The current state of Pork.

[DsGrouse]

Not, government spending, but US pork production.

So, I've watched this in its entirety. It is a unique breakdown of geopolitical politics insofar as pork production. I encourage you to give this a watch.
https://youtu.be/Wi_nFz1CJSI

[cooperhawk]

Well, that was enlightening. I think this guy puts it quite well and I agree with most of his hypotheses.
I know we are already short on Nitrogen and Phosphate for fertilizer as we live in farm country and talk to
farm folks every day.
The picture he paints is pretty dreary for the world in general, but for us in the US it doesn't look quite so bad.
BTW, we do like pork too. In fact we just purchased half a hog for the freezer butchered and smoked locally,
and it is some of the best bacon and ham I've ever had. Wait, I should say it's like the old style ham and bacon
I grew up eating but the modern system no longer produces due to cost, regulation, health fears, ect.
I mean it's good stuff.

[DsGrouse]

Now, does add in the US farm land bought by china, by black rock, by gates. Logically it makes sense.

[cooperhawk]

Now, does add in the US farm land bought by china, by black rock, by gates. Logically it makes sense.

And China...........

A couple of decades ago Japan was buying up vast amounts of US real estate. Well, they couldn't take it home could they?
They ended up having to sell it back and losing huge amounts of money in the deal. Invest all you want, bring your money
here, we like money.

I'm afraid this is getting a little political.

[DsGrouse]

My comment was in the sense of china, BlackRock, gates's companies growing and supplying corn and soy to those markets that US farmers might not be able to supply.

The video is pretty a-political, and I didn't take your post as a political stretch. We have a significant short coming looming. We are short on phosphates and nitrogen. Most of which we can produce here and in Canada.

[cooperhawk]

We have a significant short coming looming. We are short on phosphates and nitrogen. Most of which we can produce here and in Canada.

We can and we will. One thing that is always in our favor is free enterprise. Tell the Americans that they can make a buck
and they will step right up.

I know of fertilizer plants that we used to haul from that closed due to foreign competition. It
won't take too long to get them running again, but it will cost more.

Nitrogen, or Anhydrous Ammonia is a by product that is also produced in the US and we can increase that production as well.

We seem to be in a good position for all this to happen, but it will be expensive.

[DsGrouse]

That is my take on it as well.

[GunnyGene]

Not worried. We have lot's of free range pork in MS. No permit or other restrictions on them.

[Rifletom]

Now, does add in the US farm land bought by china, by black rock, by gates. Logically it makes sense.

And China...........

A couple of decades ago Japan was buying up vast amounts of US real estate. Well, they couldn't take it home could they?
They ended up having to sell it back and losing huge amounts of money in the deal. Invest all you want, bring your money
here, we like money.

I'm afraid this is getting a little political.

Naw, you guys kept it pretty good. Heck of a read.

[daytime dave]

I thought that presenter was very well informed. I learned from that video.

I know my small amount of purchased fertilizer went up. I could raise a few pigs, but would need feed for more than a couple.

[dave77]

I thought that presenter was very well informed. I learned from that video.

I know my small amount of purchased fertilizer went up. I could raise a few pigs, but would need feed for more than a couple.

Don't raise pigs unless you have enough property to keep them quite a distance from your house. For several years I let a couple of FFA kids raise their pigs within a 100 feet of my house and the smell and the amount of flies that their manure attracts is hard to live with. I left the window down in my SUV once and when I went out in the morning and you couldn't see the underside of the roof it was so covered with flies. Had to open the back and drive down the road waving a towel behind me to get them out.

They did always raise at least a dozen pigs so a smaller number might not be quite as bad. My neighbor and I would each get a free pig (we had to pay for the butchering) but it was still hardly worth it.

I've had horses, goats and lambs and they are fine. My neighbor had a couple of cows once and they're not as bad as pigs but I did have to get a pair of bogs to wear in the paddock and the pasture, called them my poop boots.

[DsGrouse]

A lot of this info can be adapted to other products such as Chicken, turkey and many of the farm raised fish products that are on the market. Soy and corn are what we use as the basis for their feed.

[cooperhawk]

I'm an old farm boy and over the years have seen the political correct crowd breed a lot of the good flavor out of meat.
Hogs were bred to produce bacon and everything else was bred and fed to be lean. Fat is what makes meat tender and'
flavorful, not lean. We were sold a bill of goods about "Grass Fed" which is tougher and has a different flavor profile.
I left the farm and ranch and had a life working for Uncle Sam, but I haven't forgotten what I learned back then.

We just purchased a half a hog for the freezer. It came from a farmer who raises the old breed. Hampshires, Chester
Whites, Spotted Poland China, ect. The bacon and hams are terrific! Brined and smoked like the old days. The type
I grew up with.

We buy beef by the half of a half. In other words we get a quarter of a beef, but a mix of the front quarter and the'
rear quarter. We purchase from a local farmer who feeds them out on corn. There is a huge difference in quality.
Our beef is tender and has flavor.

It's harder to find locally raised poultry, but if you can find it, try some. Believe me when I say that the meat takes on
a flavor of what it's fed. That goes for beef, pork, poultry, fish, ect. Don't believe me, try some Springer Mountain Farms
chicken. It cost more, but there is a huge difference in flavor.

Folks talk about separating the Red and Blue states. Well, we folks in the Red states have all the food and fuel and the
Blue states depend on us. It seems to me that if the world famine comes to fruition, we here in the US will be able to
survive quite nicely. Toward the end of that video the narrator says that the Hog Farmers should be quite happy about
their roll in the debacle.

[DsGrouse]

I've raised a fair bit of poultry. Upwards of 300 birds processed twice a year while my kids were in middle school. Guineas, chickens, and turkeys.

Turkeys eat crazy amounts of food. A free range chicken/ guineas would need about 1/4 cup per bird per day of feed. It's about the protein and nutrients, You give them the food to supplement the vitamins, protein, and calcium.

Turkeys, however would eat a quart or more a day. Yeah, it is crazy. If you give them a chance, they will eat more.

I've tried most of the heritage breeds of poultry (I've no experience with fowl). My suggestion is to pick a few breeds that are dual purpose and let them mix. I found the blended breeds stronger, healthier and put on weight more evenly as adults. They also almost always hatch easier.

I am a big fan of free range, fenced in, or mobile chicken tractors. The food/feed cost is less, and they clean out the bugs within the property. Ticks being the big ones. For tick killing there is nothing greater than a flock of guineas. Yeah, they are loud, but ticks are a favorite of theirs.

I'm not a fan of "meat birds." They are unhygienic, prone to ulcers, and eat as much as the turkeys.

It's not all rainbows and daisy's with poultry. Like pigs, you need them more than a 100 yards from your house. Flies and feces will be around your house if you don't. Moving birds don't make for tender meat. Thighs, legs, and wings are tough. I use them as stew meats or ground. As for the bones I use them in a broth. The Breast meat is nice. The average chicken size is 3 lbs dressed. Even when you blend the larger species Astrolop, Rhode Island Red, jersey giant, Orpington etc.

You can grow them larger, but the food intake required to get that size becomes, like turkeys, cost prohibitive.

[daytime dave]

I am farm raised myself. In my youth, many family farms surrounded us. I moved to suburbia for my working life. My father raised
chickens late in his life. He had previously and they did well. There is nothing like farm fresh anything.
I'm fortunate to be back amongst family farms now in my new spot. I do know the in's and outs of raising livestock. It's not glamorous, but is rewarding. It's certainly not for everyone.

[graywolf]

Mentioning Hampshire and Poland China hogs brings back memories to me also.

[DsGrouse]

Okay not trying to start anything political. This is an update on ukraine exports. In this instance, the same guy as the previous video is talking about Ukraine wheat.
https://youtu.be/iNQ98GQ0ATk