MM Livestock Co

Oh dear, one of the blog readers left her comment as a review on the site. What's funny is she obviously didn't pay attention to what she read. I thought I was pretty clear as to different kinds of pork and what we do. In my opinion grass fed and or pastured animals and heritage breeds are better. If extra lean cardboard is what you want IT AINT' US. Our Beef and lamb are Graded and we sell nothing that grades lower than USDA Choice, They are raised on pasture, The only grain they see is Barley 30 days pre and post birthing to improve milk production. The pig are pasture Raised Berkies that get to play and root, they have clean water and never have to wallow in waste. They eat what pigs are supposed to eat. not pelleted super foods or salvage.It's like trying to compare American Cheese to Cave Aged Cheddar, It can't be done. We do things the old fashioned way, with the health and welfare of the animal as top priority. This is the place for discussion and arguement if needed. Not the review page. This woman either has no clue about livestock production or didn't read the entire post. I'm not sure which. it was a cheap shot and she should be ashamed of herself. Visit a place before you slam it. if something is wrong say so or report it. Abstract Opinions and dialog belong on the blog roll, facts and first hand experiences on the review list. Its Not rocket science! Thanks for letting me rant. Meg

Since we started our Dutch Oven cooking classes I've had some interesting questions posed by students, the most common one being "How do I make sure my pork is tender?" It's pretty easy, start with quality pork. The comercial hog has been bred to be extremely lean, sacrificing flavor and tenderness in the process. Fat equals flavor, marbling equals tenderness. Heritage hogs carry more fat, therefore are naturally prone to be more tender and flavorful. Pastured pork is higher in monounsaturated fat than conventional pork, and all the running around and playing helps build muscle and promotes marbling. Pork should never have to be tenderized if it was raised and harvested properly. If you start with a superior product, cook it properly paying attention to time and temperature, you end up with great chops, succulent ribs, and tender roasts. Here's a recipe for a crowd that illustrates my point. 2 pork shoulder roasts or Boston Butts. 10 racks Spare Ribs, 20 Apples, 3c Apple Juice, 2lbs Brown Sugar, 2lb of your favorite Dry Rub. Slice all the apples, Rub the shoulders and ribs with dry rub. in a 17" deep sided dutch oven. Place a 1" layer of apples in the bottom of the oven, add the Pork Shoulders, layer apples over shoulders and sprinkle brown sugar on top. Alternate Racks of ribs and apples, sprinkling sugar on each layer of apples until you fill the oven. Pour apple Juice over top(I substitute about a cup of Bourbon but you don't have too). Cover with lid and hang or place over a slow fire. Put about 50 coals on the lid after the first hour and let cook another 1.5 to 2 hours. Check every 20 to 30 minutes to make sure your coals are still hot. Pull the meat from the oven and transfer it to a grill to brown up. You can mop the meat with sauce if you like but I don't think it needs it. You can add potatoes and other root vegetables to the cooking pot with the apples for a great side dish. Cut em in a small dice and they should be done in 15 to 20 minutes.

We said our last goodbye to my dear friend and Pop on Saturday. Bob passed on August 14 after 11 days in intensive care fighting a systemic infection. Bob was many things to many people. Husband, Father, Friend, and Blacksmith to name a few. Bob was my voice of reason. He kept me from flying off the handle and running my mouth more times than I can count. He would come by for hay and we would end up talking for hours about everything and nothing. He dragged me to events and introduced me to folks that have become lifetime friends. He taught me the value of keeping my cool, and that honesty trumps bravado every time. I think the most important thing I learned from Bob was to apply stockmanship to humans. Stay calm, be patient, and if they don't settle down and learn to do what's right, ship em! I'm going to miss my Pop but he's in a better place, shaping iron and smiling.

Sorry it has taken so long to get back to the blog. We've been really busy lambing! The farm flock is dropping lambs right and left! These old ladies are still getting it done, they just need a bit more care than the commercial ewes. Trip and Emma each gave us a set of triplets and so far everyone else has twinned. Not bad for ewes that are seniors. We have been really happy with our selective breeding program and having ewes still producing well at 10 years old and up is proof that what we started is working. They lamb pretty easily stay in good flesh and are super attentive mothers for the most part. we onlt have 20 more girls to go so I'll keep you all posted!

We've been invited to participate in a new Farmers Market with an interesting twist. Everything sold at this market must be produced and processed Locally(within 100 miles). I asked a lot of questions and after a lot of thought I'm in. It means we can't sell our pork there but that's ok. Beef, lamb, and poultry will have to suffice. It will do away with a lot of the geegaws and re-sellers but that's ok too. Their premise is to showcase local products and I hope it works. Would you rather see a traditional market or one that enforces the hundred mile rule? I think that there are valid arguements on both sides of the issue but want to know what other producers and consumers think. Thanks in advance. Meg

The "Farm Flock" is getting ready to start lambing. These are older ewes and show sheep that can't compete with the commercial ewes but still have really nice lambs. We have to keep a closer eye on them and sometimes help them lamb. We have new fences around the pasture, have planted it for the winter. and are getting the jugs ready. The cattle are almost through calving so we'll be able to slow down a bit come November. We've decided to make some minor changes at the home place since that's where visitors come first.We want to have examples of our larger operations and use it as a teaching center. We have leased the 16 acres adjacent to us so we can have more pasture space. With the solar cubes we've been able to add better lighting and security cameras. The well will be able to handle keeping the pastures greened up, and we've terraced for better drainage. We will keep a few animals of each species here and limit access to our production herds and flocks for biosecurity reasons.(you can still drive out to the range land and look) We want people to learn how and why we raise our animals on grass and pasturage, what feeding practices are appropriate, and what questions to ask. There is so much false advertizing out there! We feel that it is our duty to teach people about the process whether they buy from us or not.