Nicholas Gilmore

4/27/2020
P.3-4

The Difficult Truths of Local Farming

If any farmer has told you not to name your livestock, they would be right in saying that. Along with the
hard work, satisfaction, and the healthy hobbies that farming is, there are some not so satisfying parts of
the job. This would include butchering, animal parturition, natural predators, and of course, the screeching
crows of roosters in the dead silence of the night. While the last example was more of a joke, there is lots
of work to be put into farming, and because of this, farming isn’t for everybody. While you read through
this essay, remember that most good things don't come easy.

Sure, the pleasures that farming can bring can be extraordinary, breathtaking, and almost always worth
your time. However, one of the worst parts about having a farm is butchering. Not because of how
time-consuming it is, or how hard you have to work. It's hard because your emotions play into it. You
have to have guts to be able to commit the act. It was around December of last year, and my dad and I had
to butcher our last pig. We went out at like 6:30 and it was freezing outside. Usually, how we put down
the animal is we’d use a 22, then slit the throat after the animal has been shot. This is because the bullet
will go through the head and won't cut up the other parts of the meat. Compared to stun guns used in
industrial butchering, a 22 will finish the job it’s first to try, making it easier for Bacon Seed and us. I
should add that we got Bacon Seed around a couple of years back. however, the process after the shot can
be sometimes traumatizing to people that haven't been exposed to this type of stuff before. A lot of people
don’t tell you that animals move frantically after being shot, it's not because they are still alive, but
because the neural pathways are still trying to protect themselves from their attacker even after being
unconscious. It's often hard to watch the blood come out of an animal, waiting for it to bleed out,
especially see how its blood steams out because of how cold the surrounding environment is. As we pick
up the pig and put it on the tractor to bring it up the hill, it's uncomfortable to feel the warmth still on the
pig's body. It's also uncomfortable lifting an animal that's a couple of hundred pounds heavier than you,
but that's beside the point. After we get it up the hill, it's time to butcher the animal. Just like in the book
“The omnivore's dilemma” Michael Pollan describes butchering a hog. He explains that gutting the hog is
one of the worst things he has ever smelled in his life, which could not have been more true in this
situation. In about a couple hours the skinning, gutting, cutting, and washing of the pig is done, you’d
notice that it doesn’t even look like a pig anymore, it looks like a stack of ribs you would get at the
supermarket. After this stage. it's hard to even notice what type of life this animal lived. It's hard to see if
it was raised right and fed properly, it goes to show that you should know where your food comes from.
When you feel the outside of the animal, it's ice cold. It's crazy to think that it was alive just a couple
hours ago, but the work isn’t done yet. Since it's still outside, we have to bring it into the butcher house.
Since this pig is still 180-230 pounds even after the butchering process, it's extremely hard to move by
yourself without getting the meat contaminated. So, that's where I come in to help. Even with 2 people,
you're still carrying about give or take 100 pounds per person, which is still extremely hard to walk
through a door with. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention there are 2 halves to this pig we have to carry in, so we
have to do this process again with the other side of the pig. After we do this. We cut it in multiple ways
for the next week, using almost every part of the pig as to not waste anything. Even after all that, I am
thankfully not a vegan. Instead of shying me away from meat, it taught me how to embrace the steps used
to get there, To have whole new respect for farming and what you are eating. To be more conscientious of
how it's done instead of who it's done by, and because of this experience, It changed my food ethic for the
better.

When you accept the idea of what food can do to your body more than how it tastes, you then learn how
important it is to eat from healthy and trusted sources. What better way to do both than have a sustainable
food source in as little as your backyard! Of course not everyone has a pasture big enough for even one
cow to graze, but chickens are a perfect way to start a sustainable farm and benefit you in the long run.
The best part about it is that chickens don’t have to take a whole lotta space to be taken care of well. So
even with all these possible excuses thrown out of the way, why don’t people integrate this into their
lives? One reason is that it may not be for them, but the main reason is that people don’t want to put the
work in to get the results. The average joe would rather be fed by grocery stores they may not even trust,
then put in the work to make quality, trusted food. People need and should understand where their food
products come from. Although it's obvious this rule should apply to foods that you think are “already
healthy.” I don’t mean look at the package either, ask about it to an employee, do your research, learn
about its origins. That's how you create a good food ethic for yourself. When you learn how to farm,
you're not only doing yourself a favor in learning the process, but you also benefit from others with what
you are doing. Learning from my farm at home taught me what food from a trusted source looks like,
Most people remember the part that it takes responsibility, time, effort, and work to raise chickens. Those
are also the reasons why most people look the other way.

To sum this essay up in a few sentences, this is what I would say: Trust where your food comes from,
Learn how to raise it (if you're looking to do so,) and make sure not to waste anything you make on
farming. As I said in my introduction. Nothing good comes easy.