FARM HAPPENINGS
With all the hens settled into the hoop house area for the winter they are able to get out of the wind and cold at night and then forage outside during the days. This has increased our egg production for the last couple of weeks and we are now back to our late summer egg numbers, so hopefully we will not sell out as quickly in the store.
Our raw milk production is also improved this past week, we just sold off three of the bull calves that were drinking a lot and have been hauling down the better quality hay we made at our Wisconsin farm to feed the dairy herd. In fact, for the first time in several years, we did not sell out of milk on several occasions this week. Part of this I attribute to the increased production and availability, but I also think the bird flu hysteria is causing hesitation for some raw milk buyers. More details on that below.
HOLIDAY GIFT IDEAS FROM THE FARM
As we close in on the last 10 days of the holiday shopping season, we have a number of great farm-sourced gift ideas to consider. We have a broad selection of organic cotton T-Shirts with cool rooster and pig artwork designed by our farm manager Cody (cows shirts designs coming soon).
Other gift ideas in the store include a variety of local, handmade natural soaps and lotions, healing salves, whipped tallow butters and balms, hand-crafted beeswax candles and hand-beaded bracelets. We also have a great selection of interesting books on healthy lifestyles, cooking, and eating well. And give the gift of good food with our online or in-store gift cards.
Anna has also assembled a 25 lb. Holiday Variety Pack which includes an assortment of our grass fed beef, pasture-raised pork and Corn Free/Soy Free chicken. Send friends and families the gift of clean/healthy meat for Christmas - now with free shipping to all of IL and WI and most of IN, MI, and IA. Order by Saturday evening for shipping on Monday.
FARM STORE UPDATE
For those holiday dinners, we have a good supply of pasture-raised, nitrate-free ham roasts available in the store from our November hogs. And a few dozen whole turkeys left over from Thanksgiving for those that just can't get enough turkey.
As noted above, our egg supply is growing again as is our raw milk production. And we are regularly getting the raw grassfed pet milk as well in recent weeks. For your chicken soups, stews, and bone broth we have the stewing hens back in stock, as well as chicken feet. These are from our retired pasture-raised laying hens and provide great flavor and nutrition to any chicken dish. And if you don't have time to make your own bone broth we have beef, turkey, and chicken bone broth in stock made from our animals by our friends at Hometown Sausage Kitchen.
BIRD FLU HYSTERIA?
In recent weeks I have noticed a flurry of news articles and media reports about the dangers of a possible bird flu outbreak (technically Avian Influenza A), given that it has jumped from birds to cows in 16 states. And fears that cows infected with the bird flu could possibly transmit it to humans through consumption of infected cow's milk. We are getting lots of calls and questions from customers concerned about this issue.
So I did some additional research and thought it was valuable to emphasize how minimal of a risk this issue really is. Based on the data from the CDCs own website, for the entire year (2024) there have been a total of 233 cases of bird flu confirmed in dairy cattle across 16 states. And a total of 60 cases of bird flu confirmed in humans, with 37 of those cases coming from possible contact with dairy cattle (33 in California), and 21 cases likely coming from contact with poultry, and 2 cases of unknown origin. Check out the data here on the CDC website. The CDC website says the current public health risk is “LOW”.
There are no known cases of the bird flu transmitting from human to human interaction. And no known cases of bird flu coming through milk consumption, raw or pasteurized. Those humans infected with bird flu, either from contact with cattle or poultry, generally have mild flu symptoms include fever, problems breathing, pink eye, also called conjunctivitis, upset stomach and vomiting, and loose stool, called diarrhea. No one infected with this most recent strain of the bird flu has died in the U.S. So what is all the fuss about?
My inner skeptic tells me this is all about $$$. Sure enough, the US Dept. of Health and Human Services recently awarded Moderna $176 million of taxpayer money to develop a human bird flu vaccine using its patented mRNA technology. This makes perfect sense, since the mRNA “vaccines” worked so well against COVID, right? Excited to see if RFK Jr. can make some progress cleaning up the corruption at HHS/CDC/FDA.
In the meantime I will continue drinking my raw milk everyday.
Cheers,
Cliff, Anna, and the Farm Team
2 comments
Thanks Cliff, for setting the record straight on the the bird flu situation. I’ll continue to drink your wonderful raw milk, and to give it to my grandchildren.
I’m just hoping we’re not being prepped for another c-19 scenario. No more masking for me, or “social distancing” except what might seem reasonable, No more shutting down of businesses until Big Pharma can get the profit$ they want.
I used to drive 40 minutes to get raw milk from your farm. Once it became popular, I gave up the drive as I always came too late and it was long gone by the time I got there. I will gladly buy raw milk from your farm as I have never had a problem with it. It’s delicious!