Re: USDA Inspected

January 1, 2004

All these inspection/approval stamp things ect ect is just political

corrections to appease the minds of ppl.

And when something goes wrong gvntmt always has excuses ready like. Well it

is USDA tested but looks like we need to be more thorough. There will be

investigations ect.

Sux lol

_____

From: Heidi Schuppenhauer [mailto:heidis@...]

Sent: Friday, 2 January 2004 8:47 AM

Subject: USDA Inspected

If you decide to buy beef directly from the farmer, one of the

things you will hear from people is " but it isn't

USDA inspected. " I never had much ammunition to address

that one, but an ex-USDA inspector said

some revealing things you might want to keep handy ...

http://villagevoice.com/issues/0353/mondo1.php

After some children died from an E. coli outbreak in the 90s, Lehman

told about his work: " I merely walk to the back of the truck. That's all I'm

allowed to do. Whether there's boxed meat or carcasses in the truck, I can't

touch the boxes. I can't open the boxes. I can't use a flashlight. I can't

walk into the truck. I can only look at what is visible in the back of the

trailer. " He told one interviewer how he did his inspections: " I've just

inspected over 80,000 pounds of meat (boxed beef rounds and boxed boneless

beef briskets) on two trucks. I wasn't running or hurrying either. One was

bound for Santa Fe Springs, California, the other for San , California.

I just stamped on their paperwork 'U.S.D.A. Inspected and Passed' in 45

seconds. "

This is a good article about what has been going on since the mad cow in

Washington ...

-- Heidi

January 1, 2004

This makes me think that our community of advocates of animal foods

for their nutritional benefits should focus more attention on

advocating better farming/processing practices than trying to

convince people that " meat is good " . We cheer at the deconstruction

of the lipid myths and the rabid popularity of low-carb diets, yet

these things implicitly sanction greater consumption of supermarket

beef when unaccompanied by clear expositions of the agricultural

nightmare we are in the midst of. Many of us make an effort to

obtain properly raised beef, but we are still propagating a culture

of wildly irresponsible beef-centrism. While I eat 100% grass-fed,

conscientiously raised, local beef almost everyday, I struggle

conceptually with this beef-centrism and have my eyes open for ways

to support greater diversity of meats, especially wild meats, but

there are so many obstacles on this wiser path that I feel trapped by

my culture.

The following passage in the article Heidi posted really gives me

pause:

@@@@@@@

The late Ed Abbey had it right when he declared, " The rancher—with a

few honorable exceptions—is a man who strings barbed wire all over

the range; drills wells and bulldozes stock ponds; drives off elk and

antelope and bighorn sheep; poisons coyotes and prairie dogs; shoots

eagles, bears, and cougars on sight; supplants the native grasses

with tumbleweed, snakeweed, povertyweed, cow shit, anthills, mud,

dust, and flies. And then leans back and grins at the TV cameras and

talks about how he loves the American West. "

@@@@@@@@

This makes me realize how rich our natural animal food resources are

in this country, yet we are ridiculously fixated on cows, chickens,

and pigs. Reading books like " Unmentionable Cuisine "

and " Curiosities of Food " overwhelms me with the magnitude of animal

food resources untapped in our current culture but rich with

historical precedent.

One of the great virtues of WAPF is the focus on integrating

nutritional, ecological, and social considerations in our foodways,

and it cannot be denied that it is a frighteningly daunting battle to

restore the primacy of small farms and local food distribution in the

face of disastrous large-scale agricultural practices. Nevertheless,

while this battle is urgent and necessary, more and more I'm

beginning to question the fundamental premises of the agricultural

model common to both WAPF-style family farms and mega-farms,

namely " cows, chickens, pigs, a handful of (often genetically

bastardized) vegetables and fruits, to hell with anything else " .

Thinking about the diversity and healthfulness of wild foods and

Masanobu Fukuoka's Natural Farming, I'm really not convinced that the

WAPF agricultural ideal takes things far enough. We are fighting

nature and losing badly.

Analogous remarks can be made for our sea animal foodways. Factory-

farmed fish anyone?

beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef beef

Mike

SE Pennsylvania

January 1, 2004

> This is a good article about what has been going on since the mad

cow in Washington ...

>

> -- Heidi

Heidi,

Last year the Seattle, Washington TV station KIRO-TV had an

investigation about downer cows. You can read about this here:

http://www.kirotv.com/station/2249324/detail.html

The investigation series can be viewed from the links under the

header " Downer cows investigation " .

Marieta

January 2, 2004

Unfortunately if the children who died from E-coli had consumed

traditional diets their own bodies would have killed the E-coli long

before it had a chance to cause problems. Sad but true.

Bee

>

> If you decide to buy beef directly from the farmer, one of the

> things you will hear from people is " but it isn't

> USDA inspected. " I never had much ammunition to address

> that one, but an ex-USDA inspector said

> some revealing things you might want to keep handy ...

>

> http://villagevoice.com/issues/0353/mondo1.php

>

> After some children died from an E. coli outbreak in the 90s,

Lehman told about his work: " I merely walk to the back of the truck.

That's all I'm allowed to do. Whether there's boxed meat or carcasses

in the truck, I can't touch the boxes. I can't open the boxes. I

can't use a flashlight. I can't walk into the truck. I can only look

at what is visible in the back of the trailer. " He told one

interviewer how he did his inspections: " I've just inspected over

80,000 pounds of meat (boxed beef rounds and boxed boneless beef

briskets) on two trucks. I wasn't running or hurrying either. One was

bound for Santa Fe Springs, California, the other for San ,

California. I just stamped on their paperwork 'U.S.D.A. Inspected and

Passed' in 45 seconds. "

>

> This is a good article about what has been going on since the mad

cow in Washington ...

>

> -- Heidi

January 2, 2004

Mike, I agree with you that the common meats consumed from farms,

that may be destroying natural habitat and wild meats, is not the way

to go. When I was growing up in Northern Wisconsin both of my

grandfathers had dairy farms and also raised pigs and chickens so we

got our share of domestic meats. But we also had lots of locally

obtained wild meat, i.e. deer, rabbit, squirrel, racoon, partridge,

quail, pheasant, duck, goose, turkey, fish from the nearby Chippewa

River, etc.

Occasionally my father would go on a hunting trip out West and bring

back elk or bear. The women in our family were also hunters. One

Fall when father was hunting out West my mother shot a deer and a few

birds to feed us in the meantime.

Bee

> This makes me think that our community of advocates of animal foods

> for their nutritional benefits should focus more attention on

> advocating better farming/processing practices than trying to

> convince people that " meat is good " . We cheer at the

deconstruction

> of the lipid myths and the rabid popularity of low-carb diets, yet

> these things implicitly sanction greater consumption of supermarket

> beef when unaccompanied by clear expositions of the agricultural

> nightmare we are in the midst of. Many of us make an effort to

> obtain properly raised beef, but we are still propagating a culture

> of wildly irresponsible beef-centrism. While I eat 100% grass-fed,

> conscientiously raised, local beef almost everyday, I struggle

> conceptually with this beef-centrism and have my eyes open for ways

> to support greater diversity of meats, especially wild meats, but

> there are so many obstacles on this wiser path that I feel trapped

by

> my culture.

>

> The following passage in the article Heidi posted really gives me

> pause:

>

> @@@@@@@

> The late Ed Abbey had it right when he declared, " The rancher—with

a

> few honorable exceptions—is a man who strings barbed wire all over

> the range; drills wells and bulldozes stock ponds; drives off elk

and

> antelope and bighorn sheep; poisons coyotes and prairie dogs;

shoots

> eagles, bears, and cougars on sight; supplants the native grasses

> with tumbleweed, snakeweed, povertyweed, cow shit, anthills, mud,

> dust, and flies. And then leans back and grins at the TV cameras

and

> talks about how he loves the American West. "

> @@@@@@@@

>

> This makes me realize how rich our natural animal food resources

are

> in this country, yet we are ridiculously fixated on cows, chickens,

> and pigs. Reading books like " Unmentionable Cuisine "

> and " Curiosities of Food " overwhelms me with the magnitude of

animal

> food resources untapped in our current culture but rich with

> historical precedent.

>

> One of the great virtues of WAPF is the focus on integrating

> nutritional, ecological, and social considerations in our foodways,

> and it cannot be denied that it is a frighteningly daunting battle

to

> restore the primacy of small farms and local food distribution in

the

> face of disastrous large-scale agricultural practices.

Nevertheless,

> while this battle is urgent and necessary, more and more I'm

> beginning to question the fundamental premises of the agricultural

> model common to both WAPF-style family farms and mega-farms,

> namely " cows, chickens, pigs, a handful of (often genetically

> bastardized) vegetables and fruits, to hell with anything else " .

> Thinking about the diversity and healthfulness of wild foods and

> Masanobu Fukuoka's Natural Farming, I'm really not convinced that

the

> WAPF agricultural ideal takes things far enough. We are fighting

> nature and losing badly.

>

> Analogous remarks can be made for our sea animal foodways. Factory-

> farmed fish anyone?

>

> Mike

> SE Pennsylvania

January 2, 2004

Dear Wanita,

We have a lot in common with our backgrounds.

Yes it is amazing how much beef is produced and how much it destroys

the environment. But I believe it is the methods used that destroys

the environment, much more so than if they were raised with plenty of

range land and provided the proper balance in nature, giving back to

the soil good manure as fertilizer.

Bee

> Pretty much how I grew up too, Bee even though Dad operated a

slaughterhouse

> with plenty of domestic raised next piece over from house when I was

> preschool age. Beef we bought from raisers well known from

slaughterhouse,

> neighbor raised chickens, we raised pigs, had Guernsey milk cow.

Fish or

> game was at least twice a week as he hunted every season but bear.

>

> What amazed me with the BSE case and the beef sanctions placed by

only a few

> of the foreign receiving countries is the amount of beef produced

here thats

> shipped out, fattens a few pockets and destroys everyone else's

environment.

>

> Wanita

>

> > Mike, I agree with you that the common meats consumed from farms,

> > that may be destroying natural habitat and wild meats, is not the

way

> > to go. When I was growing up in Northern Wisconsin both of my

> > grandfathers had dairy farms and also raised pigs and chickens so

we

> > got our share of domestic meats. But we also had lots of locally

> > obtained wild meat, i.e. deer, rabbit, squirrel, racoon,

partridge,

> > quail, pheasant, duck, goose, turkey, fish from the nearby

Chippewa

> > River, etc.

> >

> > Occasionally my father would go on a hunting trip out West and

bring

> > back elk or bear. The women in our family were also hunters. One

> > Fall when father was hunting out West my mother shot a deer and a

few

> > birds to feed us in the meantime.

> >

> > Bee

> >

January 2, 2004

Hi Heidi,

Where do you live? -R

Robin Stone, MS, RD

828-252-7408

> >When I was growing up in Northern Wisconsin both of my

> >> grandfathers had dairy farms and also raised pigs and chickens

so we

> >> got our share of domestic meats. But we also had lots of

locally

> >> obtained wild meat, i.e. deer, rabbit, squirrel, racoon,

partridge,

> >> quail, pheasant, duck, goose, turkey, fish from the nearby

Chippewa

> >> River, etc.

> >

> >If you want to do that, that's fine, but the world just isn't big

enough

> >to provide game for six billion people. Any minor problems that

there

> >may be with properly-farmed meats are at worst a necessary evil.

>

> Although, quail, goose, deer, rabbits, squirrels etc. coexist

quite nicely with

> beef herds. One farmer runs " chicken tractors " in the same field as

> the beef ... the chickens eat the manure and the parasites and the

> beef are more healthy. He made the observation that in Africa, the

> birds follow the ruminants and they live together. If one didn't

want

> to be chicken-centric, one could " seed " the beef fields with any

> game bird you like. Around here the hunters buy pheasant chicks

> and raise them for a few weeks, then release them into the fields.

>

> -- Heidi

January 3, 2004

Dear Wanita,

That's interesting that Mrs. Shaw got the kidneys. When I was

growing up we ate most of the organs of pigs and cows, i.e. heart,

kidneys, liver, etc. I have a funny story about pig kidneys - when I

was about 14 years old my Dad said he had a craving for pig kidneys

and got some for my mother to cook. He went out for awhile and when

he returned the pig kidneys were happily cooking on the stove, but it

stank like pee in the whole house. My Dad scrunched up his nose,

looked into the pot cooking on the stove and without a word picked up

the pot and put it outside. That was the end of cooking pig kidneys

in our house. Mother knew that they should be soaked for some time

in salt water but Dad had been in a hurry so I guess to save time she

had eliminated that step. LOL!

> Today's meat raising and agricultural practices methods have little

to do with how nature works. They legislate on small farmer's manure

runoff going into streams yet commercial operations can spew hundreds

of times more than that, nevermind pesticides, herbicides and

nitrogen based fertilizers. Mass monoculture is plain idiotic. Most

rural areas have the proper mix of grazing to growing land, as nature

made it in close enough proximity to support at least itself and the

nearest city. Having the world dependant on our products opens up the

door to trouble when things go wrong. Other countries purchasing the

tools for their own production would mean their own product

production and less dependancy. Can't have that. Doesn't seem worth

> that egg that is eventually going to fly back at you when it

doesn't work.<<<<<

So true Wanita.

Bee

January 3, 2004

> Although, quail, goose, deer, rabbits, squirrels etc. coexist quite

nicely with beef herds. One farmer runs " chicken tractors " in the

same field as the beef ... the chickens eat the manure and the

parasites and the beef are more healthy. He made the observation that

in Africa, the birds follow the ruminants and they live together. If

one didn't want to be chicken-centric, one could " seed " the beef

fields with any game bird you like. Around here the hunters buy

pheasant chicks and raise them for a few weeks, then release them

into the fields.<

>

> -- Heidi

That's great - I've never heard of " chicken tractors. " Chicken-

centric? LOL! Love your humour. It is good to have co-existence

and balance in nature to keep the ecosystem alive and thriving.

Bee

January 3, 2004

Heidi, Thanks. I had heard/read about the cages or pens moved for

chickens to change their range land but didn't realize it could be

called chicken tractor, nor that there were cages built for one

chicken. That's great.

Packing any animals or us into smaller spaces creates madness as

evidence by experiments on rats or mice.

Bee

>

> >That's great - I've never heard of " chicken tractors. " Chicken-

> >centric? LOL! Love your humour. It is good to have co-existence

> >and balance in nature to keep the ecosystem alive and thriving.

> >

> >Bee

>

> A chicken tractor is a big cage with chickens in it, which you move

> from spot to spot on a field. Really, it's hard to have

really " free "

> chickens, esp. if you want the eggs ... they tend to get eaten by

> coyotes or eat something toxic (we lose them regularly that way).

>

> I thought the term " chicken tractor " was because a tractor tows the

> cage, but the chickens also can ACT like a tractor. We built a

smaller

> cage ... you put it on a spot you want rototilled, and leave the

chickens

> in there awhile. They take out all the grass, AND all the bugs! And

fertilize.

> Then move the cage, and plant.

>

> Most of the problems with farming happen because, I think, of the

> " efficiency " drive in the 50's. The idea was to pack the animals

together

> to the max, to see how little space you could get away with. So you

keep

> the animals in cages, and stack the cages, and use automatic

feeders. When

> I was a kid I got quail, and I kept getting these ads for

commercial quail

> pens. Tiny cages, easy to clean.

>

> At a job I had, they had the same attitude on people ... to see how

little

> space you could cram one worker into. Hence Cubeland. Some people

> also talk about how the earth could support more people, if we just

> crammed together more. But " cramming " animals, or people, just

> doesn't work longterm ... there is a biological and social need for

> SPACE, and buffer zones.

>

> I don't think it's a matter of one animal being " better " than

another

> though. The vegetarians say raising all animals is bad

ecologically, and the fish

> eaters say beef is bad, etc., but all animals can be either grown

> ecologically or not, IF that is your goal. The average Seattle

neighborhood

> could support enough chickens to supply the egg needs of that

> neighborhood, and maybe a pig or two, and a goat or two, just on

> yard clippings and what goes down the garbage disposal. And if you

> get into humanure and gardening, they could probably grow most

> of their own vegies too.

>

> BTW speaking of pork, I knew a guy who put himself through college

> growing pigs ... he bought the little ones, and fed them from scraps

> he collected from restaurants. Don't know if that is still legal,

but

> it sure was ecological! Now if someone collected kudzu to raise

> goats ...

>

> -- Heidi

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