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“The money and political power of Wall Street has stolen America’s food system, bankrupted our farmers and ranchers, mined our soils, polluted our environment, wasted our precious water, and left us with expensive industrially produced food that makes us sick.” – Occupy Wall Street Food Day, December 2011 -
Industrial Agriculture and Urban Sprawl – A model of growth that’s made to fail. -
Ranching Reboot Episode 4, Mike Callicrate “It’s time for a third revolution against monopolies”
Above: Ranching Reboot – Episode 4 – Mike Callicrate, owner of Ranch Foods Direct, sat down with us to talk about all manner of things from cattle markets, to public food spaces, the Bander, his feedlot and the pathway he built to market.
He shares valuable lessons learned from fighting against the commodity production system and how he’s built his own pathway to the consumer.
We talk about small community slaughter plants and public meat spaces and what that could look like going in to the future. We discuss environmental challenges, the food police and what it means when a Dollar General comes to town.
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- This Cattleman's Got A Beef
Photo: Sean Cayton - 2003People producing good food from happy animals, while improving the environment, shouldn’t have to fear the government.
Photo above featured in a 2003 article: This cattleman's got a beef, Mike Callicrate and Ranch Foods Direct take on the big meat packersby Kathryn Eastburn
Author Archives: Mike Callicrate
Who will the Biden administration serve, the lords of big business, or the people?
Rural America has become a place of hunger, hopelessness, and despair, with precious resources extracted and stolen by global agribusinesses and Wall Street-based companies, enabled by our own government and primarily by the United States Department of Agriculture. Continue reading
The Farmers Advocate – Politics and Partisanship
The things for which the average farmers’ organizations stand, such as education and co-operation, cannot be accomplished by an alliance with a political party … Continue reading
No Country for Young Farmers vs. The Value of a Small Farm Well Tilled
A stark warning comes from Cody Atkinson of the feudalism monopoly control of our food system brings. We declared ourselves independent and free men in 1776 in a battle against the monopoly power of the British Crown and East India … Continue reading
Trickle Down Effect? It’s Worse Now!
Since 1997 the producer share of the consumer beef dollar has declined an additional 10% or around $400 per head. Between 1975 and 1997 meatpackers, cooperating with each other and with the big retailers, had already taken 20% more than … Continue reading
HOW CAN YOU HELP MEN WHO WON’T HELP THEMSELVES?
“When the people quit voting for their enemies and stop crucifying their saviors …” Thanks to NFU historian, Tom Giessel
