Sad news...

The Rocking Seven Mile Ranch is going out of the grass fed cattle business. Another small agricultural producer calls it quits.

I'm sad to see this happen and I've posted before here about the hardship of smaller business. I believe a large reason, among many, is how far removed people are from their food.

People don't think about that neatly wrapped package of 97% lean ground beef, the pretty package of brie or the nice bottle of wine they buy. They don't think about the animal or plant it came from, the life led, how it was fed or the additives/hormones/preservatives used before the end product was wrapped up and marketed in the store.

I was an Animal Science major in school. I had classes about nutrition, production and principals of the meat or crops going to market. I was one of maybe two people who didn't come to that area of study having grown up on a farm or ranch.

I grew up in suburbia, never stepping foot on a farm or ranch. I never had to make decisions about rotating crops, irrigation, culling animals from a herd, taking animals to the sale barn or to slaughter. Nope, I never had to learn any harvesting, planting, loss of crops or animals - animal doctoring, vaccinating, castrating, tattooing, ear tagging, birthing, breeding...

No one in my family ever lived on a farm or ranch. Animals lived in your house where they were loved, spoiled, named and slept in your bed.

I think there are many more people today than ever before who grew up in suburbia, far, far removed from the business of raising animals or crops for food than ever before.

Please buy locally when you can, support your local markets and take the time to know where your food comes from. Support the slow food movement.