By Carie Moore
Every family deserves the best. Food choices can be so overwhelming. It comes down to what’s best for you and your family. Time, money, options, location, and so many other things play into what you provide for your family to eat. Just take reassurance in the fact that you don’t need to fit into a mold of GMO, organic, grass fed, free range, etc. As a parent, it’s up to you to provide for your family. I purchase whatever is affordable and support many different food genres because I trust our farmers and our food system.
If, in my small town, organic/free range chicken is on sale for less than regular price because no one wanted to pay full price, then I’m buying up the whole kit and caboodle and filling my freezer!
Currently we’re buying beef from friends because theirs is less per pound than the grocery and I know I’m supporting families. But sometimes I support another farmer and buy it from the store. We grow a garden, not because I’m scared of pesticides, but because I can grab what I need, when I need it, thus eliminating waste, and I’m teaching my family the responsibility of growing their food.
We have raised pigs and butchered. One had a bad leg and received Penicillin for 3 days. We ate him none-the-less because he was antibiotic free. How do I know that? Because there is a requirement that any animal used for food must be cleared of all meds for 30 days prior to going to market and we kept records.
Have faith in your famers, and if you are nervous about that, have faith in the food system that we as Americans have put in place. Accidents happen, but that’s why the USDA is in place to catch the things you may worry about.
Rural families often spend a lot of time together throughout the year in cabs of trucks, tractors and combines, so they have a strong connection to the food they produce. It’s not just a piece of food you’re buy, you’re getting a piece of a family.
We don’t need more labeling. Labels lead to misunderstanding and mistrust because there are so many and they mean so many different things. Talk to farmers. We are here to feed the world, and it takes all of us and it takes all kinds. We support each other and want consumers to do the same.
There is a section specifically on this site to “Ask a Farmer.” Use it as often as you need. Chances are if you have a question, so do 20 other people. As farmers, we have probably been asked it, so we understand the concern when a similar question is asked multiple times. We know it’s personal to you and your family. All the questions are answered by farmers, so it’s personal and important to us as well. We have the same options and choices you do, we shop at the same grocery stores, have medical factors that affect us, have finances and budgets to follow, and want to feed our family just like you do. Just do what’s best for you and your family with what YOU have.
Your family. Your table. Your choice.