Meet Chris Harmon, the Executive Director of CADE, The Center for Agricultural Development & Entrepreneurship in New York State. CADE is a non-profit organization working to help build the necessary infrastructure and local food systems so that farmers can survive and thrive in upstate New York. I met with Chris to talk about the future of farming in my home state, and how they see new opportunities with the grass-fed movement.
More and more people are interested in knowing where their food comes from. And with local grass-fed meat in high demand along the East Coast, many farmers are looking towards repurposing their unused dairy land to raise animals. But to feed this demand, farmers need more local USDA-approved slaughterhouses. Slaughterhouses, with skilled butchers, that can help farmers make extra income off of their new crop of pasture-raised animals. And right now, there aren’t nearly enough of them. Therefore, building more meat processing plants is a necessary step to help revitalize a dying farming industry upstate, a step that CADE is using all its resources to grow.
All in all, I hope you learn about the struggles that farmers face to help feed us well, and I hope you become more interested in supporting farmers in our area. This is Part 1 of a 2-part series on artisan slaughterhouses. Stay tuned for the next episode where I’ll take you through the artisan slaughter process, step by step, to tell the story of “transparency”.
Thanks for watching food. curated.! Happy Eating!
I love this story. Butchering is a true craft. Beautifully done it is also an art.
Thank you for the beautifully produced video. I love butchers and livestock farmers, more than any other food supplier. It is a true noble craft. Respect for the animal is why I shop at butchers exclusively, there is nothing more depressing than a commercial feedlot operation or a mile long chicken house. I can only hope the resurgence of locally produced livestock continues, thanks for continuing to raise awareness.
Thank you from CADE!
The video is amazing food.curated. Thank you so much for supporting Upstate NY farms and promoting Larry’s Custom Meats. The thoughtfulness and creativity in the video IS fantastic. Cannot wait to see Part 2!
This is a really great video. I hope it inspires chefs and consumers to look to local producers for meat. Infrastructure is so needed and essential but an active and supportive consumer base ensure that farms and artisan slaughterhouses remain open. I feel like the sky is the limit if we all realize the issue that prevent locally sourced meat. What a great video!
We need more organizations like CADE all over the country promoting the infrastructure, marketing and distribution that will help smaller producers stay out of the grip of the Big Four packers.
Buying from a butcher is such a better thing to do than buying just at your local supermarket. Thank you for sharing this video.