Learning the values of a farm-to-fork lifestyle

Editor's Note: This piece originates from Marquette Magazine, and is used here with permission. The original story and additional photos can be found online here.

Imagine for a moment that the slabs of meat wrapped in plastic on the grocery shelves hold a story within them, a story that you become a part of with every bite. Ponder for a moment, how the story began, before it landed on your plate… was this animal respected, cared for, fed a healthy diet, did it have a humane death, and just how far did it travel before arriving in your town? 
 
Why are these important questions to ask yourself? Because, as the old adage says, "you are what you eat." Because you are consuming an entire history hidden within your food. The quality of your health is based on the food you eat, and the quality of this food is dependent on the diet, care, and lifestyle of the animals before you select those cuts of meat from the grocery store shelves.
 
There is a trend emerging across the nation in which people are seeking new options and choosing to spend their money on food raised with the integrity and quality that they want to create for their own lives. People are enacting a change and beginning to care about where their food is coming from and how it was raised.
 
This was hugely apparent in a recent event at Shady Grove Farm just outside Marquette, in the form of what they have come to call a "hog harvest." Visiting farmers Mark and Jill Baker, of Baker's Green Acres, came to share their skills in how to process hogs from a quick and humane kill to butchering, curing, and all aspects of processing the animal into something edible or usable in some way. They stress a nose to tail philosophy teaching how to use every part of the animals.
 
The couple runs their own farm downstate in Marion, Michigan where they teach traditional farming techniques to folks interested in learning how to produce and procure their own food. Says Baker, "Lots of folks now days want to get closer to where their food is coming from and are interested in these techniques." 
 
Randy Buchler of Shady Grove Farm is one such person. Buchler has a full circle relationship with his food and feels if you're going to eat meat you should be exposed to the whole process before it arrives to your table, in order to gain more respect for it.
 
Perhaps if we all gave this some consideration or had the chance to experience the process for ourselves there would be less wasted in our trash cans and society would start making healthier choices.
 
Buchler feels that it's part of his job as a farmer to educate people on how they can bridge the gap between them and their food. Says Buchler, "One of my main goals is to create a thriving local food system and without consumers who appreciate where their food comes from, we can't do that."
 
The Bakers came to Buchler's farm in October 2014 to help him harvest the two Mangalitsa hogs purchased from them a year before. These hogs are known for their high quality meat and prized by chefs for making prosciutto and other high demand cured pork items. Buchler seized the chance to share this great learning opportunity with the community.
 
They organized a three day workshop where people came out to Shady Grove Farm to participate in every aspect of harvesting the hogs from the blessing ceremony of the animals before taking their lives, to the butchering, curing, and sampling of the end products. Baker gave demonstrations and guided instruction to everyone in attendance with a desire to learn.
 
Many of the people who came out to the farm wanted to learn more about the life of the animals and the skills of processing meat in order to be more self-sufficient. Others came to enjoy and help out their community, not as interested in raising their own hogs, but passionate about understanding what goes into producing the meat they eat, like Scot Acocks who said, "We don't eat any meat that we don't know where it comes from. Most everything our family eats comes from local farmers and we wouldn't have it any other way."
 
The Bakers define farming as, "anything you do to produce your own proteins or carbohydrates," and this can be done with surprising ease and with a relatively small amount of space. Baker explained that with an acre or less you can raise some chickens or a couple of pigs and much of what they require for a healthy diet can be provided with scraps from your own home or local restaurants. Two pigs can keep a family of four in meat for over a year utilizing the entire animal.
 
For many of us, raising our own animals may not be feasible, yet we can still ensure a healthy food source for our families by supporting humane and healthy farming practices. It's important to know we have choices and there are ways to work with varying budgets like buying direct from small farms or redirecting money spent on frivolous items toward higher quality food sources.
 
Know that you are investing in the health of your family, environment, and community. The first step is deciding that choosing food raised with love and respect matters.

If you'd like to know where you can get fresh local meats and other farm produce, click here: Shady Grove Farm U.P.