As schools begin to plan for this upcoming school year, some districts are considering adding heavily processed, genetically modified, artificial “meat” patties to their menu. Barely a week goes by without news of the latest celebrity-endorsed meat alternative destined to save the world. But here at A Greener World, we have long argued that well-managed grazing animals can help mitigate the impacts of climate change through storing carbon in the soil, all while providing nutritious food for people to eat. Our latest article helps consumers better understand the real truth behind fake meat, and how foods that come from pasture-based grazing animals make up an important part of an ecologically efficient, food-secure future. We hope that you find it useful in sharing with your customers and networks.  

In addition, we’re highlighting a study on agritourism this week and passing along a tool from AGW’s technical team on feed calculation for ruminants. Let us know any needs, questions or concerns as the summer carries on. Our team is always here to help you however we can.

Agritourism
We’ve wrapped up our agritourism series on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn this week; hope you’ve enjoyed following along. Wondering what agritourism could mean for your farm or local economy? Check out this study from Appalachian State University on the influence of agritourism on increasing farm revenues and overall rural sustainability, which mentions our Certified #AnimalWelfarebyAGW program.

Featured Resource: Technical Advice Fact Sheet 23 – Feed Calculation for Ruminants
This technical paper explains how farmers can calculate how much their animals are eating each day and how much non-forage feed they can provide while maintaining compliance with AGW standards. Includes useful reference tables to aid feed calculations.

Updates From Your Peers
Please catch the latest press mentions about AGW-certified producers and the program below. This week,

• Chambanamoms.com covered the Champaign-Urbana Ice Cream Trail, featuring AGW-certified Prairie Fruits Farm and Creamery, who uses certified milk from their herd of goats to make delicious gelato.

• UGA Today and The Albany Herald tell the story of AGW-certified Rocking Chair Ranch in Forsyth, GA and how they have expanded their operations over the years to include a farm and slaughter plant.

• Join us as we celebrate Ardith Mae Farmstead’s 10 year anniversary of certification with Certified Animal Welfare Approved by AGW.

• AdAge featured AGW-certified Zeal Creamery’s first-ever campaign strapping pedometers on cows to battle plant-based milk.

• AGW-certified Trefranck Farm in Cornall, UK is opening their gates for ‘Putting Ewe First’ event, Thursday, July 29 as seen in Cornwall Live.

You can help us reach more farmers by sharing our weekly farmer updates. Just pass this linkalong and thanks for helping us get the word out about farmer resources and AGW-certified businesses.