Wednesday 08th of September 2010

Seasons Are Good

Canning

The concept of food being immediately accessible, non-perishable and available at any whim is a product of America after the 1960's.

As a child my mother tried to explain to me how getting an orange in her Christmas stocking was a real treat, because they were seasonal.

Today people expect fruits and vegetables to be available year-round and they never understand the "trade-off" that entails.

By forcing nature to fit our schedules, we rob the food of the nutrients it should be giving us.

We also are training our children, not to eat well, but to eat often.

Upcoming Events

Julie Schondel
(God's How Ranch - 303-690-2437 or godshowranch@q.com )

will be teaching a goat kidding class this Saturday at the American Pride Co-op:

55 W Bromley Ln
Brighton, CO,
80601-3025
 (there's an Ace Hardware Store/Feed Store attached).


Phone: 303-659-1230
Toll Free: 800-332-6478
Fax: 303-659-3640

Time -- 10am - noon

I attended her milking class last year and she was a wonderful teacher in so many ways! 


Please forward this on - thank you!


-Blair

RMAC's 2nd Annual Gathering will take place February 27th at the Jefferson Unitarian Church (JUC) in Golden (14350 West 32nd Ave.).  Co-hosted by WAPF-Denver and JUC's Eating Ethically Task Force, it is a synergistic gathering of producers and consumers who want honest food from local producers.   This year we are pleased to have David Gumpert as our Keynote Speaker, and special guests Slow Food Colorado, Rocky Mountain Farmer's Union, and the American Grassfed Association. 

Come join us! 

This will be an all-day event, starting at 8:30 AM and ending at 4PM. 

For details, contact info@rawmilkcolorado.org .  This event is not open to the public.

720-985-5842

Julie Schondel of Gods How Ranch in Parker will be giving (hard and soft) cheese-making classes in April 2010.

For details contact Julie.

God's HOW Ranch, LLC

God IS how we get stuff done!

42358 Vista Rdg

Parker, CO 80138

303-690-2437

Our new website is up and running!!

www.godshowranch.com

 


Special News

USDA announced that it dropped NAIS today.  Whoopee!!!

According to Judith McGeary of Farm and Ranch Freedom Association:


Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance                             

The USDA has announced that it is dropping NAIS!

This is a major victory for the grassroots!!   Thank you to the thousands of people who called, wrote, organized meetings, and more.  Dozens of organizations, from across the country and the full range of the political spectrum, worked together on this common cause. And we succeeded in making our voices heard.

USDA has stated that it is refocusing its efforts on “a new, flexible framework” that will apply only to animals moved in interstate commerce and encourage the use of “lower-cost” technology.  During today’s conference call with USDA, I asked whether the agency would continue using federal funding to pressure states to adopt the program through cooperative agreements.  In response, Secretary Vilsack stated that USDA has gotten a “failing grade” on NAIS and that he does NOT intend to try to implement it through the back door. 

You can read more details from USDA at: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/animal_health/content/printable_version/faq_traceability.pdf

We still have more work in front of us.  As USDA develops its new framework, we must be involved and vocal, so that agribusiness does not develop yet another high-tech, big-industry boondoggle.  We must be active at the state level to ensure that the state agencies do not implement unnecessary and burdensome rules.  And we must work to roll back the unfair requirements that have already been implemented in Wisconsin and Michigan.  Ultimately, it is up to us – as animal owners, homesteaders, farmers, ranchers, and consumers -- to build a positive vision for our farms and our food.

Thank you all!

http://www.holyokeenterprise.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=981:homestead-farms-healthy-living-at-its-finest&catid=63:featured-articles 

 http://www.ediblecommunities.com/frontrange/summer-2009/got-raw.htm

Larga Vista Ranch & RMAC are featured in the summer 2009 edition of this beautiful magazine.

  “We believe existing systems for identification of livestock, including brands and tattoos, are effective for disease control, and changes to optimize existing systems can be accomplished by state authorities without implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS).

The implementation of the NAIS – whether by federal or state governments – raises concerns about the impact on private property, privacy and the ability to conduct business, therefore we oppose any government action that funds or mandates premise registration and individual or industry participation in the NAIS.”

You can read about recent federal bills addressing food safety and farming here:

http://www.farmtoconsumer.org/federal_bills.htm  (for state legislation: http://www.farmtoconsumer.org/state_bills.htm )

and here:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17256.cfm

The latest food "safety" bill, H.R. 2749, needs to be stopped.   Please sign this petition

http://www.ftcldf.org/news/news-15june2009.htm

The publisher of AcresUSA and a long time advocate of organic farming, Charles Walters died in January.  You can read about his life here.

RMAC on NAIS

“We believe the existing systems for identification of livestock, including brands, are effective for disease control, and changes to optimize existing systems can be accomplished by state authorities without implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS).

The implementation of the NAIS – whether by federal or state governments – raises concerns about the impact on private property, privacy and the ability to conduct business, therefore we oppose any government action that funds or mandates premises registration and individual or industry participation in the NAIS.”

These Materials Were Presented to the Colorado Board of Health in May, 2004

We hope that those who read these materials will draw from our experience strategies that educate those who just don't know, that challenge those who don't want to know and that encourage those who know, but are reticent to act.

Table of Contents:

Section A - Cover Letter & Table of Contents

Section B - Executive Summary of Materials Presented

Section C - Modification #1 to Regulatory Proposal Regarding Raw Milk

Section D - Modification #2 to Regulatory Proposal Regarding Raw Milk

Section E - Why Raw Milk?

Section F - Wisconsin Campylobacter Outbreak

Section G - Status of Raw Milk Regulation in the United States – 2003 and 2002

Section H - Guidestone Farm Milk Test Results

Section I - Prescriptions for Raw Milk

Section J - Legal Commentary of Dean & Stern LLC

Section K - David R. Lynch, Raw Milk Production: A Policy Analysis, “Raw Milk Production and Colorado Regulatory Policy” (Regis University)

Section L - Petitions for Allowance of Raw Milk

Referenced Materials:

I. Reports submitted to Los Angeles Department of Health Services that led to the legalization of raw milk in Los Angeles County, California

Section M - Binder et al., Report in Favor of Raw Milk, 2001

Section N - Bernstein, A Brief History of Milk As Medicine, 2001

II. Referenced Articles of Health Benefits of Raw Milk

Section O - Schmid, The Benefits of Raw vs. Pasteurized Milk, 2003

Section P - Schmid, The Safety of Raw vs. Pasteurized Milk, 2003

Section Q - The History and Analysis of Certified Milk, Master’s Thesis, Univ. of Georgia, 1979. (Individual Components Below)

- Contents

- Introduction

- Literature Review

- Materials and Methods

- Results and Discussion

- Summary and Conclusions

- References

III. Peer Reviewed Articles and Abstracts

Section R - Center of Disease Control, Reported Outbreaks of Food Borne Illness, Fall 2001

Section S - 20 Abstracts on the Effect of Pasteurization on the Nutritional Value of Milk up to 1944

Section T - Ford et al., Influence of the Heat Treatment of Human Milk on Some of its Protective Constituents, J. of Pediatrics, 1977

Section U - Alm et al., Atopy in Children of Families with an Anthroposophic Lifestyle, Lancet, 1999

Section V - Enig, Know Your Fats – Milk Homogenization and Heart Disease, Wise Traditions, 2003

Section W - Pottinger, A Fresh Look at Milk, Modern Nutrition 1962

Section X - Kouchakoff, The Influence of Food Cooking on the Blood Formula of Man, Proceedings: First International Congress of Microbiology, Paris, 1930

Holstein Cows

Kids Can Tell ...

Raw milk has more flavor, more life and more of the vitamins, minerals and bacteria your body needs.

Here are links to resouces you should investigate: