In chapter 8 of the book, Omnivore's Dilemna written by Michael Pollan, the author gets the oppurtunity to pay a visit to Polyface Farms. He describes the unique way that the farm is run, which exploits the cirlce of life, if you will; most notably refering to the relationship between the grass and the animals.
Polyface farms raises about half a dozen different animals to establish this natural circle of life, which makes living much more efficient and easier for the animals and human beings as well. Pollan specifically talks about certain aspects of this style of farming. Polyface will have graze on the grass all day which in turn supplies beef for the human population. When the cattle are done grazing for the day, the chickens are let out to to peck at the nicks and crannies in between the grasses, eliminating any grubs, mosses, weeds, fly larvae, parasites, and also spreading manure. The chickens' fecal matter in turn supplies the fields with large quantities of nitrogen and also produce eggs. After the end of the season, Polyface farms unique life cycle will have created quite a multitude of beef, pork, eggs, turkeys, rabbits, etc.
After reading this chapter in the book, I began to think that this multi-species animal farming is probably a good way to go about running an efficient farm. So i was wondering why exactly it is not as prevalent as it deserves to be in our agricultural system?
Polyface farms raises about half a dozen different animals to establish this natural circle of life, which makes living much more efficient and easier for the animals and human beings as well. Pollan specifically talks about certain aspects of this style of farming. Polyface will have graze on the grass all day which in turn supplies beef for the human population. When the cattle are done grazing for the day, the chickens are let out to to peck at the nicks and crannies in between the grasses, eliminating any grubs, mosses, weeds, fly larvae, parasites, and also spreading manure. The chickens' fecal matter in turn supplies the fields with large quantities of nitrogen and also produce eggs. After the end of the season, Polyface farms unique life cycle will have created quite a multitude of beef, pork, eggs, turkeys, rabbits, etc.
After reading this chapter in the book, I began to think that this multi-species animal farming is probably a good way to go about running an efficient farm. So i was wondering why exactly it is not as prevalent as it deserves to be in our agricultural system?
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