Free Republic

Photos and Video: Karen Doyle is the owner of Georgiatown Farm, a 10-acre livestock farm in White Stone, Va. Although most commercial agricultural operations make mass production a top priority, Doyle takes a different approach by raising heritage livestock breeds that are now threatened with extinction in the U.S. Doyle, a member ofThe Livestock Conservancy, raises numerous heritage breeds, including Red Wattle hogs, Bourbon Red turkeys and Clun Forest sheep. Fight Against Factory Farming Doyle said she hopes to conserve endangered livestock breeds and help diversify the food market, which she said is negatively influenced by factory farming. “Factory farming...

“That’s enough, that’s enough. We won’t back away! What can we do to ditch the rule? Tell the EPA. Don’t need more government anyway. That’s the message one Missouri farm family is saying to the Environmental Protection Agency and its proposed water rules. Kacey Clay, who farms in central Missouri with husband Andy, used a little creativity, her three young children and inspiration from a popular Disney movie to get her message across. Click here or the embedded video above to watch the full clip. In April, the American Farm Bureau Federation asked its members the “ditch” the proposed water...

Nearly 20,000 pork producers and related professionals from 32 countries will attend World Pork Expo, June 4-6, at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, Iowa. Presented by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), Expo features the world’s largest pork-specific trade show with some 375 commercial exhibits in more than 310,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibit space. “World Pork Expo is a showcase of pork production; it’s where producers get together and share ideas,” says Howard Hill, NPPC president and Iowa pork producer. “It offers a great opportunity for pork producers to get a crash course in what’s...

The disastrous smoking habits of the Irish have been highlighted in two new studies—we are far more prone than other Europeans to continue smoking after suffering a stroke and one in 10 of us cut back on food to fund our craving. […] Just what lengths smokers will go to to feed their habit is borne out in a separate study by Pfizer Ireland, which found: 10% cut back on buying food35% said they cut down on eating out24% pulled out of social engagements22% also said that they cut back on holidays to avoid cutting their smoking budget.More than half...

Continuing series on small farms in Virginia from Virginia Free Citizen: Photos/Video Karen Doyle, a small livestock farmer in White Stone, Va., made a conscious decision to keep her livestock free of GMOs and antibiotics when she started Georgiatown Farms almost five years ago. This requires Doyle to embark on a two and a half hour road trip to Maryland to buy the special feed from the Amish. She said most farmers aren’t willing to put in that much effort, but for her, it’s a matter of health safety and animal welfare. GMOs, or genetically modified organisms, are genetically engineered...

Brian and Kim Criley operate their farm business Slow Grown in Virginia from the Spring Hill Farm in Caroline County, Va. The Crileys are on a mission to preserve Virginia’s historical small family farming practices, as they produce natural herbal products (including teas), organic seasonal produce, bath and body care products, homemade baked goods, and crafts and home décor products, as well as pasture-raised pork, poultry and eggs. They do not use any herbicides, pesticides, hormones, chemical growth enhancers or genetically modified organisms. They also operate a farm store, where they offer community-supported agriculture and co-op programs. Brian, a former...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is teaming with businesses, nonprofits and others on a five-year, $2.4 billion program that will fund locally designed soil and water conservation projects nationwide, Secretary Tom Vilsack said. Authorized by the new farm law enacted earlier this year, the Regional Conservation Partnership Program is intended to involve the private sector more directly in planning and funding environmental protection initiatives tied to agriculture. Officials provided details of the program to The Associated Press ahead of an announcement scheduled for Tuesday. …

The Maine Secession Movement is now actively inviting Born Again Christians to move to Maine from other states. As the secession vote on June 12, 2018 moves ever closer, the Maine secession Movement is now actively encouraging Born Again Christian families in other states to put their property and business up for sale and move to Maine. This is being done in advance of the next release of the proposed Constitution for the Republic of Maine which will take effect immediately upon a successful vote for secession on June 12, 2018. This next release will include a section detailing how...

The U.S. Agriculture Department is known for its army of statisticians packing yardsticks and calculators to measure wheat and count soybeans. But the agency needs more firepower for another kind of rural reckoning and is gearing up with thermal imaging weapons. In its crosshairs are aggressive feral hogs that can weigh more than 400 lbs (180 kg) and have been known to carry off newborn calves. They cause about $1.5 billion of damage every year to farm communities and fields, say department officials, and now there are worries they may help spread a deadly pig virus. So the USDA wants...

This weekend I missed my first posting at PJ Media since beginning in 2006. Why? Let me briefly explain the lapse — if I can be forgiven for comparing a bike accident with what I have seen on the farm the last 50 years (sliced off fingers, crushed legs, herbicide poisonings, manifold burns, etc.). I was going on a usual morning bike ride — safe stuff with like-minded older folks. I’m 60; so is my biking partner and fellow Hoover Institution associate Bruce Thornton. We are hardly reckless. (Not like sulfuring at midnight recklessly in one’s 20s in the old...

The U.S. Interior Department said Tuesday it doesn’t want federal irrigation water being used to grow marijuana in Washington, Colorado or anywhere else. But the practical effects of the policy remain unclear: The Bureau of Reclamation said only that it would refer any violations to the Justice Department, and it seems unlikely that the Justice Department would target irrigation districts for supplying the water when it’s not going after the people who are actually growing the pot. […] The question of whether federal water can be used to grow marijuana is the latest iteration of a messy conflict posed by...

A modern John Deere tractor with 850 horsepower plays tug of war with an 1800s era steam tractor that has about 18 horsepower. While both are capable of getting an honest day's work done, there is only one that proves its dominance through sheer power.

An international rights group is pushing the federal government and the tobacco industry to take further steps to protect children working on U.S. tobacco farms. A report released Wednesday by Human Rights Watch claims that children as young as 7 are sometimes working long hours in fields harvesting nicotine- and pesticide-laced tobacco leaves under sometimes hazardous conditions. Most of what the group documented is legal, but it wants cigarette makers to push for safety on farms from which they buy tobacco. Human Rights Watch details findings from interviews with more than 140 children working on farms in North Carolina, Kentucky,...

I have a couple of questions that I need answers to before I run out and purchase a new hedge clipper. My first question is: Should I go with a corded or battery powered one? I have never had any type of battery operated tool (other than a drill) that was worth a d@mn .. battery wears out quickly or doesn't hold a charge for long and is usually underpowered. My other question is: What length blade is ideal? I have be using a cr@ppy little 16 inch blade for a few years and it really sucks using it on...

The mysterious vanishing of honeybees from hives can be directly linked to insectcide use, according to new research from Harvard University. The scientists showed that exposure to two neonicotinoids, the world's most widely used class of insecticide, lead to half the colonies studied dying, while none of the untreated colonies saw their bees disappear. "We demonstrated that neonicotinoids are highly likely to be responsible for triggering 'colony collapse disorder' in honeybee hives that were healthy prior to the arrival of winter," said Chensheng Lu, an expert on environmental exposure biology at Harvard School of Public Health and who led the...

FORT WORTH — Authorities are not allowing longhorns with the Fort Worth Herd to roam on the new Chisholm Trail Parkway during a weekend of festivities to open the tollway. Seems the North Texas Tollway Authority has decided the road is for cars, not cattle. The 28-mile toll road, named after the historical cattle trails that led to Oklahoma, Kansas and beyond in the mid-1800s, is scheduled to open to traffic Sunday. It will connect Interstate 30 near downtown Fort Worth to U.S. 67 in Cleburne. Crews will open one on- and off-ramp at a time beginning about 8 a.m....

The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you. This thread is non-political, although you will find that most here are conservative folks. No matter what, you won’t be flamed and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked. It is impossible to hijack the Weekly Gardening Thread. There is no telling where it will go and... that...

In the past few years, Brussels sprouts and kale have become two of the hottest vegetables around. Once either outright reviled or merely ignored, they’ve become popular staples in the kitchens of health-focused homes and trendy restaurants alike. For fans of the two vegetables, it can be difficult to choose which is their favorite. But now, you don’t have to. Enter a new hybrid vegetable that is equal parts Brussels sprouts and kale. Developed a few years ago by British vegetable breeding company Tozer Seeds, it entered the spotlight recently via prominent features on NBC’s Today show and in New...

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Apple fans in Minnesota will soon be able to find a favorite apple in grocery stores year-round. The Honeycrisp apple has come a long way from its humble beginnings here in Minnesota. When the apple was first introduced in 1991, University of Minnesota researchers only produced a three-week supply. Now, Honeycrisp is the No. 1 desired apple in America. “When you find a winner, you stick with it,” scientist and Honeycrisp breeder David Bedford said. Spring usually means Honeycrisp apples fans must do without their favorite fruit. But Bedford says researchers found a way to have the...

Jessie Grinnan, a stay-at-home mom from Palm Beach County, Fla., pays $13 a gallon for milk—and she couldn’t be happier about it. Grinnan drinks raw, unpasteurized cow's milk that she buys at a local farm. “It’s a full milk,” she says, “so it’s not watery and it’s not bland. It’s delicious, actually, and I’m not a huge milk drinker.” Grinnan believes raw milk has health benefits. She says her husband couldn’t tolerate pasteurized milk and has found relief from his allergies since they switched to raw milk. She says she also doesn’t want her 23-month-old son drinking anything whose origins...