chinese food

[grassfarmer]

Maybe you need to look a little harder SF3. The Daunheimer case at Didsbury, AB where fracking and flaring of sour gas wells caused half the families goats to abort, their hens refused to drink the water and one of their children developed a large tumour on their neck. Don't know if it was the flaring of toxic substances or the 326,000 litres of diesel invert "lost" down one of the wells.

Did you know that the use of highly toxic things like Benzene in the fracking process are conveniently allowed by your Canadian Government because chemicals used in gas/oil exploration are exempted from Canadian Drinking water guidelines?

Easier to blame those foreigners with their third world standards though.

[ado089]

Grassy, don't forget all the dangerous silica they pump down there too.

[grassfarmer]

At least the silica is safe down hole. Unfortunately not so in the areas where they mine it - like Wisconsin which is said to be producing 90,000 semi loads a day. Or the small central Alberta community where a wall at the frac sand depot collapsed and was just left for a couple of months allowing access for little kids to play in this deadly "sand pit".
No regulation, no enforcement just reckless industrial development with no regard for the environment or human health - rather like China in fact.

[freewheat]

Forage farmer: Heck, it is not just city folks. Most farmers around here have no idea how to raise or shoot their own food anymore. Ten minutes to feed the pigs or hens takes too long I guess. And besides, it interferes with the winter trips to Hawaii, Jamaica, etc..

What are they supposed to do? Get an acreage and raise some of it, drive up to the forest and bag a moose or elk. Change from a materialistic viewpoint, and get er done! Not that hard really.

Lol. I have a book from the 30's about farming in Canada. It mocks farmers who do not have a large garden, a few hogs, a bunch of chickens, and something to milk. It is a lifestyle choice, not at all an impossibility, IMO!

[blackpowder]

I still maintain it would be in Canada's best interest to send every citizen to China for a two week tour. Excellent perspective. Although much is officially hidden.
Remember before you criticize, they want what we have and will get it as quickly as possible. A responsibility to hungry people. Not unlike our attitude over 100 years ago.

A lot of products are shipped as products of other countries.

[foragefarmer]

Freewheat

Agree with your 1st and 3rd paragraphs.

But, you can't be serious about second paragraph. Sure everybody in the city will go out and buy a gun, get a license, fill the tank up with gas if they own a vehicle, and hunt wild game. Maybe you'd be a good guy and let everybody and anybody hunt on your property. Hell, you could let them shoot a couple of your sheep so they don't go home empty handed. It's not that hard and they could "Get er Done"

I won't even get into the part of people going out and buying acreage.

Not a very good economic solution on your part for either suggestion as the money saved could buy a lot of non Chinese groceries.

[freewheat]

Depends where you are, I guess. Acreages around here are liabilities, not assets. They are priced accordingly. 20 acres with a house, heated shop, barn in excellent shape, just sold for 89 grand down the road, so I would argue it is doable. Heck, even in towns and cities, if lawns weren't vogue, a lot of produce could be produced on those yards.

I get the non-realistic part, just challenging your thoughts that acreages are necessarily too expensive.

[pourfarmer]

I thought this was going to be about ginger beef.

[pourfarmer]

Freewheat, what is the name of the book you mentioned above? Sounds like it would a interesting read

[freewheat]

Pour farmer, it is called, "Farming in Canada"

It was written by a Mr. Duncan Marshall, who was a Senator and a minister of Ag for both Ontario and Alberta.

Imagine an ag minister who is a successful farmer! He actually talks about the soil and animal husbandry as though he understands it.

I have several such books in my repertoire, that I saved that my dad had set aside. I also have a bunch of successful farmer magazines from the 50's and 60's. Cool old adds for the "big" John Deere 55 combine, etc.

The books all take pity on the farms that fail to raise most of their food.

IMO, there is much to be learned from these books. They were wiser men than us, IMO.