Pasture Calves Produce Premium Veal

Pasture Calves Produce Premium Veal DAIRY EQUIPMENT & IDEAS Like her beef pigs sheep and poultry Sandra Kay Miller raises veal calves on pasture and gets a premium for doing so Conventionally raised veal calves are prized for their white meat something hers don’t have Like other veal producers she faces criticism for harvesting the animals at a young age Miller has no problem taking on both challenges when direct marketing her veal “When people say it isn’t white enough I says that white veal is from anemic sick animals ” she says “Raised on pasture my veal has more color to it but that’s because it’s from healthy animals ” Her response to the young animal question is just as direct “Inevitably not a week goes by at market when someone openly remarks ‘How can you be so cruel and eat those adorable babies?’” says Miller “I point out that if they eat chicken it’s harvested at 6 to 8 weeks Pork is harvested at 5 to 7 months and lambs at less than a year I raise my veal calves to 400 lbs ” Miller once converted militant vegetarians that threatened her online and showed up to picket her stand at market “By the time I was done educating them about the difference between my veal and commercially-raised veal they purchased a piece of veal ” she recounts Not only a pastured veal producer Miller is an active proponent of raising and marketing veal She feels it is a missed opportunity for dairymen as well as small producers looking for another product to sell “Smaller animals require less space and will consume less pasture especially since milk or formula will constitute the majority of calories consumed during their lifetimes ” says Miller She especially appreciates the reduced physical risk from the smaller animals versus full-grown beef “Veal is harvested long before the calves exhibit any aggressive male behavior and they are small enough to be restrained with the help of another person using a cotton rope ” She also notes the reduced financial risk While a feeder calf might cost $500 a dairy bull calf may be as little as $50 depending on current markets “Raising veal is a way to maximize profit and reduce risk on smaller acreages ” says Miller “In one season my 2-teated Jersey cow reared 3 calves that yielded approximately 1 100 lbs live weight from her milk and pasture ” To encourage others to try raising veal Miller wrote a series of 5 articles on the subject at www onpasture com a free weekly online magazine for graziers You can search up the articles at the website While looking for a publisher Miller continues to market her veal and not just the cutlets She sells the organs and bones even the head “The head and bones are extremely coveted by chefs and foodies ” says Miller Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Painted Hand Farm P O Box 256 Mt Holly Springs Penn 17065 ph 717 860-9385; sandra@paintedhandfarm com; www paintedhandfarm com

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.