Market Farming

["Rick Williams" <mrfarm AT frontiernet.net>]

paul & barb wrote:
> What we're missing here is all of the facts. At least try to provide some
> supporting evidence, please. Hard evidence, not hearsay rant from FB and
> Wise Use lobbies in disguise. What percentage of small livestock operators
> in Minnesota? Exactly who and how many have thrown in the towel in "those
> areas"?  Is there even one farmer who wasn't going out of business anyway
> for other reasons?

If you know the folks in the northern tier of states, you know the problems
they are having. This is exemplified in northern Minnesota, where many who
tried to raise sheep were forced to quit. I am sure this pleases some of the
so-called environmentalists as they often prefer no farming. One of our list
members on Grazersedge, Janet McNally, who is struggling to survive up near
Hinckley, MN has discussed this at length. Many of us did not have a clue
how bad it was and how it has wiped out the smaller farms. Even with larger
livestock, wolves are a serious threat. Janet says that she is one of the
few remaining small livestock farmers in her area.

I think that we need to decide if we want farming and ranching, or if we
want wolves in a given area. Trying to do it all is not the most practical.
Livestock farming is so difficult as it is and so financially precarious at
times, that making it even more burdensome on a farmer, particularly a
grazer who is trying to be a good steward of the land, is very unfortunate
in my view.

> I don't believe we have many people here demanding reintroduction
> of wolves
> in the first place, so why bring up this anti-wolf stuff unless it's to
> discredit FB critics as "environmentalists" ? (horrors).  Next on the FB
> agenda will be to lump anti-GMO people with "terrorists"

Why not bring up issues that are of concern? The wolf issue is not some
theoretical thing "out there someplace" but is affecting more farms as they
move further south. We are expecting that we may be seeing them not far from
us on the other side of the Mississippi River in Minnesota eventually. If
anyone would have told me a couple decades ago that we would have coyotes
here in Wisconsin I would have thought they were nuts, but look what has
happened. It does change the wildlife as coyotes tend to kill out the fox
and if wolves come in the coyotes are killed by them. Along with pets and I
suspect we will see young children injured or killed as time goes on. There
have been some physical altercations between hunters and wolves.

As far as GMO's go, I have been pretty outspoken in opposition to them for a
number of reasons. But I won't go into that now.

> Fine if individuals want to take part in FB meetings locally,
> that's not my
> concern.

But it is for state and federal?

Sincerely,

Rick Williams
Misty Ridge Farm
Dairy heifers and dairy beef graziers
Viroqua, WI

www.mistyridgefarm.com