Texas Fall/Winter thread!

[blueriver]

Don .. Tip #11 Flask of your favorite antifreeze

 

[Western]

Jim, I built a parking roof:laughing: last summer. You dont know how convenient they are until you do it. We have had them before, but moved here and just worked on other things along with survival.

Bird, I dont like the sound of the ice in the parking lot. I was hoping the lots where clear since I have one of those "can you do it yesterday" jobs in Haltom City, so I scheduled it for tomorrow night :shocked:

 

[Bird]

Dennis, if it's been out in the sun, the ice has probably melted and the water may have even dried, but if cars have been parking there providing shade, that might be another matter. The ice melted off nearly all of my own driveway today.

 

[blueriver]

My hogs hit the scale at 246 lb average !!!

 

[Bird]

My hogs hit the scale at 246 lb average !!!

I've wondered what, in this day and age, is considered to be the best weight and/or age for hogs being butchered. The first hog I ever showed was a Berkshire barrow that I showed in the Fat Stock Show in Ardmore and he tipped the scales at an even 300 pounds which was the maximum weight allowed in the heavy weight class in 1948-49; another pound and we'd have been disqualified before we started. He took the blue ribbon in the heavy weight class for the county and for the 7 counties, and I got the Showmanship ribbon, but a lighter weight hog won the Grand Champion ribbon and back then it seems the ideal weight for butchering was 120 to less than 200 pounds.

 

[foreman Etexas]

On GAC check out Highway Cowboys,that's around the house,I know ole Cody and know of the Champions,all good folks.

 

[TomSeller]

And even more scary is that the FDA is going to allow chickens to be imported from China. Last I heard, this past summer, FDA has given approval. What many don't realize, is that, some already are imported from China, and still called "product of USA". If it is hatched here, it can then be sent to China for grow out and processing, then frozen and shipped back here as USA product. At least one of the "major names" in your supermarket do that.

Also, since arsenic is considered an element, and not a drug, producers of poultry use it to add weight gain, and the levels are not regulated, as an antibiotic would be. You should see some of the levels of arsenic found in chickens, bought at your local grocer, and sent to independent labs for testing. And yes, some growers are worse than others. Pilgrim's Pride used to be free of added stuff, such as that, but since Bo Pilgrim died, I have not seen how things are changing there, other than the name on the package.

As blueriver said, chickens are a whole 'nother story. If you think eating chicken is healthier, you might be surprised, unless you raise your own. And if you buy eggs at the grocer, and get some that come from chickens fed organic scratch and free roaming, when you crack one of each and put them in the skillet side by side, you can see a HUGE difference. There is as much difference in taste too, as between raw milk and the stuff you buy in the stores that is called milk.

There is no definition to "Natural". I am aware of that. From the PM I rec'd, I think blueriver and I are talking the same language, and meanings/understandings. I do laugh at the items in grocery stores called "all natural". That doesn't always mean healthy. After all, my dogs' poop is all natural, but I sure wouldn't want to eat it!

Cross off chickens from the grocery list. We can't even grow chickens in the USA? Someone can hatch them here, ship them to china to grow out and ship back and beat our cost? The deck is stacked. Good grief.

 

[blueriver]

Bird ... I've got a customer in Houston won't take anything over 200 lbs ... Ideally for him 175lbs

 

[pacerron]

Bird ... I've got a customer in Houston won't take anything over 200 lbs ... Ideally for him 175lbs

We realize you are in a niche market with your Berkshires, but wonder if the recent overall hog market bloat has effected the
price negatively you get for yours?
The average market weight overall recently was real high, about 280 pounds, due to plenty of corn and other fall factors. I expect the price of consumer pork in the retail markets to go down significantly soon. Probably higher fat content, maybe less water injection.

 

[blueriver]

We realize you are in a niche market with your Berkshires, but wonder if the recent overall hog market bloat has effected the price negatively you get for yours? The average market weight overall recently was real high, about 280 pounds, due to plenty of corn and other fall factors. I expect the price of consumer pork in the retail markets to go down significantly soon. Probably higher fat content, maybe less water injection.

Actually your right about the 280 lbs the market was low and from what I read the producer was holding them longer to try and get a better price .. Thus the larger hogs.

Futures for May June and July are stronger than they have been for yrs .. Could be looking at record highs. The PEV has killed a lot of newborns therefore the numbers for the future fat hogs are down ... Corn prices have dropped as well as milo and wheat .. Producers are thinking let's feed cheap grain to the hogs we have... Feeder pigs are high because there simply are not the number of feeder pigs available because of PEV