[townmouse]

We're vegetarians because we can't afford the organic meat that is available to us (which ain't much, and only at trendy health food stores on the rich side of town)...

But we're sick of it.

We really thought we'd be on the farm, now, at least with chickens and a cow. But life is what happens to you while you're making other plans!

I can't help noticing that the gap between commercial meat prices and organic, is not near so wide as it used to be.

I can find certified organic in Indiana, but its purty pricey.

Does anybody know how I can find middle-of-the-road beef? or pork or chicken. I'd prefer 100% organic, but there's gotta be people out there who are raising animals in a reasonably humane way, with minimal antibiotics and no hormones or animal byproducts in the feed. Maybe some folks are doing that and haven't been certified organic, or don't want to be?

where do I go looking? Somebody educate me please. I want a steak.

 

[poppy]

Where are you in Indiana? We are in Illinois near the Indiana line. We buy beef at an Amish locker plant. Excellent meat grown by them or 2 farmers they get it off of. Much better than store beef. We buy by the half, but they sell cut beef in their shop also.

 

[Tracy Rimmer]

Townmouse -- ask at a feed store if they know anyone doing "on the hoof" beef sales. If you get your beef BEFORE it goes to the feedlot, I'm willing to put money on it being 100% humanely treated. Beef producers are not the money-hungry lot they've been painted as in recent years -- most cattlemen (and women) have a great deal of respect for the animals they raise -- they are after all, their living. Unhappy, stressed cattle make for tough meat.

Tracy

 

[comfortablynumb]

buy a rifle, take a camping trip to the country and hunt.

try elk and deer, maybe even moose.

dont hunt cows, people get really upset when you do that.

 

[townmouse]

Poppy, we're on the SW side of Indianapolis. How are the prices for your amish beef?

Tracy, thanks, I knew there was probably some phrase I needed for my search! Yeah, I've been around these boards long enough to know that small farmers are 'not' the folks you hear about. They're not the ones putting the meat in the grocery store, though! So I have to find them some other way!

Comfortablynumb, this talk about finding some meat came from a squirrel we saw on the way home from the library. He was so fat, and dh and I realized that we were both eyeing him. Didn't have time to stop for a squirrel. I saw a chickadee that appeared to have some meat on it. So this is our line of thought lately...meat, give me meat!

 

[comfortablynumb]

rat traps.

dont be put off by roadkill deer, if they are relitivly still warm and limp, they are fresh! toss the mushy black meat and eat up!

 

[Blu3duk]

the reasoning behind the high price of "organic" anything is the gubbermint stepped in and stopped just anyone from calling their product "organic", then it upped the anty this past year from a 3 year before certification to 5 years..... and then changed the ruling to be if you raise "organic animals" they must come from certified organic herds/flocks, not just the animals that are butchered, and the feed must come from "certified Organic" grain and hay farms, and the pasture must be certified as well, so a farmer cant just go out and buy a few calves and raise them on grass and call them "organic". The process spells out the whole plan and if you get a @ss***le fer a certifier then you can kiss your plan goodbye and the gubbermint tells you that upfront!

If your total dollars from Organic sales are less than $5000.00 for the year you can get by without certification, which comes out to a whole 5-8 beeves and is not enough to keep any farmer/rancher ready to supply consumers with a government certified product at the risk of lbeing fned an outrageous amount if caught getting more than $5000.00 in one year.

However, the trend towards naturally raised animals is catching back on, and there are many growers who are figuring out that natural is just the same as organic to a degree, with out all the hassle from the gubermint agents, and the animals are better, and the consumer gets a better price albeit slightly higher, and the animals are generally not stressed out either. There are many farms in the east that are growing beeves this way, and a few growing poultry products as well. http://www.westonaprice.org has information that many people should digest once inawhile.

William

 

[uncle Will in In.]

Royal Center Locker butchers for farmers that have beeves without antibiotics or hornones raised from birth on their farms. They are Gov inspected and the prices are very little if any higher than the stuff you want to avoid. They do custom slaughtering..

574-643-3275
North of Logansport Indiana

 

[mzzlisa]

I have found that the farmers markets here in Indiana can be pretty helpful. Try a search for Indiana farmers markets to get the phone numbers of the people in charge. They should be able to direct you to someone.

 

[BCR]

Definitely keep asking around at the feed store and friends who have animals.

Recently even here, a farm is selling small portions of beef on alternate Saturdays.

Or start saving and buy 1/4 or a 1/2. There is nothing that compares to having a freezer full of good quality beef to choose from when you are a meat eater. I have found that it costs me just under $2 a pound and we won't go back to mystery store bought beef. Our farmer never quit grass-feeding when it became trendy to grain only- and grass-fed is now drawing a premium at trendy restaurants. You'll find a guy if you just tell everyone.

Also, consider putting an ad in your penny saver or whatever. Say: Wanted, etc. Or get a copy of your state's Market Bulletin (does every state have that?)and call up those selling animals and ask. Call your extension agent as well. He or she might know of someone who could even become a mentor later.

 

[SueD]

If all else fails - call the County Extension office... If they've got FFA/4H kids raising beef, usually they only take one or two to the fair, and they all know each other. If they can't sell to you, they can tell you where to go.

(I'm always recommending the above - really try to help those kids out as much as I can... Know how hard they work, and round here its all 'burbs' and fringes of burbs, so they have it kinda rough...)

Another thought is the fair office itself, if it is seperate from the extension office...

Finally - if the folks at the feed store aren't any help, there is generally a newsletter which is offered through them which will have ads in it for individual farmers.

Sue

 

[townmouse]

Hi, all you Hoosiers! Thanks for the specific ideas, I'll get right on it.

Blu3duk, I thought that's what I'd heard. That you'd have to be one dedicated individual to go the certified organic route, but most folks are seeing the benefits and economy of a more natural way anyhow. I'll check out that link.

Well, something to do on a rainy Saturday. I'm gonna go find me a steak. Or 1/2 a cow or something.

Comfortablynumb, there is never a roadkill deer around here! For a swanky small city, somebody is needing that meat LOL. I know its not the highway dept. because the skunks are never, ever picked up, or the dogs.

 

[creymc]

I live in Terre Haute and I heard an ad on the radio just the other day for organic meat. They advertise "reasonable" prices but I dont know what they would be. If youre near here I could listen a little closer next time and pass on the info.

 

[townmouse]

creymc, we're in Idianapolis but I'd definitely go as far as Terre Haute!

If you happen to catch the ad again, I'd be interested!

 

[CountryBumpkinLisa]

I Don't know of any places in Indiana . But if your ever in Northern Kentucky
Tewe's Poultry Farm sells turkeys,chicken and some time pork. All Organic. Dan's a good man< the man that owns it>

 

[moopups]

Townmouse, just in case you are not aware, there is a new word to describe your pattern; its "flexatairian", one who chooses to eat veggies and occasionaly meat. Look it up on Google!

 

[townmouse]

Moopups, cool!

I need another label :haha:

Really its hard to find friends...my vegetarian friends can't stand me because I have no guilt about eating healthy happy animals. My carnivore friends think I'm flaky because I won't eat just anything that fits down my throat.

I could start an Indianapolis flexatarian support group!

 

[Marilyn in CO]

We do the certified Natural. Always make the beef supplier explain what they mean by "organic". I don't know how other states handle it, but in Colorado if you make a claim to be "natural" you must prove that you do not use growth hormones or use antibiotics. The feeds must also be free of animal byproducts. Now organic is a step beyond that because along with the no hormones or antibiotics all of the feed must be organic as well as the mama cows on organic pasture. The cost of doing TRUE organic beef is very costly and quite difficult. Always question the beef grower on what exactly he means by organic or natural. Hope you find some good beef!!!!!!!!! Marilyn, the farmer's wife.........PS, if you can find Coleman Natural Beef in your grocery store(it is sold nation wide), we are a supplier for them and yes, it is not cheap. :yeeha:

 

[Thumper/inOkla.]

dont hunt cows, people get really upset when you do that.

If you pay for the cow before you hunt it they wouldn't mind so much.

 

[rambler]

I raise beef, I feed them my corn, alfalfa, hay, & oats that I grow myself - some fertilizer & herbicides on the crops.

Cattle graze the pasture & oats & corn stubble a lot.

I give them salt & mineral blocks. I'll assume the minerals are from fairly safe sources?

Only chemials the cattle have gotten are 3 bottles of antibiotics I've purchased in the past 10 years for 'issues' that came up. Calves get some medicated milk replacer & vitamin shots if needed, but not 'always'.

Never dealt with implants.

I'll guess if there is any livestock grown around you, there are 100 or more folks just like me within 50 miles of you. If these methods meet your standards, all you need to do is find each other.

The govt has issues with selling fresh meat, but you can buy the live animal, have it delivered to your favorite locker plant or your grarge, & have it butchered without issue.

I bet 75 of those 100 people would be happy to sell you a live animal, & haul it to the locker plant, for only a few bucks more that their regular sales.

Start looking around the local places - locker/ butcher shops would be best, feed stores, farm supply places, cattle sales barns, etc.

I do cattle, but there are plenty of hog, chicken, duck, etc. folks around - same deal.

--->Paul