Restoring grasslands in the USwith 100% grass-fed beef

Ridge Shinn ridgeshinn@gmail.com

BLC Conference at Tufts Nov. 22, 2014

Three topics in this presentation:

I. Dire impacts of today’s beef industry

II. Multiple benefits of rotational grazing

III. New grazing pilot in the US Northeast

I. Dire impacts of today’s beef industry

The feedlot diet harms animals and people:

E.coli

Mad Cow

Growth hormones

Antibiotics in feed

Omega 6 overload

Low-nutrient food

Glyphosate in food

Pollution

Wasted energy

Wasted water

Climate emissions

97 million acres oxidizing carbon

Grassland is plowed to plant corn, which is subsidized by our tax dollars. The corn is used for livestock feed, ethanol, and corn syrup.

Monoculture, plowing, herbicides (i.e. glyphosate), pesticides, and chemical fertilizers

combine to destroy soil microbes needed for soil health, water retention, and fertility.

Devastating practices of corn production

*Plot provided by Nancy Swanson, with permission

Data sources: autism - US Department of Education; Glyphosate - USDA

Autism-Roundup (glyphosate) correlation in US

II. Benefits of grazing ruminants

Rotational (pulse) grazing • Sequesters carbon• Builds soil health and fertility• Saves energy and water,• Provides nutrient-dense food.

The mob moves on to a new bite. The grazed area rests and regrows.

Pulse grazing then and now

Buffalo – 18th century Beef cattle – 21st Century

Massachusetts South Africa

Fertility improved by rotational grazing

Grass quality and volume in adjacent fields: rotational grazing vs. conventional management

Rotational grazing Conventional grazing

At end of New England growing season. . .

On left: paddock in a rotation has lush grass, deep roots.On right: large “all season” pasture has little grass left.

Different management on adjacent farms Rotational grazing (left) created 16 inches of top soil in 10 yrs.

Photo courtesy of Christine Jones, Ph.D.

Deep roots of perennial plants, plus microbes in manure, foster the soil food web

*Glomalin: glues aggregates together, stores carbon, holds water.

Glomalin* “significantly increased” by rotational grazing

III. New grazing pilot for the US Northeast

• 100% grass-fed-and finished beef • Northeast beef for northeast markets

Benefits

Grassland restorationCarbon sequestrationNutrient-dense foodHumane livestock treatmentEnergy and water savingLocal economic development

Total number of beef cattle produced by New England and New York farms each year: 310,000

Average beef herd size in US: 40 head

Almost all aggregated by dealers and trucked west to be finished on feedlots.

Industrial system sends cattle west:

New 2-part program:

1) 100% grass-fed cattle will be collected from numerous small farms in New England and New York...2) ...and fattened on forage-only at several large finishing farms in the North East– instead of going west to feedlots.

Imported grass-fed is already in NE stores

Kroger’s- $6.99 Target-$6.99

Candy bar - $.92/ounce Grass-fed beef - $.44/ounce

PRICE

Good forage even under snow Winter pasture tested better than hay

Winter grazing = new farm economicsGood nutrition for cattle - $$ savings for NE farmers

Winter forage nutrition equal/better than hay or balage Pasture sample analyzed by Cornell and in February

“Eating is an Agricultural Act.”Wendell Berry

Contact: ridgeshinn@gmail.comwww.ridgeshinn.com