Kids and Veggies & Goat Weed Control

Kids and Veggies & Goat Weed Control plus Food Forethought. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Northwest Report.

It wasn’t until about 10 years ago that I really tried brussels sprouts and discovered how good they were. Guess I’m just an old kid. Point is that kids get a lot of vegetable choice while school is in session but what about at home during the summer. Extension agent Deana Hildebrand gives some tips on kids and veggies.

HILDENBRAND: They need to buy them, make them available. They need to serve them to younger children. As children enter the school age years and start making some of their own food choices with the home they need to make sure those vegetables are readily accessible. Keep vegetables cut up and in the refrigerator ready to snack on instead of having other things that maybe are less nutritious. Serving them on a consistent basis; serving them in a variety of ways.

Keeping control of a build up of brush and weeds is a key in fire prevention on your property but sometimes that is tough to do. But there is a very unique way of dealing with the problem. “We Rent Goats” is run by Tim Lindquist who says that the goats love to eat weeds, brush and bushes. They prefer them to grasses and it’s a great way to quickly get control of build ups even up the sides of steep grades. Lindquist says there are other benefits like natural fertilizer as they work and their hooves help aerate the soil. Interesting.

Now with today’s Food Forethought, here’s Lacy Gray.

The removal of the five-year ban on horse slaughter late last year by Congress has opened the flood gates for animal rights activists who say horse slaughter is inhumane. Recently, copies of a new study by the International Equine Business Association titled “Americans Eat Horses: And the World is Hungry Enough to Help us Save Them” were sent to Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack and several member of Congress. It is an appeal,and I quote, “to allow a properly regulated industry that protects the rights and choices of horse owners, while restoring a normal market that creates jobs, offers opportunity, and ends the unnecessary misery of horses.” Many cultures around the globe enjoy horse meat as a culinary choice; the United States did too, up until the 1990’s. Then the HSUS adopted the horse as their poster child for fundraising; and it worked - for the HSUS. As the IEBA study report states, “Americans love horses”. The HSUS has capitalized on America’s fondness for horses and turned it into a very profitable money making tool. While this tact has managed to garner thousands of dollars for the HSUS, it has resulted in nothing but needless suffering for large numbers of unwanted horses.

Thanks Lacy. That’s today’s Northwest Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.