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Includes information on cattle, pigs, poultry, sheep, and goats, and exotics like bison, rabbits, elk, and deer and offers a clear, thorough, well-organized guide to a subject that will become increasingly important as the market demand for pasture-raised meat grows stronger. How can anyone from a backyard hobbyist to a large-scale rancher go about raising and selling ethically produced meats directly to consumers, restaurants, and butcher shops? With the rising consumer interest in grass-fed, pasture-raised, and antibiotic-free meats, how can farmers most effectively tap into those markets and become more profitable? The regulations and logistics can be daunting enough to turn away most would-be livestock farmers, and finding and keeping their customers challenges the rest. Farmer, consultant, and author Rebecca Thistlethwaite ( Each species chapter discusses the unique requirements of that animal, then delves into the steps it takes to prepare and get them to market. Profiles of more than fifteen meat producers highlight some of the creative ways these innovative farmers are raising animals and direct-marketing superior-quality meats. In addition, the book contains information on a variety of vital topics: • Governmental regulations and how they differ from state to state; • Slaughtering and butchering logistics, including on-farm and mobile processing options and sample cutting sheets; • Packaging, labeling, and cold-storage considerations; • Principled marketing practices; and • Financial management, pricing, and other business essentials. This book is must reading for anyone who is serious about raising meat animals ethically, outside of the current consolidated, unsustainable CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) system. “[This] is what my father Wendell Berry would call the best of books because it is a tool. It fills a cultural need, and will give beginning farmers just the information they need, just the way they need it.”--Mary Berry, executive director, The Berry Center “Great practical advice on choosing the species to raise, humane treatment, and marketing. Informative chapters on processing, regulations, and starting a business.”--Temple Grandin, author of ...
