too little, too late

Why does it always seem in the fight for agriculture production we are always 10 steps behind the media and their false allegations???  This is a question that has been running through my head ever since I attended the Farm Animal Integrated Research conference in early March.  It was one of the topics brought up in one of the break out sessions I recorded; and after these past 3 weeks it definitely has made me stop and ponder for awhile.  

Yesterday, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad & US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack held a joint press conference on the production of lean finely textured beef in the US.  Beef Products Inc., being an Iowa Based company, and this issue of LFTB in ground beef a national topic, I feel the conference was a necessity, but again may be too little too late.  Follow this link to listen to a recording of the press conference. 

Through the press conference, Gov. Branstad and Secretary Vilsack resound these three main ideas::


LFTB is


1.  safe
2.  a lean product
3. an economical product


Three truths to the production of LFTB.  HyVee, an Iowa based grocery store has announced they will continue to offer ground beef with LFTB. This product will contain a special label of course, and according to my estimates will be roughly $0.40 less per pound when compared to 93:7 ground beef without LFTB.  So not only will the LFTB product be cheaper, but it will also be safer - a result of the microbial inhibition interventions utilized in producing LFTB; whether that be the inclusion of ammonium hydroxide or sodium citrate.  Needless to say, buying product with LFTB has my vote!


In continuing to advocate for our industry, I think it is imperative that producers and consumers alike recognize that roughly 1.5% of Americans are farmers.  On average one farmer feeds 155 people annually and as a result most consumers are 3-5 generations removed from agriculture production systems.  So there is a definite lack of understanding for agriculture.  We as producers know and realize that.  So how can we, as producers and industry leaders, reach out to these confused, mis-lead and uneducated consumers???  There are forms of social media such as blogs, tweets, facebook pages, etc.  But just as many forms that provide accurate information lead consumers astray.  And on top of that most consumers don't want to read or hear about agriculture, they want to see it.  


Fair Oak Farms Adventure Center is a large dairy operation located off of I-80 in Indiana.  It has become a recent hot-spot for Chicago and Indianapolis school field trips (with a live calf being born every 15 minutes, I am sure you can see why!)  Students are given a tour of the facilities from the free stall location, to the milking parlor, even to the observatory for calving!  Did I also mention students get a grilled cheese for lunch?? Heck, now I wanna go!  At the end of this year FOF will be adding a pork operation including observations of gestation stalls, farrowing crates, and nurseries.  I believe this will be a great addition to the farm and will truly show consumers how their food is produced: in safe, clean, and well-managed systems.  


I wish every state had a farm location like Fair Oak Farms.  In fact if I ever win the lottery, I would build one of these in a heart beat!! Now I would just need to think of a name.....

beefy smiles

With the recent media attention on the production of US ground beef, I have discovered a legitimate reason to consume beef; other than it's high protein and iron content, great flavor, lean value, etc.


According to a study done at Deaken University in Australia, the consumption of beef makes women happier.  Scientists found that women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with depression or anxiety when they consumed less than the recommended amount of beef of 3-4 servings/week.  Researchers took into account the patient's diet, weight, age, physical activity and socioeconomic status and the result remained the same.  Scientists involved in the study say there was no relationship between other forms of protein, such as chicken or fish, and mental health. 


So with that being said, I have found the perfect recipe on Pinterest to try this weekend that will leave me smiling ear to ear:::

A good looking burger and onion rings, I already am smiling.

I definitely need to put one of these babies on my registry.












I love making hamburgers like this with cheese in the middle-kinda like a hamburger-oreo.
















I know the study did not show the same effects with pork, but  bacon makes everybody happy!










And now time for the grill.   Mmmmmmmmm I can hear the sizzling....I think I'm going crazy.







Wow that looks good!


Now time to add a little bit of greens to make one not feel so bad about eating all that bacon and cheese!








This recipe sounds and looks amazing except for this step.  I would probably just smother the burger with BBQ sauce.






And I may or may not put an onion ring on top :)








Gooey, melted cheese, YUM!!!!










Wow!  Is it the weekend yet??!!  I am sure now you agree with me that this burger would do anything but put someone into depression!  In fact, I think I will be deeply satisfied and succumbed to a food coma....can't wait!

With summer right around the corner now is the perfect time to be buying beef items, whether steaks or ground beef, to throw on the grill.  Check out these websites for new and exciting recipes to try, remember it will leave you feeling happy and satisfied!

http://www.beefnutrition.org/recipesearch.aspx

http://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/recipes.aspx

http://www.beefretail.org/recipesphotos.aspx

the truth about pink slime

As I am sure by now most of you have heard the term pink slime through the evening news, daily newspaper, morning shows, and perhaps in regular conversation by now.  An accusation was made on the ABC evening news that "pink slime", (properly known as  Lean Finely Textured Beef or LFTB), is "highly toxic" and due to the fact it is "included in roughly 70% of ground beef sold in the United States", measures were necessary to remove this product from the food chain.  


As a result of this evening special pink slime and the lies behind it have spread like wildfire.  #pinkslime has been trending on twitter for a few weeks now, and just look at the search volume index over the past few months.  








Unfortunately most of the tweets and information available on google are full of further misinformation and false facts.  As a result of upset and misinformed consumers, rash decisions and comments forced Beef Products Inc. (a company that produces LFTB) to close three of its four locations in the United States putting thousands out of work.  One of the plant locations that closed was actually at the Tyson, Inc. plant I interned at in the summer of 2009.


It is absolutely terrifying to know the power behind a consumer's voice.  In less than two weeks many major grocery stores have pulled LFTB products from their shelves, and restaurants from their menus.  So what are the implications of these trends to the beef industry?  How will this impact the future supply and demand of beef in the US?  Worldwide?   There are a lot of questions with limited answers for now.  So before I get to those, I feel I need to explain how LFTB is produced.


During the fabrication of beef steaks and roasts, meat is removed from bones and connective tissue by workers using knives.  From my personal experience this is very challenging!!  For example, when you enjoy a nice T-bone or Porterhouse steak are you able to remove all of the meat from the bone?  And that is even a cooked product!!  As a result of this inefficiency and the physical structure of muscles, it is difficult to capture all of the lean from bones, fat and connective tissue.  Historically this product was utilized in cooked beef products and resulted in the production of tallow (a product that has little use in today's consumers diet) and the value of the lean trim was lost.  In the 1980s Eldon Roth invented a technology that utilizes high pressure processing to remove the lean firmly attached to bone and fat.  This lean trim that is removed provides the same nutrition benefits as regular ground beef, because well it is still beef. 


Consumer concern has been generated because of the use of ammonium hydroxide in the production of LFTB.  Now yes I do realize this chemical has a very toxic and harmful connotation that exists.  But I also realize the power and intentions behind this part of the production phase.  Ammonium hydroxide is used during the production of LFTB to prevent microbial growth, such as E Coli 0157:H7 (which can cause death in the elderly and young children if food is not cooked to 160F).  Did I also mention that the USDA has recognized the use of ammonium hydroxide as Generally Recognized As Safe.  Aside from it's microbial advantages, it is reassuring to know that ammonium hydroxide also is a naturally occurring compound found in many foods and utilized in the processing of many cereal grains.  


As a result of the LFTB technology and the utilization of ammonium hydroxide, the US beef industry has been able to be self-sustaining in the production of ground beef.  Without the incorporation of this product, imports of beef trimmings and ground beef are going to increase; I mean the average American does eat 2/3 lb of ground beef daily!  With increased imports I am sure you as well as I can foresee a price increase for beef in the US, with a decrease int he value of the beef carcass.  Margins will get tighter for all production phases, and eventually beef producers like my dad and Chasen will feel the effect.


So I guess what I am asking of consumers is to educate yourselves on the products you are buying for your family.  I wouldn't buy a house or car from a salesperson without doing a background check on the company from a RELIABLE source.  I also would not tell a car salesperson how to do their job, because I don't know anything about that!  When false accusations and lies are made about agriculture corporate companies, you also affect hard working Americans like my family and family-to-be.  


We have the safest and highest quality food system in the WORLD!!!!  Did I also mention that we spend the least of our annual income on food--only 10%!!  So please be grateful for the American farmers that feed 155 people/year, because they do it cheap and they do it the best!

my spring break

Spring break is typically the time of year when college students hit up the southern states/countries in search of warm weather and hot sun.  Luckily this year, many students didn’t have to travel far from home as this March has been one for the record books weather-wise. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not complaining about the weather at all or the fact that spring break exist, I am simply sharing my sob story of how I spent my entire spring break: thesis-izing (yes that is a word I totally just made up). 

So what exactly does a thesis entail??? Answer: lots and lots of information of course!  First there is the title page, and as you may have guessed this was the first document I completed.  I have been saving each component of my thesis as a separate word document to enhance my writing experience and data space on my computer.  Next there is the acknowledgements portion.  This is the time to thank all of those who have been involved with one’s grad student career:  family, friends, colleagues, professors… you get the jist.  I tried not to make mine read too sappy, but there were a lot of emotions flowing when I wrote that part!!  From there, the table of contents follows, and then by the introduction, which is basically a statement of purpose, or why the research was done.   The next portion has probably been the most fickle part of my whole thesis-izing experience: the literature review.   This component can be compared to a giant book review.  I have a few topics that I focused on: history of US beef fabrication, tenderness, alternative fabrication, and international market opportunities.  With that being said, I have spent hours in the library and on my computer looking up past manuscripts, books, and articles on these topics.  I say this part has been fickle, because it has been challenging and frustrating to write, yet I have enjoyed researching the topics and have vastly increased my meat science knowledge.  Currently I am at 15 pages for this part of my thesis….including my sources, or bibliography haha.

Now we get into the heart of it all: the actual research, how it was conducted (materials & methods) and what the results (manuscripts) were.  The materials and methods portion is a very detailed description of how the materials were collected, measure, analyzed, etc.  This was by far the easiest part to write, and probably the reason why I have over 20 pages!  Too bad the other segments of thesis-izing were that easy!

The next and most significant portion of a thesis is the manuscripts.  For my particular thesis I will have 5 manuscripts; I have 2 done and 3 to go!  Go Me!!  A manuscript is a short write up (10-20 pages) of the actual research.  Each manuscript contains an abstract, introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion, implications, and tables/figures component (if desired).  These documents are typically submitted to scientific Journals for publication, and are thus included in future thesis and literature reviews.

If you can’t tell I am currently riding the high of scientific writing or am losing my mind due to lack of sleep. I am currently at 55 pages and counting.  My goal is to have the final copy of my thesis to my advisor by the end of April, and revisions made by the end of May.  With this timeline I can defend my thesis (I will explain this in another blog) in June and graduate in August!  With that being said this is probably going to be the busiest/craziest/fastest summer of my entire life.  And I must admit, I am quite excited for it to get here :)

march madness

I love March Madness.  The Cyclone win last night was absolutely amazing and solidified my deep and abiding love for the NCAA basketball tournament.  However, I only love March Madness in reference to basketball.  These last few weeks of my life have been quite mad with chaos.  It's hard to believe that this month is past the half way point:: I don't know where the time has gone!  And according to my color coded calendar, my time in Lincoln is further limited from off-campus meetings and trips to Iowa.  I guess "time truly does fly when you are having fun"!


This past week the University of Nebraska hosted the National Meat Animal Eval contest.  I was a member of the ISU MAEC team and was pumped that I was able to help out with the contest this year.  Wednesday I spent a majority of my day at the Dunlap Salebarn taking pictures of livestock and students competing; probably qualifying as paparazzi.  After an amazing steak dinner prepared by the Harrison County Cattlemens, Michelle (a fellow grad student at UNL) and I headed up to Dennison for the evening.  After a few short hours of sleep we rolled out of the hotel and into the Tyson plant to transfer tag numbers to carcass id.  I have to admit, I do not miss being in the packing plant before the sun comes up AT ALL!  But we were able to get our job done within an hour and were back on the road by 6:30 am.  Needless to say yesterday was a looooooong day and my nap in the afternoon was greatly appreciated :)


With today being Friday, this afternoon I am headed back home, all the way to Cascade.  I have not been home since Christmas break, so needless to say I am very excited to head east!  Tomorrow afternoon I have my first of four bridal showers.  It should be a great day spent with family and friends.  I heard through the grape vine a few shower games are planned--I don't really know what to think about these games, but I guess I better get used to it!


Then early Sunday morning I head to Ames for the Midwest Academic Quadrathlon contest.  Before I explain exactly what this is, I need to make it clear the Academic Quadrathlon was probably the funnest competition I have ever done!!!  The contest invites teams from major Midwest universities and they compete against one another in four areas of Animal Science: lab practicum, written exam, oral presentation, and quiz bowl.  Because of this, the contest is extremely competitive, and probably that is the reason why I enjoyed the contest so much). I volunteered to run the meats station, a part of the lab practicum portion, and have been busy this week making the test and gathering materials.  


The AQ contest is held in conjunction with the Midwest ASAS meetings which are annually held in Des Moines. This year I have the opportunity to present a poster on part of my thesis project. I must admit my poster looks pretty sweet and I am excited to share with people the data we collected and how we analyzed the results.  Between designing this poster and writing a final report for the Nebraska Beef Council I have gained motivation to get this thesis wrote and done.  Something about sharing information to producers/consumers/industry personnel about changes in beef production to improve profitability/comprehension/yields thrills me.  Annnnnnnnd with that being said, this kid has got a literature review to write.  So until next time, go STATE!!!

calving update

This last week has been an absolute blur!  And for that reason, I must apologize for the absence of blogging.  Since my last blog, lots of babies have been born and Chasen has been doing a fantabulous job of sending me pictures of most of them. 

This little girl was born in the field.  It was a nice sunny day, so I guess she decided it was time. Chasen found her while feeding the cows in the afternoon and then brought her up to the barn so she could get out of the wind for the night.  The next morning he went to check on her and she was no longer in the pen with her mom.  She had escaped (somehow) underneath the calving pen gate and was chilling in the cooler/wash room--Chasen thinks she is a natural show heifer in the making haha.  I think she is just a curious adorable little thing!

Now I am not trying to be biased, but this is probably my favorite calf born yet!  I absolutely love love love blazed face cattle and am so pumped that this little girl is 1/2 Simmental!! I can't wait to see her when I go back to farm this weekend! 

The final calf picture is a picture of a special calf I named Leroy.  During his gestation, Leroy did not have enough space to develop his front leg properly.  So when he was born Leroy had trouble standing on his front leg and Chasen needed to "prop" him up on a bale so he could get to his moms udder.  Which by the way, calving pens are the coolest thing since sliced bread.  They are so helpful during the calving process, whether that be pulling a calf, or making sure they get their first drink full of colostrum.  Anyway, now that I got my sales pitch in for calving pens, Leroy now has a splint, with HOT PINK tape, on his front leg to help stabilize his pastern.  He is able to get around pretty good by himself, but we are going to keep him up at the house until he gets a bit stronger.  I wish you could see his face in this picture because he is about as cute as the blazed face calf....but not quite :)

Aside from calving and business on the farm, I myself have been quite a busy girl.  Last week I traveled to DC for the Farm Animal Integrated Research (FAIR) conference.  I had such a blast and hope to share my trip and conference experience with you sometime later this week. This is a picture of all of the grad students I got to work with at the conference.  They were all great and I learned so much from all of them!!  The picture was taken at the Agriculture Research Station in Beltsville, MD.  It was quite windy when we took the picture so you can find me by looking for the hot mess with wind tossed hair, haha.  Or at least that is how I like to refer to myself in this pic :)

in like a lion

Although the weather was quite all right yesterday (in Lincoln we reached 45 degrees) I still think an appropriate title for yesterday is "in like a lion". The beginning of March means different things to different people.  To me it is a sign that spring is soon to come, half of the semester is left, and now for 2012 it marks the date for new regulation in how fresh meat is sold in the US.   After yesterday nutrition labels are required on ground beef, pork, and poultry packages.  Nutrition labels are also required and on or near major cuts of meat and poultry sold in supermarkets (ribeye steaks, pork chops, chicken breast, etc.).  The theory behind this regulation is to confirm for consumers  "that lean meat and poultry products are an important part of a healthy balanced diet."    With this regulation consumers will be able to make their purchasing decisions based on the amount of calories, total fat, % protein, etc. available in fresh meat products.

It will be interesting to see if the required nutrition labels will have an affect on consumer purchase patterns for items higher in fat such as ground beef and pork (100 calories from fat out of 190 total).  Nutrition labels have been required for processed meat products such as bacon, ham, and chicken nuggets for years.  These products contain a higher amount of calories, calories from fat, sodium content, and cholesterol when compared to that of fresh meat.  But due to their convenience they have been able to survive caloric criticisms.  Nonetheless, with nutrition labels present on all meat products, hopefully consumers will become aware of how nutrient dense meat products are.  There are 29 lean cuts of beef, pork, and lamb that contain the same, or less, amount of fat found in a chicken thigh.  Meat has also been noted as the best way to satisfy hunger due to the high content and energy value of protein.  It is also just plain tasty!

In other news, this weekend I am headed to the Farm Animal Integrated Research (FAIR) conference in Arlington, VA.  I am going to be a graduate student recorder for the conference and must admit I am PUMPED!! The FAIR conference objectives for the 2012 meetings are to demonstrate the importance of animal agriculture to society and the impact of the global market place on animal agriculture.  Either way I am sure the introduction of nutrition labeling of fresh meat will be a topic of discussion.  And I will be ready to report when I return to the Midwest!