathers, 51% consider themselves to be the primary grocery shoppers for the household. With more men taking the reins of the cart, companies like Proctor & Gamble are adapting their grocery offerings to more accurately target this growing demographic.

   So-called "man-aisles" have been popping up around the country in Wal-Mart, Target, Walgreens and other chains  since 2009. Some have described their inclusion as the pinnacle of western civilization. To paint a better picture of the "man-aisle" environment, I particularly enjoyed this quote from the Chicago Tribune:

       "What is the man aisle like? The man aisle is slightly colder than room temperature and smells faintly of cedar and wet dog. The shelves are eight feet high. There is a basket filled with old baseball gloves and hammers and a rack filled with cassette tapes with pictures of trucks on them. In some places there are small fires. All the people in the man aisle stand with their arms crossed and skeptical looks on their faces. Sometimes they sing rounds together, and roll an empty keg down the aisle. No one has ever left."

That description made me pretty excited to find a "man-aisle" in my area, so if anybody knows of one near Manhattan, KS let me know. I'm up for a road trip to go buy myself some beer, bacon and cheese!

Cheers,


Hyatt

Turkey Talk

A couple of days ago, turkey was the talk of the town. It was the center of millions of dinner tables. It was the star of the show. I don't know a whole lot about raising turkeys on a commercial level, but I did raise 4 birds one year for my 4-H project. You know who knows quite a bit about raising turkeys?

This guy!

http://cjonline.com/news/2011-11-23/kansan-does-more-just-talk-turkey#.TtKtZbIr27s


Enjoy!

Tera Rooney

Red Meat - Green Facts

That's a fun little way of saying meat is sustainable and environmentally friendly. It's also the name of a website, which was created by Meat and Livestock Australia, that aims to "discuss the issues of sustainable farming practices." On the site you can further explore information about the "impact of farming on our environment and the proactive initiatives undertaken by farmers and processors across Australia."
One of my favorite features is a visual aid that helps consumers better grasp the supply chain from farm to fork. Check it out below:

Image courtesy www.redmeatgreenfacts.com.au

Other links include facts about reducing water usage, myth busting (similar to this post), responsible land management and school projects. The myth busting tab is one of my faves.

 

For anyone looking to delve further into the facts behind food production, I highly encourage you check out this site. Although it was developed in Australia, many of the same principles and practices apply to farmers and ranchers here in the U.S. Furthermore, it's always a bonus to learn about agriculture in other countries, because it fosters critical thinking on how the global agriculture industry can improve worldwide.

 

Until next time,

~ Buzzard ~

 

Cooking Pork is Cooler Than Before....

After ordering the pork chop dinner at your favorite restaurant, the waiter asks, "How would you like that cooked?"

Sounds out of place, huh?

Well, not anymore, as pork producers across the US are welcoming the news that the USDA has officially lowered the recommended cooking temperature for pork to 145 degrees Fahrenheit. This means pork will now be held to the same standard as the other red meats: beef, veal and lamb.

Why is this so important to people within the pork industry? I can attest that as a person who would definitely order pork from a menu whenever possible, I can't count the times I've been disappointed by pork that has been dried out and overcooked, making for a pretty disappointing meal. However, when I cooked pork at home, I knew that I could leave it a little pink in the middle and enjoy a juicy, tender piece of meat that would rival a well-cooked steak or lamb chop.
Although the recommended temperature has been lowered by USDA, it may take a long time to get everyday consumers to leave a touch of pink in their pork on the backyard BBQ.

"People have been taught this for generations and it's going to take a long time to get this removed," said Rob Weland, a chef at Poste Moderne Brasserie, an upscale restaurant in Washington."It will be good for the next generation not to be so fearful so they can enjoy pork in a way they may not have been able to in the past."

The USDA decided to make the change after years of research and discussions with food safety experts. Pork producers had proposed the change in 2008, where they cited improved feed quality and cleaner, safer indoor environments as improvements that have reduced the risk of pathogens in pork.

Although producers and consumers alike should be excited that all red meat can now be cooked to a standard temperature, 145 degrees F, those of us within the industry understand that traditions don't change overnight and this event marks the beginning of a long campaign to better educate pork consumers nationwide.

I gotta admit, so far this year, Pork's doing a good job at inspiring me!

Cheers,

Hyatt

Slaughtering Cattle for Beef

When having conversations about meat, there's often language that people adopt to make things sound a bit less harsh. Excuse me if you prefer that language because this post is just plain honest. I'm not going to insert the word harvest instead of saying slaughter because I believe you harvest corn and you slaughter cattle and I'm just going to say it like it is! I also believe that if you are a consumer interested in engaging in conversations about where your meat comes from, you'd rather hear it first hand than have an edited "family-friendly" version come across.

So there is my disclaimer, there's nothing pretty about slaughtering animals for human consumption. It's necessary in my mind and it should be handled humanely and with an appropriate amount of respect.

Beyond making sure animals are handled humanely I also think consumers really want to make sure that the food they are getting is safe. After spending a week mentoring with a USDA Veterinary Medical Officer in Dodge City, KS, I have become even more aware of how safe our food supply in the US is. As a USDA Vet in a meat packing plant, food safety and public health is a number one concern. We spent most of our time at National Beef and some at Cargill. I was very impressed with the plants I toured and Vets I learned so much from. These are a few things I wanted to share:

• Utmost respect. Bottom line, there is nothing pretty about death and the process of taking a live animal and moving it through a system to become food for people. Just because it isn't pretty doesn't mean it isn't handled with a high level of respect. Feel good about the process that takes place in the US because I saw first hand how much respect these animals were treated with. They were given more than enough room in the holding pens to lay down, move around and drink clean water. As they moved closer to the knocking box (where they are rendered unconscious to pain) it was a very quiet and smooth process. Workers moved cattle along calmly, taking advantage of the natural behaviors of cattle and herding them through the alley ways.
• Stringent standards. Rendering animals unconscious to pain is a process taken very seriously in packing plants. Cattle are stunned with a captive bolt that humanely euthanizes each animal and screwing that process up is pretty much zero tolerance. There is a plant employee whose only job is to closely monitor each calf that comes through after being euthanized to make sure that the stunner did it's job.
• Visible pride. The plants that I visited employ a lot of people. It takes a large number of people to make everything work in a shift. The resounding feeling I got from the employees I got a chance to interact with is that they are all very proud of what they do. Feeding a growing population is a noble sector of the work force and meat packing plants in SWKS are in large part providing the world with beef. The employees should be proud, National Beef and Cargill are two outstanding companies that are literally helping to feed the world.
• Integration for success. If you think the cattle business isn't integrated, think again. There are so many factors and sectors of the cattle industry that go into a steak on your dinner plate. One thing I was very impressed with from a Veterinary standpoint was that before cattle even get to a slaughterhouse, the feedyards and cattle producers are just flat doing things right! From what I saw, a lot of credit should be given to the feedyard and cow-calf man when a steer or heifer enters the food chain. Cattle were in good condition, health and physical. Cattle were also overall very uniform which traces back to the genetics that producers have adopted and implemented.
• Hurdles for safety. If you think a carcass is given a once-over and deemed either safe for human consumption or not, think again!!! Carcasses in US meat plants are inspected so many times that I lost track for the first few days. There are so many opportunities for USDA trained inspectors and veterinarians to check for anything that might deem a carcass unsafe for human consumption. This is a wonderful system and is the reason we have the safest food supply in the world.

There's a reason I was impressed this past week by our food system. We are doing things right in the United States. There are a lot of hoops to jump through and a lot of eyes watching to make sure these hoops are jumped through. I'm sure glad it's that way. It keeps the integrity of agriculture in tact and more importantly it keeps our food safe. As a farm girl from Kansas in vet school, I was pretty excited after leaving the packing plant on Friday. I was proud of what people in my part of the country are doing to make sure that people in other parts of the world have beef available to eat. Did you know that 25% of the beef slaughtered in the US comes from SWKS? Feel good about it, folks, because I have personally spent time in 3/4 of the plants in that part of the state and they are doing things right!

My best,

Tera

Beef. It's whats for sale!

If you've been to your local grocer's butcher counter lately, you've probably noticed the price of beef and other proteins is high! The All Fresh Beef price for the month of April posted a record level at $4.45 per pound.

So what's the reason for the jump in prices? While many factors have contributed to this situation, one of the biggest has been exports of our product to foreign consumers. Beef and veal exports for March were 46% higher than they were one year ago! Leading the way for this increase is South Korea which imported over three times as much US beef in March 2011 as they did in March 2010. You may recall news stories about the Foot-and-Mouth outbreak in South Korea late last year. In order to prevent the highly contagious disease from spreading, over one million head of hogs and cattle had to be euthanized. This created a huge domestic supply shortfall. South Korea has turned to foreign trading partners to meet its growing demand for beef.

And where do we go from here? Growing demand from Asian countries for animal based protein diets and a very favorable currency exchange rate point to the fact that exports will remain high. (As a sidenote, we are now exporting beef at the same level we were in 2003 before concerns over BSE shut us off from many trading partners). Fortunately for consumers, we are also coming into a seasonal period of higher beef supplies which will moderate retail prices near term.

How have higher food prices affected your grocery shopping habits?

Busting the Meat Myths

The American Meat Institute has recently announced the development of a new site called Meat MythCrushers.  The sites's goal is to "crush the myths and provide you with referenced facts so you can make informed choices that are right for you." The AMI has equipped the site with several short videos to crush and clarify myths that have been formed about the animal agriculture and meat industry.  The mythcrusher videos address topics such as animal well-being, antibiotic use and grass fed vs. grain fed beef.

The site also provides a new resource for consumers; a long list of meat and animal science professionals and experts with extensive knowledge in food production, safety and distribution. Additionally, consumer brochures are available for downloading.

I consider myself a pretty well informed consumer and even I learned a heap after I spent a good twenty minutes perusing the website. I think it's important that we all understand the values, principles and science that go into producing the nation's meat supply.  Head on over to Meat Mythcrushers and give it a looksy. You won't regret it!

Until next time,
~ Buzzard ~

Pasture to Plate

Food For Thought is all about getting good information about agriculture out there to consumers. You deserve to know how your food is made if you are willing and ready to see it. Food production isn't easy or glamorous, but it needs to be done because there are a lot of hungry people out there!

Here is a video that was shared by a colleague of mine. It's a great example of a man who is passionate about what he does. He takes his job seriously and understands the value of an animal's life. He is a great advocate for the meat and agriculture industry and I happily send you to this link:

http://gizmodo.com/#!5793294/watch-how-animals-turn-into-delicious-meat-plus-bonus-shot-of-blowtorched-pig

There are a lot of videos circulated on the internet that show meat packing plants in a negative light. Here's the truth, straight from a small packer in New York.

My Best,

Tera

Kill it, Cook it, Eat it

Sounds pretty gruesome doesn't it? Actually, I'm quite a fan of this show featured on BBC that started in 2007. This show takes a group of 6 participants through the process of how livestock are raised in the UK, slaughtering and processing the carcass and eventually eating the resulting product. Designed similar to a reality show format, this show is not simply a tutorial of how to butcher animals, but brings together participants from a wide array of backgrounds and everybody gets their hands dirty. Participants are shown everything from how to castrate baby pigs and deliver vaccines to properly stunning and exsanguinating the animal to maintain the integrity of the meat. After slaughter, trained butchers take participants through the process of how the carcass is utilized for a variety of meat products.

In the 2011 season, the cast includes both vegetarians and meat-eaters, including those who were raised on the farm and urban socialites. Throughout each episode, there is dialogue between the participants about how animals are housed, slaughtered and consumed and their personal opinions about each step in the process.

Designed to show viewers the real process from pasture to plate, Kill it, Cook it, Eat it does a masterful job of providing an unbiased view of livestock production and the slaughter and butchering process. Whether you are an avid meat-eater, cautious skeptic, or a life-long vegetarian, this show has appeal for everyone so be sure to check it out!

Oprah Went Vegan for 1 Week - supposedly...

Have you heard the hype? The 'Oprah went vegan' hype, that is.  Earlier today, Oprah hosted Michael Pollan and Kathy Freston as she revealed the results of her 1-Week Vegan challenge. The challenge consisted of Oprah, and 378 of her associates, living vegan for a whole week. But did they really achieve their goal?

Sure, they didn't eat any meat or dairy products. But did they remove the hundreds of other animal products from their lives as well?  I have my doubts. Why? Well, in cattle, everything from the carcass is used. No part of the animal is wasted. For further explanation take a look at this picture.

I have a feeling that Oprah didn't give up cosmetics (udder), shampoo or conditioner (hooves/horns), glass (bones), candles or perfume (both from fat). The absolute truth is that we need animal products to live our everyday lives.

Also during this segment, viewers got to see Lisa Ling, Oprah journalist, take a tour of a Cargill meat plant. My props go out to Cargill for opening their doors to skeptists.  As expected, the plant treated the animals humanely and the meat was processed and packed safely and without mistake. Cargill's actions were a great example of transparency and should make agriculture very proud.

Bottom line - Eating meat is not evil. That is a direct quote from Michael Pollan (who is NOT by the way a 'food expert') but he hit the nail square on the head. Exercise, in partnership with a balanced diet full of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy AND meat, is the best way to experience a healthy lifestyle. The Oprah segment had some positive effects - it got people to thinking and talking about their food choices and options. Informed consumers are not a bad outcome.  

If you are interested in learning more about humane farm animal welfare - sign in to Twitter tonight at 7 pm CST and participate in #agchat. Several FFT members will be participating, as well as farmers and ranchers from around the nation.

Until next time,

~ Buzzard ~

Meatless Mondays

Recently you may have heard of a new movement in the school lunch programs, referred to as Meatless Mondays. Using a marketing dichotomy targeted at adolescents, Meatless Monday is a non-profit initiative that encourages eliminating meat from your diet every Monday of every week.

I have a problem with this idea of eliminating one food group in meals served to school-aged children for the following simple reasons:

1. I think the aim should be to teach children to make healthy eating decisions every day. Healthy, square meals include moderated servings of fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and meat. I don't like the idea of trying to teach children this concept, by eliminating one of the food groups on one day of the week. We all, and especially children, need all of the food groups EVERY DAY of the week.
2. Budgets drive school lunch menu decisions, and we'd all like to see meal options improve in schools, however eliminating a major protein source from the meal is not the answer. Students need nutritious meals to fuel their activities throughout the day and that includes a meal with meat.
3. Ounce for ounce, meat provides more vitamins and minerals than any other food products. Nutrient dense food products like beef, which provides zinc, iron, protein and Vitamin B12, should be included in a healthy lunch.

These are the three reasons that I don't agree with the promotion of Meatless Mondays and I am some of you have an opinion on the matter. Pro or con, let me know what you think about this initiative in schools across the US. Leave some comments and good discussion!

All my best,

Tera Rooney

Interesting Advocacy

Sometimes pictures speak for themselves. Go meat!