Fasly-Kam

I frequently hear the "fact" that livestock production is an inefficient use of land, so I thought I’d have a little fun and dust off some of my old pasture management information. We can debate the numbers, but I don’t think I’m too far off ... Let's assume the following: - Dry matter yield from perennial ryegrass & white clover pasture of 10,000 lb per acre - 75% of the pasture dry matter produced is consumed by the grazing animal - A conversion rate of 14 lb of pasture dry matter per lb of hanging weight - An edible yield of 65% of the hanging weight - A cooked yield of 56% of the raw weight - A per meal protein requirement of 4 ounces of cooked meat - 3 meals per day Under these conditions, a piece of pasture less than 209 x 209 feet could produce enough meat to supply a person's daily protein needs for 260 days (not to mention the lovely fat!). Remember that this land can be completely unsuited to the production of grains, fruits, or vegetables. If we could b...

I'm finding it difficult to establish a regular posting routine. Hopefully a consistent effort will produce results, even if I’m not currently meeting my target. There are certain “givens” in this concept I call Grass Based Health. Here’s a few that I put down as a response to the “Diet-For-a Small-Planet” folks. You know them, right? They’re the ones that say that animal agriculture is an inefficient use of land and that grain-based diets are healthier for us. There are many points that could be made, but let’s start with these: 1. The vast majority of the earth’s land surface isn’t suited to the production of fruits, grain, & vegetables. But a significant portion of it is well suited to the production of high quality protein and fat via ruminant animals and managed grasslands. (That US-type agriculture feeds grain to cattle and sheep doesn’t refute this fact.) 2. Well-managed grass-based agriculture (the production of milk, meat, and fiber from perennial grasslands) is sust...