Michigan Pasture to Plate Tour: A city girl with a country heart

Last week I was invited to attend the Michigan Pasture to Plate Tour hosted by Michigan Agriculture Council, Michigan Beef Industry Commission, Michigan Soybean Promotion Committee and United Soybean Board.  A diverse group including registered dietitians, bloggers, farmers and chefs gathered together for an exclusive look into the complete process of pasture to plate.  

When I first received the invite, I was honestly ecstatic.  I thought what an awesome experience it would be to tour a cattle farm, feedlot and meat packing plant.  Besides the fact that I’ve never had the opportunity to visit places like these before, as a dietitian I have always been intrigued by where our food actually comes from before it hits the store shelves.  I’m actually a little surprised that this type of tour was not included in my dietetics program.  I may need to recommend it – it was such as awesome experience!

We began at Oswalt Family Farms, a 4th generation family farm that began in 1898 who breed sheep and cows.  We next visited the Osborne Feedlot where they feed their cattle a scientifically-based specific diet before they are sent to a meat packing facility.  The most intriguing part of the tour was our third stop at JBS (the meat packing facility).  We were given a behind the scenes look into what it takes for the beef to be processed in a way to be ready for store shelves (we skipped the “kill” room for obvious reasons).  I’m not sure everyone would agree with me that this was the most exciting part of the tour, but I’m also not your typically female blogger either but to each their own (as I like to say often).  

We next visited a local Meijer store and spoke with meat buyers who reviewed the various cuts of meat, gave us insight as to how they procure meat and described how packaging is influenced by consumer preferences. Our final stop was an absolutely delicious beef tasting at Webster’s Prime, a restaurant in Kalamazoo, Michigan. 

All set for our behind the scenes tour of the meat processing plant! Photo credit: Michigan Agriculture Council

And why you might ask is this post titled “a city girl with a country heart”?  Well, I fell in love with the country all over again.  I love how in touch farmers are with nature and animals (some of my family and friends would laugh at this statement since I will jump at the slightest sign of a spider, I can’t stand ants, I won’t touch gerbils or hamsters, heck I even avoid rabbits, but I love any animal the size of a dog or larger).  Also, if I lived in the country a riding horse would be a requirement, I’m obsessed with horses.  Oh, and did I mention I love country music and have for years?

If you’d like to see a visual example of a similar tour to ours, check out this Pasture to Plate video.

A few things I learned:

• Farmers are very transparent – we need to remember that they are just as concerned about the cows welfare/what they are fed/what medicine is given since they eat the same food as the rest of us
• 98% of farms in the United States are family-owned farms
• Food safety is of the utmost importance in every stage of the food chain 
• About 99% of the cow is used for some purpose: besides the edible (meat) parts of the cow, inedible parts are used in makeup, purses, film, as well as in the medical field just to name a few.
• I gained an even greater appreciation and admiration for farmers and the hard work they put in every single day through rain/snow/sleet/hail/sickness. No matter what, they have work to be done and there are no days off.  One of the farmers stated “they eat before we eat” which really shows the level of care they provide to their animals. 
• A part of me still desires to live a farm or at least in the country (of course with horses to ride at will) 

If you’re interested in learning more about what Michigan has to offer in agriculture and the beef industry, check out the Michigan Agriculture Council, Michigan Beef Industry Commission, Michigan Soybean Promotion Committee, and United Soybean Board.

Disclaimer: I was not compensated to write this post, however lodging and meals were provided for this tour.  And as always, all the opinions and thoughts expressed are my own.

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