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Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

montanafreepress.org

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Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#251

Post by [deleted] »

cwkoss wrote: post #211
tastyfreeze wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If there were a way to differentiate higher quality food in the store it doesn't need to cost more. People will prefer the higher quality produce and the low quality producers will need to adapt or die.

Higher quality food should cost more - it costs more to produce. I'm envious of Japan's 'designer produce' tied to their gift culture. America doesn't really have much "This fruit is so much better, people are willing to pay 10x+ for it". I think our food system would be much better if we had $20 versions of all produce to get people to stop treating produce as fungible commodities.

[deleted]

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#252

Post by tastyfreeze »

cwkoss wrote: post #211
tastyfreeze wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If there were a way to differentiate higher quality food in the store it doesn't need to cost more. People will prefer the higher quality produce and the low quality producers will need to adapt or die.

Higher quality food should cost more - it costs more to produce. I'm envious of Japan's 'designer produce' tied to their gift culture. America doesn't really have much "This fruit is so much better, people are willing to pay 10x+ for it". I think our food system would be much better if we had $20 versions of all produce to get people to stop treating produce as fungible commodities.

Produce grown regeneratively doesnt cost more to produce mostly because of the lessened or eliminated chemical inputs. That doesnt mean that regenerative farmers arent getting a premium for their product. But, that is more the demand warrants a premium than a higher cost to produce.

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#253

Post by lancefisher »

yepthatsreality wrote: post #212
emilywolfe wrote: post #194

Emily Wolfe here, I’m the person who wrote this story. As I plan the second story in the series, which will be about new markets related to organic and regenerative, I’m curious to know a couple of things: -isn’t this a tech/VC blog? How is it that so many of you are so interested in and knowledgeable about agriculture? -what about this story made you want to discuss it here? Looking forward to learning more!

Emily there will be a lot of reasons here but I bet if you were able to dig deeper you’d find a handful of people here moved to Montana during the pandemic.

Or already lived in Montana ;)

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#254

Post by danans »

Animats wrote: post #237
danans wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Lentils (Lens culinaris Medik.) are produced on over 1.5 million acres throughout the world. They are primarily used for domestic consumption in casseroles, salads, soups and stews. Lentils provide an excellent source of protein (20 to 35 percent), but are limited in the sulphur-containing amino acids methionine and cystine. However, consumption of lentils with cereals provides a balanced diet high in fiber, protei…

Growing lentils is a great idea, but the developed and developing worlds' palates also need to also change course toward consuming less climate-damaging foods like meat and more lentils, chickpeas, and other pulses. If you like lentis, you too can experience the joys of the US Humanitarian Daily Ration, NSN 8970-01-375-0516 [1]. It's vegetarian. It's kosher. It's halal. It's cheap to manufacture. It can survive being…

Not sure what your point is. Lentils are used in thousands of recipes that aren't the US Humanitarian Daily Ration that most people would much rather eat.

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#255

Post by SamoyedFurFluff »

inreverse wrote: post #250
TaylorAlexander wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lab grown meat is promising, for sure. FWIW I am now in year three of veganism and it feels like I have made it past all the "teething" stages to the point where I am absolutely loving my vegan meals. It is rare for me these days to eat a meat or cheese substitute - more like the occasional junk food throwback than a normal meal. Lentils, tofu, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, brown rice, peanut sauce, lettuce, zucchini,…

Are there any chefs who unify veganism with traditional cuisines that use lots of animal products, e.g. french or chinese? I would love to be vegetarian but I'm lucky in that my partner makes fantastic traditional food and I don't want to give it up. Vegan modifications along the lines of 'substitute the meat in your burger for mushroom' seem depressing, like they're unengaged with the balance of flavours in the dish…

Specifically with Chinese you rarely actually need to prepare a dish with meat in it. The savory/fat elements can be brought in via other means, and that often leaves just the sauce that’s very flexible to be used on any number of veggies and great tofu variety.

Remember the vast majority of China was extremely poor until just recently. No ones affording meat. The most traditional cuisines can function entirely without meat.

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#256

Post by ako »

emilywolfe wrote: post #194

Emily Wolfe here, I’m the person who wrote this story. As I plan the second story in the series, which will be about new markets related to organic and regenerative, I’m curious to know a couple of things: -isn’t this a tech/VC blog? How is it that so many of you are so interested in and knowledgeable about agriculture? -what about this story made you want to discuss it here? Looking forward to learning more!

One of the nice things about software is that it impacts everything, it's relevant everywhere, and the best software and technology is created when you understand both software and the domain where it is applied. "Software is eating the world".

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#257

Post by phillc73 »

Jeff_Brown wrote: post #227
andscoop wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have sources for this? I used to think similarly, but now I’m not so sure. Gabe Brown, the author of Dirt to Soil, changed my outlook on animals place in a healthy ecosystem. On his farmland he puts about 700k lbs of cattle on 1acre of land at a time, rotating those cattle frequently across 40 acres. He claims this practice has been an integral part of his regenerative ag method. http://brownsranch.us/grazing/

I don't think that math works out. That works out to around 6 square meters per cow. Google says cows eat about 160 pounds of grass per day.

I think in this case Google might not be right. Other sources say it's more like 10-15kg (22-33lbs)[1] for beef cattle. Dairy might be higher.

[1] https://www.thebeefsite.com/articles/3154/how-much-forage-do...

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#258

Post by sbmthakur »

emilywolfe wrote: post #194

Emily Wolfe here, I’m the person who wrote this story. As I plan the second story in the series, which will be about new markets related to organic and regenerative, I’m curious to know a couple of things: -isn’t this a tech/VC blog? How is it that so many of you are so interested in and knowledgeable about agriculture? -what about this story made you want to discuss it here? Looking forward to learning more!

I am not from the US but on the lookout for agriculture related stories since all generations in my family up until my grandfather have only done farming. My uncles still do it full-time.

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#259

Post by adrianN »

inreverse wrote: post #250
TaylorAlexander wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lab grown meat is promising, for sure. FWIW I am now in year three of veganism and it feels like I have made it past all the "teething" stages to the point where I am absolutely loving my vegan meals. It is rare for me these days to eat a meat or cheese substitute - more like the occasional junk food throwback than a normal meal. Lentils, tofu, potatoes, carrots, broccoli, brown rice, peanut sauce, lettuce, zucchini,…

Are there any chefs who unify veganism with traditional cuisines that use lots of animal products, e.g. french or chinese? I would love to be vegetarian but I'm lucky in that my partner makes fantastic traditional food and I don't want to give it up. Vegan modifications along the lines of 'substitute the meat in your burger for mushroom' seem depressing, like they're unengaged with the balance of flavours in the dish…

I've been to a great vegan Chinese restaurant. I think most countries where Buddhism is present have traditional meat-free cuisine.

Re: Organic and regenerative agriculture are revitalizing rural Montana economies

#260

Post by [deleted] »

emilywolfe wrote: post #194

Emily Wolfe here, I’m the person who wrote this story. As I plan the second story in the series, which will be about new markets related to organic and regenerative, I’m curious to know a couple of things: -isn’t this a tech/VC blog? How is it that so many of you are so interested in and knowledgeable about agriculture? -what about this story made you want to discuss it here? Looking forward to learning more!

[deleted]
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