Farm Fresh eNews! - 4/25/07

Hello Friends,

Hope everyone is having a wonderful spring so far. We're finally getting some warm weather and very glad of that!
The cold damp weather has made it tough for us as we were forced to feed more hay than usual. (that's why we like to have extra hay stored away.)

This spring as a part of expanding our beef operation we've planted over 200 acres of new hay and pasture. This will allow for plenty of growth over the next several years.

------ Purchased Cattle ------

Because we are not able to increase our cattle herd overnight, this year we will be purchasing some natural grass-fed finished steers from Dan DeSutter & Rich Hollinger who own and operate Hoosier Grassfed Beef Company located in Atica Indiana. This company is one of the top producers for Tall Grass Beef which is one of the largest grass-fed beef distributors in the United States. You can be sure that the integrity of this beef meets the high standards for quality and nutrition that we have at the Seven Sons Farm.
Ideally we want to produce ALL of our own beef but this year we were almost sold out before the year even began. We want you and your family to always have grass-fed beef on your table and we want to do everything we can to keep that supply consistent from year to year.
Our expansion time is much slower than the average beef producer simply because we WILL NOT sacrifice the nutritional quality of our beef by purchasing feeder cattle from the sale barns or other non-verified sources. It's quality first and then comes quantity - not the other way around!

------ Spring Babies are Arriving! ------

Within the last couple days we have had three new baby calves born and lots of little piglets. It's a good thing these animals aren't this cute when their full grown or else we might have trouble letting them go.

We also have baby chicks that came a couple of weeks ago. Let me tell you... these little birds grow FAST!!
You will soon be enjoying All-Natural Pastured Chicken!

We've got a few pictures of our new baby animals posted on the NEW Farm Farm Fresh Photo Gallery Section of our website.
Link: www.sevensons.net/photo-gallery

------ Fresh Raw Milk! ------

We've been talking with the Baker Dairy Farm who is a neighboring dairy that is considering offering a raw milk cow share program which would allow you to legally purchase farm fresh raw milk.
This small family operated dairy is unique when compared to most dairy's because of their goal to produce a more natural milk product.
The cows diets mainly consist of fresh green grass & hay. However, some supplemental grain feeding does take place during the winter months and during the dry periods of summer if their is a shortage of grass. Antibiotics are never used unless it is needed to save the life of an animal.

Please email or call if you have any interest in farm fresh raw milk.

PLEASE NOTE:
The Barker Dairy Farm DOES NOT follow the same standards that we have at Seven Sons. However, we are recommending their products simply because they take a more natural approach to farming than most diaries and the resulting product is much better than what you will find in your grocery stores.

What is a cow share program??
In states where dairy regulations forbid consumers their constitutional right to purchase raw milk in stores or directly from farmers, consumers are entering into Cow Share or Farm Share agreements with the farmer.

In a cow share agreement, consumers pay a farmer a fee for boarding their cow, (or share of a cow), caring for the cow and milking the cow. The cow share owner then obtains (but does not purchase) the milk from his own cow. This arrangement is similar to arrangements of owning a share in a racehorse or a bull.

Some states, such as Wisconsin, actually forbid cow share agreements (which represents a further abridgment of our constitutional rights.) In these states, consumers and farmers have set up corporations in which consumers hold non-voting shares. This permits the consumer to obtain raw milk and other products from the farm in which he shares ownership. It is more difficult and more expensive to set up a farm-share program than a cow share program, but this arrangement has the advantage of providing the farmer with more protection.

More information can be found at: realmilk.com

In closing...

We will be keeping everyone up to date with how your orders are coming!

Thanks so much for your wonderful support. As we've said before, without folks like you most small family farms wouldn't exist anymore.

Thanks for being a part of our farm... and may God Bless!