December 2012 Archive for 100% Grass-Fed

Planning Pastures for 2013

Many of us make resolutions or use a calendar for planning the coming year when January rolls around, have you started yet?

A planning calendar is especially useful with a grazing system as needs and opportunities change month by month. Even though green pastures filled with grazing bovines are months away, it isn’t too early to plan ahead.

January - February: This is a good time to study new developments in forage varieties by checking in with your seed salesman.  If animals are being wintered on pasture, land fertilizer can be provided by moving feeding sites to encourage uniform distribution of manure.  It’s not too late to review the current condition of your pastures following the grazing season of 2012. Much of our state (PA), suffered from a second year of drought leaving bare patches and weed proliferation that needs to be brought under control as soon as possible.

March: If seed isn’t ordered for frost seeding, planned renovation or new pasture development, it should be done before supplies are depleted.  Frost seeding needs to be completed before the pastures are muddy to achieve best soil seed contact. March is also a good time to check fences and water lines for damage and begin repairs.

April: Some grazing is usually possible by late-April in the Southern most parts of PA, but your grazing plan should provide for very rapid moves (MOB Grazing), which means moving your cattle sometimes as often as every day.  If your pastures have plentiful amounts of legumes, be sure to limit the amount of "fresh" legume intake to avoid bloat.  If your pastures lack legumes, a spring application of nitrogen may be needed to jump start the grasses.  Replace broken/loose fence posts that may have frost heaved.

May: Decisions made in May determine the sequencing of grazing moves to have a continuous supply of high quality forage through the entire grazing season. During May the rotation cycle may be up to 12 days, depending on your stocking rates. Most renovation seeding will be done in early May. Key points in pasture development include choice of adapted varieties and species that will save you money by persisting for several years, adding legumes to provide nitrogen, and considering both quality, yield potential & durability.  IF your adding Alfalfa to your pasture stands I recommend a "sunken crown" variety.  Once established, the stands will last two to three times longer than your standard alfalfa varieties due to hoof traffic.

June: Continue to schedule a weekly walk over all the pastures as you consider your next pasture/paddock to be grazed. If growth becomes uneven or plants develop seed heads, clipping or following the cows closely with heifers will help keep the appropriate pasture rotation sequence.

July: By mid-summer, given "appropriate" moisture and sun, the length of a rotation should have stabilized to about 7-9 days. Plan for changes in soil moisture, rate of re-growth, animal needs and weed pressure. If you want to extend the grazing season into winter after growth has stopped, a stockpiled pasture(s) should be started before the end of July.

August: If pasture growth is declining, the length of the grazing cycle will need to be decreased to 3-5 days with supplemental free-choice dry hay in order to avoid overgrazing and loss of pasture productivity for the following season. This may be a time to utilize annuals to fill the gap in pasture growth. If you want a spring calving herd, now’s the time to expose your heifers & cows to your bull(s).

September: Monitor weeds, especially Canadian thistles & multi-floral rose, to determine a course of action.  If you’ve managed rotations and have been blessed with adequate moisture, the grass should be thick with few invasive weeds.

October - November: Prepare for winter and spring by maintaining fences, lanes and drain above ground watering lines/systems.  Inventory quality and quantity of stored dry hay.  You may be fortunate enough to have a surplus of hay to sell.  Or you may need to purchase forages due to shortages. If feeding on pasture, make a plan that includes feeding areas that are moved where fertility of manure is best utilized, and knee deep mud isn’t accumulated due to high traffic area’s prior to the ground freezing.

December: Finally, you’ve got a month to relax.  If you haven’t spent Dec. relaxing, than the prior outline should help you for next December!

from Pasture to plate

   A few years ago, I read an article about the practice it takes to prepare Grass-fed BEEF correctly.  Even though it was written 2-3 years ago, the info. still applies today.

   It was written by Chef Michael Formichella.  He stated that while he was working with a large beef group, he had many discussions about how our food makes it’s way to our tables here in the U.S.  These discussions than made him wonder if the simpler ways of the past were better for cattle and the consumer? 

   Chef Formichella noted that "before WWII all American BEEF was "Grass-finished," meaning that cattle ate pasture grasses for a large portion of their lives.  Today, the vast majority of cattle spend anywhere from 60-120 days in feedlots being fattened with grain before being slaughtered."   Chef Formichella also stated that "Unless a consumer deliberately chooses Grass-finished, Grass-fed or Free-ranged meat, the beef bought at your local grocery store will be of the corn-finished variety."  Because the corn-finished method brings cattle to slaughter weights faster, the result is less expensive beef products for the mass consumers."

   With sustainability becoming a more common practice, consumers are becoming educated about the health benefits of Grass-based farms and the animals they produce.  Many "Grass Ranchers/Farmers" from Big Sky Country to the East coast say their ranching methods create happier/healthier animals that are ultimately a better product for the consumer.

   Chef Formichella also stated that "Grass-fed ground meat & steaks are sold in specialty food stores for substantially higher price per point per pound than ordinary BEEF."   "Consumers will pay the higher price even during these tough economic times."  Grass-fed meat products are also beginning to become readily available in stores right on the farm where the animals are raised.  For most consumers that is a BIG selling point.  Because of a high occurrence of Level 1 Food Recall’s across the United States, consumers want to know where their food comes from.  Not just what country, but what farm in which State.  If you can provide a safe BEEF product with traceability to the pasture it was born and raised on for it’s entire life, you’ve got the confidence of the consumer!   Traceability is where your success as a BEEF producer is.

   The secret to ageing Grass-fed BEEF is short hanging time (generally 7-10 days), and than "Wet ageing" the BEEF for 5-7 day’s BEFORE vac-sealing and freezing it.  Grass-fed meat has distinct flavors depending on the season and which grass was fed to the animals.  Another important thing to remember when preparing grass-fed meat on the grill, stove top or oven is that it will cook much faster than traditional grain-fed meat.  In some cases (depending on the cut of meat), it could cook in half the time!  This is simply due to being much lower in fat.  However, the lack of fat doesn’t mean a lack of flavor.  Nor does it mean the meat will be tougher.  If you don’t know how to cook meat, any cut (Grain or Grass-fed), will be as tough as a shoe. 

   Grass-fed BEEF will also have less shrinkage on your customers grill.  That’s another thing they will remember.  When they put 4 pounds of steaks or ground beef on their grill they don’t want to end up with 2 pounds of meat on their plate.