Creative Living

[Canadian Sheepfarmer]

I am a member of an informal buying chain. This is a group of 5 local farmers one of us is also a butcher, who take our meat produce and some grains into Winnipeg about once a month. A church with a very active congregation of 3000 people place their orders by filling in a form and placing them with a member whom we reward for organising the collection. We then deliver to one drop off point. The prices are better for us and way better for them, being around wholesale. They are welcome to come out and see our farms anytime for themselves.

We did think we would lobby golf clubs, tennis clubs, anywhere that people congregate together and feel a sense of belonging. We worked out a presentation saying what we were about. A Physiotherapy Clinic that one of our members went to asked him if he would speak at an informal meeting that the Dr was organising.
He and his wife turned up and found a room full of 500 people!

The Dr made a speech about all that was wrong with the modern Urban fast-diet then he said, "Right if you want grass fed and organic meat, here is your farmer!"
Thunderous applause and farmer feels like a rock star, more orders than we can fill.

[aliwood]

Wow!
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Alice

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[MrsL]

Brilliant - well done! Food should be like that.
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[nita]

wow that is great
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[AngieC]

Excellent - please come & tell our poor farmers how to do it! Whenever I talk to my farming friends, they're being made to jump through hoops & cut to the bone by the supermarket buyers, but they can't see any way round it...
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Angie

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[Leanne]

fab!!
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[mathsmum]

go csf!!!

i think we need to franchise you out over here, too
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[Canadian Sheepfarmer]

You have to fight back. Farmers are the people that buy everything at retail, then sell their all their produce at wholesale.
Worms are turning!

Having said that the sheep sector is very healthy right now. Canada only produces 45% of the sheepmeat consumed in the country.
Every year more people move here who look upon lamb as a staple.
If anyone wants to come here and start a flock I'd say now would be a good time. If they know something about sheep all the better but it's just as important to come with an open mind.

[spotty dog]

Oohh that sounds like a challenge for Mrs - not that I want to lose her

Well done you farmers...its really good to hear of positive moves for you guys

[North Devon Dumpling]

Sorry would have posted earlier but have been busy with packing cases We wish, we have always loved Canada (along with Scotland) but with two extremely elderly parents (Mum is loads better, even been putting on a bit of weight) we really can't move to Canada (yet).

Interested in Sheep, I posted recently about a farm we had seen and are interested in. Question is what on earth do you do with 40 acres apart from rent it out. Sheep, beef? Pigs and more hens definately but that won't cover 38 acres of beautiful pasture. Bit scared of Sheep, so many problems with them and cattle seem so 'big' I think Sheep would be better and seeing CSF post makes me more interested even though we are over this side of the pond.

Well done CSF, hope it continues to go well.
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[Canadian Sheepfarmer]

Thanks NDD. 40 acres? I agree it is a problem, but a nice problem, I can think of 40 worse!

It depends on whether you have to have income from your land to support an adventurous mortgage I suppose.
In that case I would rent it out on 364 day tenancies. Some people are driven to keep a particular kind of animal which is easier in some ways, their path is mapped out, but if you are not really passionate about something you could get into a lot of heartbreak. My 1st wife remarked as we divorced, 'Farming always ends up in mud, blood and death." bit harsh, but I know what she meant. She was burned out with it and tired of not making much money from the time invested.
She wanted trips to Paris and pavements and chocolate!

There are so many regulations and forms now involved in keeping stock in Britain that I would be reluctant to start up again over there.

No, if I were you and you are fairly debt free, I would be as self sufficient as possible, on 40 acres you should be able to do just about everything and keep it looking good. A penny saved is a penny earned. I would be the supermarket's worst customer.
Monoculture is boring, a bit of everything and the surplus to the Farmers Market to defray expenses and pay the taxes, that would be an interesting lifestyle IMHO.

[kddevon]

It sounds like a great scheme, CSF. I think there are beginning to be more things of this type in this country. We buy our meat directly from a local farm - which I know isn't the same as what you've described - and a new box scheme has started up whereby various local farmers contribute to meat/veg boxes depending on what they produce. I can't see any reason to add in an extra layer in the form of supermarkets.

[Stripey_cat]

^ Chocolate and *trips* to Paris would be fine, but permanent pavements? Ugh.

[Canadian Sheepfarmer]

[MrsL]

I'll stick with the mud, thanks. Usually literally
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