Farming by itself is hard. Farming during a pandemic seems absolutely daunting.
I recently had a fellow farmer tell me last month they were "August tired." It took me only a brief fraction of a second to understand exactly what this person had told me.
It described the feelings I believe a lot of us feel toward the end of the growing season when the vegetables in the garden are dwindling down, the livestock is finished producing young, the corn and beans are turning golden in the field and ready for harvest and normally, beef and pork are being taken to market to stock freezers for the colder months ahead.
The problem during the pandemic is the beef and pork are staying in the fields, their market day uncertain but looking to be into the middle of next year. It has not been an easy year for these farmers.
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Unfortunately, folks who are used to finding meat in plastic at their local grocery shop have been removed from the realization this meat comes from live animals who need food, water and care while they await their trip to Freezer Camp.
Even after they are brought to the processor, it is usually several weeks before the meat comes back wrapped in white butcher paper and ready for consumption. All of this costs quite a bit, and if the processor is backed up on availability, it means there will be a shortage of meat in the stores until things get caught up.
I am very fortunate to have a product that thankfully could be processed on the homestead with little labor if necessary. This almost was needed this past week when I got a call from my processor asking if we could move the butcher date back a week because of lack of help. Thankfully, things were sorted out quickly and the original date remained, but I was pretty nervous for a bit.
One wouldn’t think a singular week would make a huge difference in the weight of poultry, but it is amazing how much these creatures gain in their final weeks. The difference between 7 weeks of age and 8 weeks can be up to 2 pounds, which turns a marketable 6-pound bird into the size of a small turkey at 8 pounds and very few people would be willing to spend $36 for a whole chicken.
To put that weight gain into human terms, if you had a person who weighed 150 pounds and they gained weight at the rate meat poultry does in their final weeks, that person would gain almost 50 pounds in one week (if my math is correct). Talk about bulking up. I’m picturing an Arnold SchwarzenEGGer chicken that doesn’t gently peep but rather bwaks.
As the days turn shorter, nights longer and temperatures colder, keep your farming friends and neighbors in your thoughts. I know we’ll all appreciate it as we face the planning season of winter and look forward to renewed energy and hope in the new year. Meanwhile, I’m going to go take a nap.
Until next time…
Stephanie Strothmann owns Purple Shamrock Farm LLC in rural Seymour. Read her blog at whattheclucker.blogspot.com. Send comments to [email protected].