GMO Rant

[shorthorsemom]

Cool, I never heard of creamline milk. that is a new one for this dairy farmer. Do you produce your own? We are so small here we are barely a step above amish in technology.

Dairy farmers have been to heck and back. We have seen folks complain while getting paid prices for milk close to 1930 prices. 2009 was a particularly bad year for dairy farmers and has continued and until recently milk prices did not pay enough to pay the bills.

Bless those dairy farmers still hanging on. Those farmers who have been through heck and still hang on because they believe in what they do.

In 2009 dairy farmers faced severe financial crisis and saw 50% drop in what they were paid for their milk. Imagine waking up one day and your employer told you that your paycheck would be cut in half and stay that way for years... and then...hey... you have to pay your employer money to work there. That is kind of what dairy farmers went through when production costs were higher than the paycheck and it was kind of like milking cows for free.

Not since the great depression have milk prices plummeted to that degree. It has been years in slow recovery and the $7-8 bucks a bushel for feed corn was even greater insult to anyone feeding animals grain. All the grain production guys were driving new trucks and the dairy farmers were culling cows and only keeping the best because they could not afford to feed them all.

Gorgeous dairy cows were being sent to slaughter because they were worth more for meat than you could afford to process the feed through the cow for milk. It was a crying shame.

Dairy farmers have quit in droves, even amish were stepping out of farming and farms that were in folks families

When the food crisis gets worse (and it will) you better make sure you are best friends with your local farm family.

Dairy milk is up, feed is down... folks think all is happy...ethanol mandates are being reduced.. grain is good... and then you look at the grain farmers... often renting land for high dollar and seeing the grain prices drop in half and they can no longer afford payments on their equipment. The unnatural tipping back and forth is not all due to weather.

You will not find a US dairy farmer still hanging on without passion and opinion. When you are surviving heck it is the only thing that keeps you hanging on.

And yes this all does relate to gmo topic. It goes hand in hand..

 

[Carriage]

Thanks 'Mom,

I do my very best to purchase from local farms who ARE doing it right. I would buy from you and especially live and real milk. Further I would send everybody in my community to you.

As to garlic NOT treating a uterine infection? Those of us with going on 25 years of learning and applying natural medicine know this is false as we have seen it to be false. These instances are not anecdotal, they are real and healed people. Another unarmed combatant........

Lastly I will correct what I really hope is a misstatement. Raw milk has NOT caused "alot of folk to be sick and poisoned". That is a talking point and has little to NO basis is fact. Raw milk is a wholesome food and as such a medicine as well. The raw milk diet has cured NUMEROUS folk over the years from all manner of disease. Was a feller many years ago open what would turn later into the Mayo clinic, a sanitarium devoted exclusively to treating disease with raw milk only. The results were nothing short of AMAZING and then....... buried. Again, truth is something you must seek for yourself. Restating spoon fed talking points only perpetuates myth and is NOT in your best interest.

Dang Yoda channelling...

Why waste we time here?

 

[Minimor]

There ya go--not sure why you fear Ebola...when quite obviously you can cure yourself....or protect yourself from infection in the first place...with some garlic added to a raw milk diet! No worries there...

I have to say that I am quite amazed at the fact that anyone who smokes is concerned about the effect of GMO. Avoid the unknown because it may be hazardous to your health, but smoke long term when it is a 100% KNOWN fact that cigarette smoking causes cancer? That just makes no sense to me.

There ya go--not sure why you fear Ebola...when quite obviously you can cure yourself....or protect yourself from infection in the first place...with some garlic added to a raw milk diet! No worries there...

I have to say that I am quite amazed at the fact that anyone who smokes is concerned about the effect of GMO. Avoid the unknown because it may be hazardous to your health, but smoke long term when it is a 100% KNOWN fact that cigarette smoking causes cancer? That just makes no sense to me.

 

[AngC]

Cool, I never heard of creamline milk. that is a new one for this dairy farmer. Do you produce your own? We are so small here we are barely a step above amish in technology.

...

You will not find a US dairy farmer still hanging on without passion and opinion. When you are surviving heck it is the only thing that keeps you hanging on.

And yes this all does relate to gmo topic. It goes hand in hand..

Whew!

It is, uhhhh, interesting, uhhh, errrr, to learn of issues confronting the people that 'make' my milk. I really did not realize the passion involved. I genuinely did not mean to upset people, although this sub-forum is touted as being for controversial issues. I think I should bow out; I was just trying to comment on/criticize people who beat up on GMO while they're feeding it to their horses. That was all.

 

[AngC]

I have to say that I am quite amazed at the fact that anyone who smokes is concerned about the effect of GMO. Avoid the unknown because it may be hazardous to your health, but smoke long term when it is a 100% KNOWN fact that cigarette smoking causes cancer? That just makes no sense to me.

There ya go--not sure why you fear Ebola...when quite obviously you can cure yourself....or protect yourself from infection in the first place...with some garlic added to a raw milk diet! No worries there...

I have to say that I am quite amazed at the fact that anyone who smokes is concerned about the effect of GMO. Avoid the unknown because it may be hazardous to your health, but smoke long term when it is a 100% KNOWN fact that cigarette smoking causes cancer? That just makes no sense to me.

This comment is confusing. I don't believe anyone in this thread, nor anyone on the ebola thread mentioned smoking cigarettes... except me. Well, shoot me. I smoked.

I certainly never indicated that I thought I could cure my potential, future lung cancer with raw milk and a dose of garlic. (Garlic's ok, but I do really love milk.)

I no longer smoke. I started at age 17 when I joined the Navy, and they sold packs for like 35 cents. At the time, nobody told you it was unhealthy. Everybody did it. If you went overseas or in a war zone, you could knock a dime off the price of each cig. pack.

Regardless, I'm still interested in the effects of GMO crops. I'm also interested in the effects of 2,4-D. I guess I'll probably die of lung cancer long before any of this is solved, but it does have an advantage; I can eat any darn thing I please, such as real butter, nice crispy bacon, that really good fat on the edge of the steak, since the cancer's going to take me. ahh, freedom. (oh, I really like the marrow in the bone too.)

 

[Minimor]

Whew!

It is, uhhhh, interesting, uhhh, errrr, to learn of issues confronting the people that 'make' my milk. I really did not realize the passion involved. I genuinely did not mean to upset people, although this sub-forum is touted as being for controversial issues. I think I should bow out; I was just trying to comment on/criticize people who beat up on GMO while they're feeding it to their horses. That was all.

Oh! Now I see. I was a bit confused by your initial post -- I thought you were opposed to GMO and were expressing anger that people feed it to their horses. ...which is why I was somewhat amazed that you are so opposed to GMO and yet you smoke (or did smoke). Much easier to have these conversations in person where extra questions are easier to ask, and where my puzzled face would have told you that you sort of lost me from the start!

 

[shorthorsemom]

I don't think anybody here is upset by anybody else's posts anywhere. I enjoy all opinions. That's the cool part about being an American. You can have your own opinion and express it.

enjoy your freedom here on the porch, it is what it is for. I read the porch first.

And this dairy farmer here enjoys sharing a little bit of her world to those folks who might just go to the store and not realize just what is involved from a farmers point of view. Honestly... how many folks ever see a farmer on the news "telling it like it is" . Not hardly.

They think farmers wear overalls and funny hats and stand in poop and say "yup" a lot because this is what they see on tv. Just kidding. I do remember my mom meeting my husband for the first time right after we started dating and "you don't look like a farmer" just slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself. 20 years later we still giggle when we get dressed up and say "hey, you clean up pretty nice for a farmer" haha

And AngC... I knew exactly what you were saying in your initial post. I thought it was a great start to a string on gmo. Doesn't it make you feel good that a post you started is already rated "hot" in so short a time.

I second guess my postings all the time and have often deleted many posts of mine because it was too personal... Feel free to be yourself.

cheers folks

 

[AngC]

Oh! Now I see. I was a bit confused by your initial post -- I thought you were opposed to GMO and were expressing anger that people feed it to their horses. ...which is why I was somewhat amazed that you are so opposed to GMO and yet you smoke (or did smoke). Much easier to have these conversations in person where extra questions are easier to ask, and where my puzzled face would have told you that you sort of lost me from the start!

I guess I need to work on clarity. I sure am glad that you're not irritated at me. I like these forums, and my opinion is not worth making people here angry. I assumed that you were upset about my comment on 2,4-D. We have several sprayers both manual and automated. I still wouldn't use 2,4-D on our pastures; however, I live in an area where I can find other means, so far. I don't even know what spurge is. ...must not be a problem here, but 2,4-D may be the only alternative in your area?

I don't get angry at what other people feed their horses. I try to read and learn from them. I've found that feeding incorrectly can be expensive in the form of vet bills plus anguish when a horse is in pain. Anyway, I sometimes see people post on the main forum, that feed their horses food that probably contains GMO product; then at other times, they post in a way that I interpret to mean they are anti-GMO. So I was thinking... perhaps they don't realize how pervasive GMO crops are?

I'm not opposed to GMO. I'm undecided. I genuinely do not know whether GMO crops are "bad" or "good." I don't think there's been enough research. I find it unsettling that GMO crops are "pushed" by some large corporations, at what I think is increased prices to our farmers for seed (and was wondering how the farmers feel about it.)

I don't like when a powerhouse corporation pushes their agenda on me to enhance their profits. Here's an example: Premarin. I was at the doctor, and he's telling me that all my menopausal problems would be solved by a prescription for Premarin. Prior to reading on the LB forums I had no clue what Premarin was. But I had seen a mention of Premarin here, did a little more research, and decided it wasn't for me. I figure, if I don't have the cojones to drink it out of the mare's hind-end, then I don't need it. I choose not to support Pfizer treating mares like that, just so I can sleep better at night, and they can earn more money.

 

[AngC]

...

enjoy your freedom here on the porch, it is what it is for. I read the porch first.

...

And AngC... I knew exactly what you were saying in your initial post. I thought it was a great start to a string on gmo. Doesn't it make you feel good that a post you started is already rated "hot" in so short a time.

I second guess my postings all the time and have often deleted many posts of mine because it was too personal... Feel free to be yourself.

...

I read "porch" first also. It's safer. I've stuck my foot in my mouth and been moderated once or twice on the main forums, when I genuinely did not know I was addressing a controversial issue. Sometimes I'm hesitant to post out there, because I don't want to (unknowingly) offend anyone. Not to mention, I guess I'm too harsh sometimes.

I didn't realize this topic was "up there in the hot lights." I'm glad other people found it interesting.

 

[HGFarm]

Don't even get me started on GMO or any kind of genetically altered products, hormones, antibiotics in our meats, etc.... This is a really really touchy subject for me.

All I can say is, for those that have not seen the documentary Food Inc, do it. It's the tip of the iceberg regarding what you are consuming every day and the poisons our gov't allows.. Find a cure for cancer? I say, STOP CAUSING IT.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

I am the daughter of a farmer and live rurally among farmers. We try to garden on our 80 acres and spray planes zap us and irresponsible farmers zap us with their huge spray equipment. They pay no attention to the labels on the product and just do whatever is convenient for them. They resent us if we complain and say they have to make a living and we don't. They want us to move to town and just get our food from the grocery store like everyone else.

My dad was part of the American Agriculture Movement and was a state Wagonmaster for the Tractorcade to Washington in 1979. Through great personal sacrifice and hardship they tried to make a difference. "A bushel of wheat for a barrel of oil" was one of their war cries. Think of the agricultural industry if THAT could ever happen!!

They tried to get the ethenol process going, as another market for grain, but were squashed by the oil companies. Now guess who controls the ethenol!

If farmers could market their products the way other producers could they might be able to farm differently. But their commodities are controlled by Wall Street and Congress. Cost of production can go up, but the price of commodities is kept down to make cheap, poor quality food. Why is the obesity rate up? Not just because no one exercises. Food with little nutritional value is part of the problem.

Many large farmers don't live on their farms, they live in town. They don't have gardens or livestock. They want cheap food, too.

I don't know what the answer is, but I believe we have the right to decent food. American farmers and cattlemen were feeding the world BEFORE gmo seeds.

 

[vickie gee]

Ditto the rights to decent food! I am for GMO labeling because I personally try to avoid anything GMO. I feel that people that have no hesitancy or problem with eating GMO foods have the right to eat it just the same as they have the right to eat, drink, or smoke anything else. Many co-workers, friends, and family make fun of me because they feel that I am so picky about what is going to be in any dish I prepare and the groceries that are unacceptable to me. That is fine and dandy with me. We all have to make choices. I read labels. Not only do I avoid GMO but also as much as possible high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, MSG, and try to minimize sugar. So I support labeling and therefore avoid what I see as unhealthy to ME. Can't count the times something is about to go in my shopping cart and then I notice it has some sort of dye in it. Nope, back on the shelf you go. I cook with herbs as much as possible. I feel God knew what he was doing when he created them and that generation after generation realized the medicinal uses of so many of these little aromatic plants. Aughhh, and the difference some of them can make in a dish! I found a recipe book recently that was about cooking with herbs. It was on sale so I scooped the last one off the shelf and my oh my I have already found it to be priceless. Oh, and water is something else I am picky about. All mine goes through the Pro-pure water filter and always served out of a non-BPA container. Some things are so easy to make and therefore avoid the harmful ingredients in them. Tartar sauce, for instance. I just threw out the little samples that come with carry-out catfish orders. Read the labels and saw too much yuckypoo. How long does it take for me to make my own with a little bit of Vegenaise, fresh squeezed lemon, and chopped pickle? Ready in a jiffy and avoided ingredients that I have determined are not for me.