Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
the kinds of food they want. For beef and dairy products, shareholders might be
buying a stake in a particular animal.
Cooperatives:
Cooperatives are groups of farmers who share resources and who
market their collective products under one brand name.
Cow:
Adult female that has had a calf
Cud:
A normal process in ruminant animals, which is regurgitated stomach content
cattle chew on to aid digestion
Cull animals:
Cull animals are animals that are no longer needed on the farm.
They may be older, unhealthy, or infertile, or the farmer may be upgrading his
stocker. Beware of buying a farmer's cull animals unless you know their history.
Culling:
Selling animals you do not want to raise anymore
Custom-exempt plants:
Processing plants where only the facilities are inspected
by state inspectors. The meat does not have to be inspected because you are hav-
ing your cattle custom processed for your own consumption, and you are not selling
any of it.
Fenceline weaning:
Calves are separated from their mothers by a fence so they
cannot nurse, but they can still see, hear, and smell their mothers.
Grafting:
Uniting calves with a nurse cow
Group housing:
Raising calves for veal in small groups in pens instead of in crates
Heifer:
A female calf that has not had a calf
Herd sire:
The bull that contributes the most to the genetics on a farm or the bull in
residence
Heteosis:
Another term for hybrid vigor
Homogenized:
Milk that has been placed in a machine and the machine has
broken up the fat globules into small pieces so the cream will not rise to the top.
The fat is dispersed throughout the milk.
Hybrid vigor:
The mating of two unrelated, or distantly related animals, usually in
the hope of increasing desirable traits, such as milk yield, meat qualities, size, or
other traits
Milk shares:
An arrangement that allows people to buy raw milk in some states.
This practice is legal in some states and illegal in other states. Check your state
and local laws to see if it is legal where you live.
