I am currently trying to become as chemical free in my food as possible and while I grow and can a lot of my vegetables/fruit, I do not have livestock. I also want to help local farmers eliminate the middle man and buy direct from them. Does anyone know if there is a website which would tell me what chicken, beef and pork farmers there might be in my area that I could buy direct from?

-- Colleen (pyramidgreatdanes@erols.com), January 02, 2001

Answers

Organic beef contains exactly the same chemicals and non organic beef. It's completely useless to find "organic" beef.

-- Suzanne (hugging_calves@yahoo.com), January 02, 2001.

Organic beef had not been a catagory in our state because there were no guidelines.The new Fed guidelines were to address this.I've not review them, yet.Recently our state also added guidelines,the difficulty being all feed had to also be organic,that is hay & grain.Been hard to find unless you're producing your own.

Laura's Lean Beef is antibiotic and chemical free.That was one approach.My farmers brother raises some for her company,which is headquartered here.

Contact your state Ag Dept to see if they have certification standards.Our Organic Certifier knows who has what & where,even if it is not covered under her program.They may be able to guide you to a local producer.What state are you in?

-- sharon wt (wildflower@ekyol.com), January 02, 2001.

Suzanne, I guess you read my title without reading what I am looking for. I was looking for chemical free meat. That is organic to me in the same sense that not using chemicals in raising vegetables is organic. I know there are producers of meat that does not have antibiotics and other chemicals in the rearing of their meat. Maybe in livestock rearing it is referred to by another name but I didn't know what that might be called.

To the others of you who responded, I was thinking in terms of a website that has links to farms that are trying to directly market their food to the public regardless of what state they may be in but you have given me some good ideas of local organizations that I might find useful in this quest. For info though, I am living in Virginia. Hope that helps.

-- Colleen (pyramidgreatdanes@erols.com), January 02, 2001.

Colleen, good for you for posting -I wish I had the answer because I have known people who were interested in organic beef but were put off by "lack of interest". Most people that are interested in organics are vegetarians, but hopefully the time is coming that the rest of us meat eating types will hop on the wagon. I can tell you from personal experience that a lot of chemicals are pumped into beef, from growth hormones to antibiotics. My father was a small time beef producer and our local Cattleman's association taught the practice of growth hormones and antibiotics- I sat through many a meeting as a child and believe me, years later it dawned on me that perhaps this isn't the best way to go! Good luck with your search and thanks for being a thoughtful consumer! Joy

-- Joy (JNews1223@hotmail.com), January 02, 2001.

Are there Amish or Mennonites in your area? If so, you might be able to buy from them.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), January 02, 2001.

Colleen-

You are actually in a great location for buying chemical-free meat. Joel Salatin in Swoope, Va (Polyface Farm) raises pastured poultry; beef; rabbits; turkeys; and I don't know what else. Not sure if his location is convenient for you, but contact him and I'm sure he can help you find someone in your area. I know that he has helped several other farmers start grazing operations in and around Va. I don't have his contact info handy, but try directory assistance. If you can't find him, zap me an email and I'll find it for you. Regards,

Elizabeth

-- Elizabeth King (lrbeefarm@aol.com), January 03, 2001.

Colleen:

Joel's address is Rt 1, Box 281, Swoope, VA 24479. Phone number I have is 540-885-3590. They plan their production on a pre-order basis. Joel does not delivery. Several times year they have a pick- up day at their farm and they sells at a farmers' market somewhere in that area during the summer and fall. Be sure you completely understand directions on how to get to the farm as I have been told he really lives out in the boonies.

If you can take a full steer or a hog it shouldn't be too difficult to find a local producer for those raised under organic-like conditions. Growth horomone implants in calves isn't a wide-spread practice. I haven't done it, nor would I. It's hard enough banding and getting eartags in. Most of the heifers and steers at a local livestock auction probably haven't been fed anything by momma's milk, pasture and hay, and may not have had any vaccinations. For hogs they have likely only been fed momma's milk and commercial feed (which may include animal byproducts for protein).

If you want to buy it by the pound, then you are going to run into problems. The carcass was probably processed at a local processing plant/meat locker. Very, very few of these met the strict standards which allow resale by the pound. In fact, each package has to be stamped as "Not for Resale." Hog producers can somewhat get around this by doing their own slaughter since they are dealing with a carcass in the 160-pound range, rather than one in the 750-pound range.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), January 03, 2001.

We are lucky to have a small organic slaughter operation about two miles away. You may want to call your local Cooperative Extension office and they can give you names of small operations in your county. Also, you can often find small organic operations by attending county fairs or local harvest festivals. Many producers turn out at these events to market their beef and poultry.

-- Amy (acook@in4web.com), January 03, 2001.

Although it's not the solution you're looking for, you might try kosher beef. It is handled properly from start to finish (the animal's entire life).

Just a thought.

j

-- j (jw_hsv@yahoo.com), January 03, 2001.

Colleen, You should talk to the people at the nearest feed/farm store. Tell them what you're looking for. Many organic growers(raisers) will have feed mixed specifically for them without chemicals. We can have it done at our feed store. Then talk to the names you get and ask them what they give their animals.

-- Peg (wildwoodfarms@hushmail.com), January 03, 2001.

J, however, Kosher isn't the same as organic. When an animal is slaughtered under Kosher laws, it is indeed treated humanely; but this doesn't guarantee an absence of hormones or pesticide-laden feed.

-- amy (acook@in4web.com), January 03, 2001.

Here in Maine we have the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardners association. The web address is mofga.org They have some pretty strict rules about how animals are produced and if you check out their web site you may get some serious leads. For people wanting to get into organic growing and farming, they offer apprenticeships where an apprentice is placed with a farmer/grower. I don't know specific details on this, but it may be of interest to someone who could afford to spend a summer doing this.

-- Anne Tower (bbill@wtvl.net), January 03, 2001.

Hi Colleen, I swore i posted a reply to your question. I guess it didn't go through. I wanted to let you know that I have a list of organic farmers in VA and the name of the person to contact who certifies them. I would be more than happy to sanil it to you if interested. Now the list is a few yrs old. We are in the process of being certified organic and its a ardous process. Also, try going to the VA dept of ag, then to their toll free # and they will direct you to contacts as well. There are a few organic farmers who sell their goods at the Fredericksburg and Richmond VA farmers markets yr around. Hope this helps.

Bernice

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), January 04, 2001.

Colleen, if it suits your taste, you might also look for wild meat. If you have friends that hunt, just ask them if they ever kill more than they can use. Many do and are happy to give it away. Of course if it's deer or rabbit that ate mostly from farm fields, it won't be free of pesticide residues. Most game around here comes from the forest, and that's the meat I favor, plus chicken that I raise.

-- Sam in W.Va. (turnip55a@yahoo.com), January 04, 2001.

there are many farmers who do not give their animals any chemicals. we do not get certified because of all the requirements. it is stricter to classify org than to give your animals every kind of chemical, and yes the gov. encourges farmers to do this . they have been pushing chemicals sence 1935. ask around, your neighbors will know who does not use them.

-- lexi green (whitestone11@hotmail.com), January 14, 2001.

I am starting a small feedlot in WA state. We feed nothing but whole corn and a product called Tend-R-Lean. We do not use any steriods or growth hormones. We have looked into organicaly grown corn, but at this time we would have to charge such a high price to make it work, and most people aren't willing to pay that price. As for medications we very seldom use any, but through our records prossess we call tell the consumer what animals have had since birth. We raise the animals from birth to slaughter. Currently we are maketing at $2.25 a pound (carcuss weight) cut, wrapped and deliverd to the cunsumers doorstep about 300 miles away. So far we have a great responses. Your questions and coments would be greatly appreaceated.

-- Patrick O. Hanford (Phase_1@bossig.com), August 18, 2001.

Here is a site to try: http://www.localharvest.org/ Good luck

-- Trisha-MN (tank@linkup.net), August 19, 2001.