The Speakeasy
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In Part I of Out To Pasture, Nelson Harvey riffs on the history of the NYC meat trade and the challenges faced by local farmers struggling amidst a paucity of New York State slaughterhouses and a rising demand for local meat.
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The Challenges Faced By Farmers Trying to Satisfy Increasing Demand (5:40)
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Nelson Harvey, meeting the demand for local meat in NYC and beyond, heritage pigs, grassfed beef, Manhattan central stockyard, farmers brought live animals to town where butchers would buy them and slaughter them on the spot, Gustavus Swift started slaughtering animals in Chicago and transporting refrigerated carcasses, Swift saved money by avoiding putting whole live animals on trains and only shipping the parts of the animal that people will actually eat, prices of beef dropped 20%, drop made beef America's most popular meat, NYC slaughter houses close, network of stockyards fell by wayside, Chicago replaces New York as city of meat, Gustavus Swift was Nelson's great great great grandfather, eating locally has become a fashion and political statement, the rockstar appeal of butchers, demand for local meat in NYC exceeds supply, more than 650,000 tons of meat flown into NYC every year, could New York ever be a center of meat production again?, in 1800's cattle buyers and butchers appraised meat for purchase at stockyards, farmers and butchers racing to meet demands,Towards a Mobile Slaughterhouse (10:10)
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Judith LaBelle, Glynwood Center: working to find ways to save farming in the Northeast, total farmland in tristate area decreased by more than 18% from 1974 to 2002, what's been happening to all of this farmaland, strong development pressure for second homes, high costs of doing business near the city, national forces: growth of agribusiness and industrial farming, recently there has been a counter trend: change in type of farming and more small farms reflecting the growth of consumer demand and direct sales, who is farming now?, what types of farms are predominant in Hudson Valley, big mix of types of production, nearly 1000 square miles of farmland left in the Hudson Valley, in today's market a farmer producing niche vegetables on a few acres might have a higher net income than a beef or dairy producer on a few hundred, growing market for direct sales to restaurants or CSA's, farmers making more by selling direct, relationship between number of slaughterhouses in Hudson Valley and number of farmers, why raise livestock if you're not confident you can get it to market and get a good price?, at the moment only four USDA slaughterhouses in Hudson Valley and all are operating at capacity, animals are often butchered inproperly, mobile slaughter facilities?, Glynwood working to develop a mobile slaughterhouse,Dan Welch: Increasing the Amount of Local Meat Produced and Sold in NY State (9:56)
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Dan Welch, Cornell University Grasslands Utilization Project, trying to address issues surrounding vacant pasture land available in New York, difficulties faced by farmers trying to access vacant pasture land in NY state, abandoned agricultural land, farm consolidation, marginal land left behind, what's keeping farmers from farming the 3 million acres of unused farmland in NY state?, in some cases there is not a clear cut land owner for farmer to approach about buying, New York principally a dairy state,To comment on this episode click here. There are currently Comments
