Latest / Cultural Wars | America Out Loud News / Farmers, ranchers embrace “Product of USA” labeling announcement

Transcript

Farmers, ranchers embrace “Product of USA” labeling announcement · Cultural Wars | America Out Loud News

• 0:08
  Hello everyone and welcome to the Maha Lowdown.
• 0:10
  I'm Jeff Lauder back.
• 0:13
  And throughout the first uh, I believe it's five segments, we've been heavy on um anything related to the Make America Healthy Again movement.
• 0:22
  And we've talked a lot about regenerative farming and uh the eat real food messaging.
• 0:28
  And my guest today uh has a farm down in uh Pelahatchy, Mississippi, Barefoot Springs farm.
• 0:36
  And her name is Mary Joe Perry Mary Joe Perry.
• 0:39
  And uh what's interesting about uh Mary Joe is she started uh the farming uh bug later in life um instead of like getting right into it when she was in her 20s, and I'll bring her in.
• 0:54
  Uh welcome, Mary Joe.
• 0:56
  Hey Jeff, thanks for having me on.
• 0:58
  I'm excited about this opportunity to talk about something that I care so much about.
• 1:04
  And and while I I've kind of gotten into selling what we have on our farm to people to consume on their kitchen table off their kitchen table.
• 1:14
  Um this is farming is something that I've always loved and been interested in.
• 1:19
  My husband and I have had cattle for years and horses, as you know, and after staying home for 35 years as a you know, as a just a mom, a homeschool mom, raised three boys.
• 1:31
  I decided I needed to put my animal science degree to work and do something to bring some money home.
• 1:37
  And you know, we had the farm, and so and I, you know, built a community, sort of a Maha community here in Mississippi, as you know, through the medical freedom movement.
• 1:46
  So it just seemed a natural transition into selling farm to table, grass-fed and finished beef.
• 1:53
  And that's interesting because obviously I think the average age of a farmer is 58, 59 or 60, one of the three.
• 2:02
  I've seen that's true.
• 2:03
  I've seen varying reports, and um obviously a lot of family farms are are going um away, unfortunately.
• 2:12
  And uh it's becoming harder and harder to farm, at least on the conventional side.
• 2:18
  And I think it's fascinating.
• 2:20
  And I was down at uh your place, uh, I think it's been back in September, but and that was my first time exploring Mississippi uh beyond the interstate.
• 2:31
  And I just think it's it was uh pretty interesting on well, your story in general, how uh how and like you said, you do and I know your um your husband Derek, he he's been around agriculture his whole life, and you have your animal sciences degree.
• 2:48
  But you you mentioned that you hadn't you didn't really start selling beef until maybe a year or two ago, and I just think that's fascinating that you you're you're showing people that it can be done getting into uh regenerative farming.
• 3:03
  Yeah, you know, I I think that in all fairness, I have a little bit of an advantage because I've I've built a community of health conscious people over the years and people know me.
• 3:15
  So I can see that it would really be a challenge if you didn't have you know, like a strong social media presence, it'd be like kind of where do you start, you know, where do you start building your list of um you know, people to get the message out to that you actually have high quality beef for sale.
• 3:32
  Um that's a challenge, I think that a lot of a lot of farmers face.
• 3:38
  And we were talking before we went on air about uh when you were talking about how you you had uh maybe not unexpected chores because chores are always uh mounting on farm on a farm and that they always seem to never be done.
• 3:55
  But uh tell us about that about the uh the the last chore that we were talking about that uh that caused you uh a little delay.
• 4:04
  Well, you know, when you're when you're dealing with livestock, there's a lot of moving parts and a lot of unpredictability, and you've got to have patience and you have to be really flexible.
• 4:14
  Um, so so as I was telling you, I've I I've decided to add uh flock of yews to my repertoire of livestock and um and have them to graze behind our cattle because it's it's really good for the soil.
• 4:30
  And so I've got a deposit on some you lambs, but one of them uh early on was rejected by its mom.
• 4:37
  And so it had to be bottle fed.
• 4:39
  So I got it from uh the producer when it was a newborn, and I've been bottle feeding it since, and it's time to wean.
• 4:47
  And I I let her out every day when I go to the barn to do barn chores, and she just follows me everywhere I go.
• 4:53
  And when um, you know, when I got back here to the house, I figured I'd just leave her outside for a little bit and let her graze, and she was about to beat the door down with her little hooves.
• 5:02
  And so I had to go, I had to go get her satisfied with some fresh hay and feed and put her up.
• 5:08
  But uh, and it put me a few minutes late getting on with you.
• 5:11
  She doesn't ever uh come in with the dogs.
• 5:14
  She will, she tries really hard, and I have to kind of butter out.
• 5:17
  But like if I'm fixing her a bottle, sometimes she'll come in and just stand with me by the sink until I get her bottle ready.
• 5:23
  But you know, you can't, to my knowledge, uh housebreak a lamb.
• 5:27
  So I try to get her out in a hurry.
• 5:30
  Now you you were talking about how you really like the marketing aspect of farming.
• 5:35
  Uh before we get into that, um you started selling beef exactly when it's been it'll be it'll be two years in November.
• 5:45
  So it's just been like a year and a half ago.
• 5:48
  And funny story I know we shared with y'all is my my very first cow that I had processed here on the farm was one that we had had for like seven or eight years since he was a little baby.
• 6:00
  He was a huge jersey steer.
• 6:03
  And my boys, when they were smaller, had bought him for I don't know, 50 bucks or so.
• 6:09
  And he was he was a bottle baby from a dairy farm.
• 6:12
  And um, and then they they raised him and they could ride him, and they'd been in he had been in nativities and petting zoos, you know, they would run him out.
• 6:21
  And so um, but but he was he was so big uh and he had horns and he was tussling with our bull, and we were afraid that he was gonna put his eye out.
• 6:32
  And he also was mounting our cows and keeping the bull off of the cows, and so and broke one of my cows down in the rear because he's so massive.
• 6:40
  So we decided, you know, that he had had a far longer than normal lifespan for a steer, and my boys had traded him to my husband for something they owed him.
• 6:50
  So I decided to make him my first uh my first product, and I I brought him to the butcher and we did like all ground beef.
• 6:58
  I know people wince at that, but that's just the fact of farm life, you know, everything livestock is not supposed to be a pet.
• 7:05
  And so um, anyway, but he was my launch product, and my husband was kind of afraid that you know, well, what if he doesn't taste good?
• 7:11
  That was the best ground beef.
• 7:14
  Uh we had we I got a lot of new customers off of it, but that's how that's actually how I got started.
• 7:20
  And you know, of course, the boys they're in their 20s now and they're they're you know, rough and tough and um out outdoorsmen and they they just would not they would they wouldn't eat they wouldn't eat hamburgers made with Jeremy, but um anyway never name your cow that you're gonna process.
• 7:39
  Yeah, but I mean he was gonna he was gonna have to go anyway.
• 7:42
  It was it was becoming a problem because he was he was I mean, probably one and a half times the size of our of our breeding bull.
• 7:50
  And and he had horns, and they would, you know, they would butt heads and tussle, and I mean he, you know, jerseys have like those curved horns, and I was so concerned he was gonna put his eye out, and then you know, he was hurting our cows, so um it was either take him to the sale barn or put him to good use to launch a business.
• 8:08
  So that's what I did.
• 8:09
  And um, anyway, I from what I understand there's some people that just prefer Jersey beef over any other kind because of the flavor profile.
• 8:16
  But anyway, just a little side story on it.
• 8:19
  That is how I got started.
• 8:22
  And um, as far as the marketing aspect, you you started uh obviously you've decided to start selling beef, but beyond uh what you do on the farm, obviously you have to let people know that it's available.
• 8:37
  And what did you decide to implement and how did it grow?
• 8:41
  And how did it develop into a fashion for you?
• 8:45
  Right.
• 8:45
  So when I when I originally started, you know, when I decided that I was gonna do this, uh, I started posting reels and stories and just announcing to people that I was going to be doing it.
• 8:57
  And if they wanted to get on my email list, you know, I I just created a free online form for them to sign up.
• 9:04
  So by the time I actually started selling beef, I had about a hundred potential customers on an email list.
• 9:10
  And so um, you know, it's kind of started like that, and then um it's been a lot of lot of social media, a lot of social media, and and just now I'm I'm learning to discipline myself to actually email my email list more often because that is where I'm learning the majority of your actual sales happen is through an email of your customer base.
• 9:34
  So uh it's just a combination of of those those two things, and you know, putting out posts on marketing Monday and then you know, following up with you know, with the questions, and I I am just blown away by like the first time I did a marketing Monday post on Facebook, I shared it into a few groups because you know, a lot of a lot of the city, you know, you have like let's talk pilahatchie, let's talk brand and they're different faces.
• 10:00
  Facebook groups for different towns, and they allow you to post, you know, if you have a business, you can post on marketing Monday.
• 10:07
  And so my very first post, I want to say I was probably three days full time answering messages and comments of from people that were interested.
• 10:16
  People are clamoring for really good quality, grass-fed, clean beef that they can trust.
• 10:24
  Now, your background, uh, you you're the uh founder of or the founder or the co-founder of Mississippi Parents for Vaccine Rights.
• 10:34
  Right.
• 10:35
  Yeah, and you know, my my who is growing to be one of my very best friends, Lindy McGee, is just a natural genius at marketing and at um, you know, at graphics and branding and things like that.
• 10:49
  And I learned a lot from her.
• 10:50
  Uh, a lot of what I'm doing with my beef business, I learned building a grassroots organization.
• 10:57
  I'm doing it almost exactly the same way.
• 11:00
  Uh the keys are you build a base, you build a base, like not a base necessarily on social media, which that's good, but social media can be gone tomorrow.
• 11:08
  You've got to build a base of people who say, Yes, I want to hear from you.
• 11:13
  I want to get emails and text updates.
• 11:16
  Um, so you build you build that base and then you engage them both on social media, but more importantly through email and text.
• 11:26
  And what led you to start selling the beef?
• 11:29
  Because you talked about you have your farming background and and Derek has his farming background, and you have your interest in animal science and you you you were involved in it, but you weren't selling it yet.
• 11:43
  And uh what really prompted you?
• 11:45
  Was there any particular moment or did you just see a shift happening?
• 11:49
  I don't know.
• 11:49
  You know, it just felt so natural because I'm I'm so all about healthy food.
• 11:55
  Um, you know, I it just came time that I needed to do something to make money, um, or I wanted to.
• 12:04
  And it just seemed natural with the you know, the the followers, the following that I've built on social media, just in the health freedom movement, and the fact that I, you know, I had an animal science degree, and we've always loved livestock and you know, and farming.
• 12:21
  And then I just I just had the time and the resources to do it.
• 12:27
  We have the farm.
• 12:28
  So I, you know, instead of getting a job and going to town every day, I just thought, well, it just makes a whole lot more sense for me just to stay here and make the land, you know, have the land make money for us.
• 12:39
  So um it and then it just happened, it was just serendipity, I guess, or the way the Lord organizes things, orchestrates things, that it that I just happened to be sort of blossoming into this new career, if you will, at the same time that the Maha movement blew up.
• 12:59
  And so um, you know, it it sort of it just sort of all worked so nicely together, you know, that that you know, the time in my life that I was at and and you know, the way that things are shifting in the United States regarding health and healthy eating and even our our vaccine rights group.
• 13:21
  Um, when Bobby can, we you know, we just we just won the big lawsuit.
• 13:27
  So the goal that we had all the years had finally been accomplished with getting a religious exemption in Mississippi.
• 13:35
  But you know, after that, you know, when everybody was becoming more health conscious, and Bobby Kennedy was running for office, and then he joined President Trump.
• 13:43
  We just decided as an organization just to shift, you know, to align ourselves more with the Maha movement.
• 13:49
  And so, you know, we've been involved in things like stopping the the um the bill here in Mississippi to ban lawsuits against glyphosate makers, you know, or pesticide makers.
• 14:01
  Um, we've been involved in getting fluoride out of water.
• 14:04
  Um, we've been involved in organizing farm farmers and creating a database to eventually publish um publish a directory so that people around the state of Mississippi could find local farm to table food.
• 14:19
  Um it just it just seemed like such a natural outgrowth and development from what I was already doing.
• 14:27
  I don't know that there was like any one moment.
• 14:31
  So, what are the challenges with what you're doing as a regenerative farmer compared to if you were a conventional farmer?
• 14:40
  Fence rows.
• 14:43
  We don't spray our fence rows.
• 14:45
  Um, you know, we don't we don't we don't spray for you know bugs and I mean just we have to find other ways that require, you know, some would say a little bit more work, but when you look at the overall picture, it's really not a lot more work.
• 15:03
  Um, once you get set up with your reels and your electric fence wire and your posts, um, you know, it might take an hour a day to move, you know, to move your cattle, if that um so you know, and then we don't have the we don't have the expense of all the inputs.
• 15:20
  Um our land, our our land in the United States is deficient in so many ways, and it needs to be regenerated so that our food that's grown off that land, including including livestock, is more nutritious when it's you know, when it winds up on our plate.
• 15:37
  And so, so it's really important to us to um to regenerate the soil.
• 15:43
  And so I, you know, that's one of the challenges is regenerating the soil and managing the animals in such a way that you know, we get the diversity of plants in the pastures that we want, and we you know, and that our our animals stay fat on actually what we have without supplementing them.
• 15:59
  And there is an art to it, I think, and and a science.
• 16:02
  And so learning those things and just trying to figure it all out, figure out what works is probably is a pretty good challenge.
• 16:09
  But you know, it's um it's one one that we enjoy because you know, we're just we're learning so many new things and just amazed at how God has created things to work so intimately together, um, in order to in order to produce what he intended for us to have on our plate.
• 16:29
  Um, for instance, our backfield, um, which is our largest field, didn't have a lot of um insect life in the manure paths when we first started.
• 16:41
  And that's something that I've been monitoring very closely.
• 16:44
  After, you know, we've we've owned this place for I think going on 14 years, and we've never sprayed here.
• 16:51
  But, you know, but after years and years of pesticide use, even even in surrounding areas, like we've had, you know, properties across the road that spray, you know, that chemical underbrush their pine for their um their pine farms, you know, where they're growing pine trees.
• 17:08
  And you know, we have we have to manage things in a way that increases the bug life on our farm because that's what we want.
• 17:16
  We want more bugs.
• 17:17
  We want we want more variety of plants where you know, a lot of farms you would see grazing cattle, you've pretty much got a monoculture of grasses, but we want a wide variety.
• 17:28
  So um just learning how and then just going through the practice of of doing those things and trying to try to manipulate, you know, the way our our herd grazes in order to encourage, you know, the things that we're looking for, you know, soil diversity and you know, we want to be able to put a shovel in the soil and and when we dig it up, we we look for you know, richness in the soil instead of like a lot of the the deadness that you see um today if you go out to a row crop field and put a shovel in the ground, uh just everything is dead.
• 18:06
  Um so it's you know, it's interesting.
• 18:09
  We've learned a lot.
• 18:11
  Um the challenge has basically been just learning the ropes of regenerative farming, but it's been fun and we've enjoyed it.
• 18:20
  You're listening to the Maha Lowdown on America Out Loud Network, and my guest is Mary Joe Perry of Barefoot Springs Farm in Pellahatchie, Mississippi.
• 18:31
  When we return in a few moments, we're gonna talk about product of USA labeling.
• 18:37
  Once again, you're listening to the Maha Lowdown.
• 18:40
  This is Dr.
• 18:41
  Peter McCullough.
• 18:42
  You know me from America Outlaw and Pulse and the McCullough Report.
• 18:46
  Well, I'm inviting you to join me in Nashville, July 2nd, 3rd, and 4th for a truly historic experience in 2026.
• 18:53
  America Outloud News 250 slash 10 Nashville.
• 18:58
  I'm calling all patriots to be a part of this unforgettable weekend, packed with inspiring entertainment, incredible fireworks, and nationally recognized speakers who proudly stand for freedom.
• 19:09
  Together with you and our partners, Clear and the Wellness Company, we'll celebrate two major milestones: 250 years of America and 10 years of America Out Loud News, led by Malcolm Out Loud.
• 19:23
  I can't wait to see you there because your presence matters and you are family.
• 19:27
  So make history with me and Malcolm.
• 19:30
  Register now at America Outloud.news, forward slash Nashville.
• 19:34
  That's America Outloud.news, forward slash national.
• 19:38
  We'll see you there.
• 20:00
  Go to chemicalfree body.com forward slash out loud today, get nature's super multivitamin green 85, empower your immune system, cut down on your grocery bill and save 20% on your first order.
• 20:12
  Are you struggling with thinning hair or excessive shedding?
• 20:15
  I know I am.
• 20:16
  Discover roots from the wellness company.
• 20:18
  It's a doctor-formulated hydrogel with seven powerful peptides to help repair and restore visibly thicker, fuller hair.
• 20:25
  It also contains methylene blue, which boosts mitochondrial function and nourishes your scalp without any oily residue, whether it's stress, hormones, or aging.
• 20:34
  This formula targets the root cause, literally.
• 20:37
  Visit TWC.
• 20:55
  Welcome back to the Maha Lowdown.
• 20:57
  I'm Jeff Lauderback.
• 20:58
  And I'm continuing the conversation with Mary Joe Perry of Barefoot Springs Farm.
• 21:04
  And before we get into the product of USA labeling, Mary Joe.
• 21:09
  I I thought it was interesting when when I was down there in September, I was visiting your farm and uh Ben Simmons in uh Petal, which I believe is what about an hour and a half, two hours south in Mississippi.
• 21:23
  And it it was just uh fascinating hearing your story on how I know you uh you sound like a uh a native southerner, but you're actually from New Jersey and you came down during uh the summers to Mississippi and kind of uh fell in love with that.
• 21:43
  Yeah, well, um my mom has roots here in Mississippi.
• 21:46
  This is where my mom was from and my you know, my parents met in school down here when my dad was here on a um football scholarship.
• 21:55
  So I did spend my summers coming down here to Mississippi.
• 21:59
  Um, and and I always loved it.
• 22:01
  And so as soon as I was old enough to, you know, to leave home and go off to college, I came down here to go to school and uh met my husband in the livestock auction yard, and we we uh we dated for about five years through college and um and and then got married.
• 22:18
  And I may have shared with you, I I had you know, my goal had always been to go to vet school, and you know, I'd worked toward that my my whole you know high school years and my college years, you know, trying to make straight A's and um and took all the hard, hard classes and worked at the vet school, and then I decided not to go because I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom when my husband proposed to me, I canceled my application to vet school.
• 22:44
  And um, and so I just you know, our agreement was that I would always have, you know, we would always do cows and horses and and puppy dogs.
• 22:58
  And I've been happy and I've never regretted it.
• 23:00
  I've enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom, but I love Mississippi.
• 23:04
  What's appealing about about it as far as like the lifestyle and also uh what you're what you're doing now with regenerative farming.
• 23:15
  Uh, I think, you know, there are things that I loved about New Jersey, but I I almost never looked back.
• 23:21
  I hate to say that.
• 23:22
  Um New Jersey was so congested, and there were so many people, and people just don't really pay attention to each other and passing by.
• 23:32
  And it was like, you know, when you were here in Mississippi, everybody was important, you know, everybody said hello to everybody, and um, and it's just more peaceful and spread out.
• 23:44
  And I just loved, I loved the farms, and you know, I was horse crazy, and my grandmother, uh, she worked for the farmers home administration at the time, and she knew all the local farmers, and I would imagine held the purse strings to you know, loaning them government money to operate.
• 24:01
  And so when I would come down in the summer, she would call the ones that had horses and have horses lined up for me to ride every day.
• 24:08
  And so I thought Mississippi was just the grandest place on earth.
• 24:12
  And that that may have had an impact on why I loved ear so much.
• 24:16
  But um, but I just I just love the quieter lifestyle, you know, just um, and I, you know, we had always wanted a farm.
• 24:25
  We've had some acreage over the years, but not you know, not like we have now.
• 24:29
  It was smaller acreage, like seven acres and 13 acres.
• 24:32
  Um, and we would love to have more than what we have now.
• 24:36
  We'd love to be able to grow.
• 24:38
  But um, you know, I enjoy just being able to go outside barefoot and walk up to the barn with no shoes on and feed my chickens and you know, I think I think some of us maybe are just born for that.
• 24:53
  But um, but it's just it's just always what I wanted to do.
• 24:58
  I feel like I'm living my dream.
• 25:00
  Yeah, and I think that's uh you're a excuse me, a positive uh story on how you can get it's not too late to get into regenerative farming, because I think a lot of people who are first time are interested in first time farming, or at least even homesteading, they're a little bit intimidated by it, or people who are long time have had generations of family that have farmed conventionally and intrigued with um the concept of switching.
• 25:30
  I was down in uh white uh last month at White Oak Pasture is in uh uh I always forget the name.
• 25:40
  It's in it's in uh rural southwest Georgia.
• 25:43
  I'm familiar.
• 25:44
  Bluffton, Georgia, and uh only 150 people.
• 25:48
  Will Harris, he's like uh him and he's very similar to Joel Salatin.
• 25:52
  They're considered and people come from all over the country to go there to learn how to make the transition to regenerative farming.
• 26:00
  And that's when I was down there, that's what a group of people were doing.
• 26:04
  But I just think it's interesting, and that's why I like telling as many stories as possible of people who are involved and have gotten involved in regenerative farming because we're uh we are as you mentioned earlier, we're at a time where the Maha movement's in place, and and more and more people are learning about the importance of eating real food, and then uh I know that's the messaging behind the new food pyramid and diet dietary guidelines and that kind of uh and we'll actually probably talk about uh if we have time, the new dietary guidelines.
• 26:38
  But before we do that, um and I talked to you for a story I did for the Epic Times on I'm looking at it March 24th on um the product of USA volunteer voluntary labeling standard.
• 26:54
  It went into effect January 1st, but uh March 24th, HHS and the USDA announced uh national public awareness campaign that reminds farmers of that.
• 27:06
  And um I interviewed you for this, and uh in your words uh or what it means to you, what the product of USA.
• 27:16
  What do you what do you think about this and what does it mean to you?
• 27:20
  Well, you know, for years, product of the USA didn't really tell you where your beef was raised.
• 27:26
  Um, it only told you where it was packaged.
• 27:30
  So beef could have come from anywhere in the world under any conditions, and you wouldn't know where it came from, and you would see product of the USA on the label and think that it was grown here.
• 27:42
  And so um I feel like it's going to, oh, I believe that it's going to give um it's gonna be very beneficial to the USA.
• 27:52
  Having labeling and people knowing exactly where their beef comes from is going to ret restore trust and support farmers who are actually growing beef here in the USA, processing it here and packaging it here.
• 28:04
  Um, it keeps it keeps dollars in the U.S.
• 28:07
  You know, you were talking about even just white oak pasture with would you say 150 employees?
• 28:13
  You know, well, they actually I think they have 180 employees in a town of 150.
• 28:19
  Yes, it's ridiculous.
• 28:20
  Like it's a really small rural area, and he's got you know, he's he's providing employment opportunities.
• 28:26
  So, you know, you think about you think about all the missed opportunities for revenue here in the U.S.
• 28:34
  when stuff is grown and imported to the United States, the farmers are missing out, the communities are missing out.
• 28:41
  And so um, you know, I'm really I'm really encouraged by it.
• 28:45
  Uh, it feels good to know that we have you know, people in the administration that value healthy food and value um, you know, it matters to them that the people trust uh what they see on a label and that they have available to them foods that will create health instead of sickness.
• 29:07
  Um it's so it encourages domestic production and it improves transparency and traceability of products and it levels the playing field between you know all the different kinds of beef right now.
• 29:20
  We have to compete.
• 29:21
  It's hard to compete with what's in the grocery store.
• 29:23
  You know, if it comes from you know, a country overseas, it's a lot cheaper to produce than it is here.
• 29:31
  And so those of us who are growing food for farm to table here in the US, it costs us more money to do it.
• 29:39
  And and then we're competing with products that are not from the USA within made in the USA label on it.
• 29:47
  And so now this is gonna level the playing field.
• 29:50
  You know, if we can put product of the USA on on our beef, um, and it means something, then that will help us to be able.
• 30:00
  To sell, you know, sell our beef and keep that industry here in the United States instead of outsourcing it to third world countries.
• 30:07
  And you know, over there, they don't have the same, they don't have the same standards that we have here in the US.
• 30:14
  Um, you know, we've got stricter guidelines under USDA.
• 30:18
  Like I can't, I I have to send my beef to a USDA inspected slaughterhouse in order to be able to sell it.
• 30:27
  And and those conditions are a lot uh a lot more stringent than what they might be in a third world country.
• 30:35
  Um I I just I I think that it's going to be better for the United States all the way around.
• 30:41
  It's gonna be better for our health and better for our economy.
• 30:46
  Speaking of the health aspect, I I didn't know this really until the last year or two, but uh and you would probably have specifics, but how many cows are typically in like you go to the grocery store?
• 31:01
  Like there's an IGA here in my little town in the Appalachian Foothills of Southern Ohio.
• 31:07
  So the beef they have there obviously isn't uh organic.
• 31:12
  Uh you know, it's just uh regular grocery store ground beef.
• 31:16
  Right.
• 31:16
  How many cows are typically in one pound of ground beef?
• 31:20
  I mean, they say it's it's thousands.
• 31:23
  I think that's staggering, and I didn't really realize that.
• 31:26
  But when you explore the uh processing, that I mean, that makes sense then when you when you explore the uh the major the mega processing plants.
• 31:39
  Right.
• 31:40
  And and to me, the even more repulsive than that is the ultra fine ground, what they call pink slime that it's like 20% of our ground beef that we buy in the grocery store consists of pink slime.
• 31:56
  It's that just the ultra fine ground beef product.
• 32:02
  And you know, I I always hear people for years I heard people talk about you know, beef and you know, good beef versus not so good beef, and you know, as far as ground beef goes, and I thought, well, I don't know that I've noticed that much difference.
• 32:14
  Well, I'm just telling you, when I ate our beef, you know, now that I keep our freezers full all the time, um, when uh I eat our beef all the time, and then you know, have to eat a hamburger from somewhere else.
• 32:28
  I I just almost can't even eat it because the difference is so profound.
• 32:35
  How does this relate to knowing I know a big message of eat real food and and the uh new dietary guidelines is no in the whole movement, uh, the homesteading movement, uh knowing where your food comes from and how it's raised, it's critical whether it's uh beef, chicken, produce, eggs.
• 33:00
  How does it relate to this labeling?
• 33:02
  Uh and I know it's voluntary and there's a move to make it mandatory, but how does that uh translate to that, knowing where your food comes from.
• 33:14
  Well, it's it's like we were saying earlier.
• 33:16
  If we can trust that, if we can trust that the label, when it says you know, product of the USA, that it that it is in fact grown here, processed here and packaged here, and then you know, winds up in one of our stores with that label.
• 33:31
  We know then where it comes from.
• 33:33
  Um, I I you know, obviously, I'm just right here in Pilahatchie, so my customers know that I'm not getting my beef from overseas.
• 33:45
  But I mean, I guess I guess you're asking how having the product of the USA label on our meat reassures people that it comes from the United States.
• 33:59
  Yeah, well, knowing where knowing where your food comes from.
• 34:02
  And I think that's part of your marketing messaging too, with uh.
• 34:07
  Well, and knowing your farmer, knowing your farmer is a big deal.
• 34:11
  Um, and I I've that has really been been something that's hit home for me that I I never I never realized how important it is to people.
• 34:23
  But I've had I've had, you know, folks who have followed me on social media for years that I might that I don't even know, but they know that I've been you know in the the health freedom movement and have worked really hard to try to you know get a religious exemption here in Mississippi, loosen our laws up for a little bit because they were the worst in the country.
• 34:46
  And because of that, they trust me and they'll and you know, they've moved out of state now.
• 34:52
  I have two in Tennessee and one in Alabama that drive here to get meat, just because they know who I am.
• 34:59
  So sometimes it's even knowing who your farmer is, because even if it was grown in Pilahatchie, if you don't know your farmer, you may not trust that they're not like secretly spraying stuff, you know, on your tomatoes or whatever.
• 35:13
  Um, it matters to people who it is that they're getting their food from and knowing who they get it from is really important.
• 35:20
  And I didn't realize how important that was, but but apparently it's it's a really big deal.
• 35:25
  And um your farmer.
• 35:28
  Uh so it's the it's the trust.
• 35:32
  And I think that that's what the label helps restore.
• 35:35
  You know, if you if you don't have a local farmer, which there are a lot of places in the United States don't have local farms that produce beef, um, at least you would be able to go to the grocery store and know that it was someone in the United States that that you know that that produced it.
• 35:50
  There's a couple facts in the story that are interesting.
• 35:55
  Uh the the United States has lost more than 100,000 family farms since 2017, according to the USDA, and the national cattle herd sits at a five-year low while consumer demand for beef has increased nine percent over the past decade.
• 36:11
  And then um the product of USA labels reserved for meat, poultry, and egg products from animals that were born, raised, harvested, and processed in the United States.
• 36:23
  And I guess that the figure uh that's really interesting is the national cattle herd sits at a five-year low and beef is increased nine percent, which I think is staggering, but it in a way it's also uh represents an opportunity for farmers like you.
• 36:43
  Yeah, I mean, American ranchers weren't just competing with imports, they were competing with imports labeled as American.
• 36:53
  And so, you know, with this with this new initiative with you know, the product of the USA labeling, meaning that it came from the USA is is better all the way around.
• 37:04
  I mean, it's you know, as we were saying earlier, it's better for the people and their health, it's better for the economy.
• 37:11
  Um I mean, every every time every every imported steak is a missed opportunity for an American farmer.
• 37:22
  So it's very encouraging, it's heartening to know that we have an administration that is looking out for the health of the people and for the economy where farming is concerned.
• 37:34
  You're listening to the Maha Lowdown on America Out Loud Network.
• 37:39
  I'm Jeff Lauderbach.
• 37:40
  I'm talking to Mary Joe Perry of Barefoot Springs Farm.
• 37:44
  And how do you pronounce it?
• 37:45
  Pilahatchie.
• 37:46
  I was calling it Pellet.
• 37:47
  Pilahatchie.
• 37:48
  Yep.
• 37:48
  Mississippi.
• 37:50
  When we return in a few moments, we're gonna talk about uh some more topics related to uh farming and glyphosate.
• 37:58
  Once again, you're listening to the Maha Lowdown.
• 38:02
  Oral hygiene hasn't changed in 50 years.
• 38:05
  Brush, floss, repeat.
• 38:07
  We're told to use fluoride, which doesn't really address the acid creating bacteria.
• 38:13
  That is where the dentist recommended spray dental defense system shines.
• 38:18
  Sprite products contain xylitol, a natural sugar, which helps get rid of those nasty, smelly acid-creating bacteria in our mouth.
• 38:27
  The best way to care for your teeth and gums is by using spray.
• 38:30
  The spray dental defense system has a wide variety of products, toothpaste, mouthwash, mints, and chewing gums that are designed to work together to keep your teeth clean and mouth healthy and smelling sweet all day long to get your oral care back on track in an easy, effective, and very tasty way.
• 38:50
  Switch to spray today.
• 38:52
  Ask your dentist about xylitol and the spray products.
• 38:56
  Sprite can be found online and at all fine natural product retailers.
• 39:00
  Are you looking for a healthy snacks?
• 39:03
  But you've had enough of all the sweet, sugary energy bars.
• 39:08
  Good news.
• 39:09
  There's new bars to try.
• 39:12
  That savory, crunchy and pack with goodness.
• 39:15
  Bear bars are based just on six simple natural ingredients, a certified organic veggie, nut and seed bar.
• 39:25
  That's low temp dried, never baked or fried.
• 39:28
  Bear bars are plant-based, gluten-free, and loaded with nutrients and protein.
• 39:35
  Head over to barebar.com slash out loud and get the exclusive discount just for America out loud listeners.
• 39:45
  That's B E A R B A R dot com forward slash out loud.
• 39:52
  In a world of rising prices, you can still grow abundance.
• 39:56
  I'm Doug Evans, author of the national bestseller.
• 40:00
  The sprout book.
• 40:00
  Sprouts grow in three to five days without soil, sunshine, or fertilizer on your kitchen countertop for under a dollar serving.
• 40:09
  Take control of your food and your future.
• 40:12
  Visit the sprouting company.com/slash out loud and use the code out loud for an exclusive offer.
• 40:19
  Grow food, not fear.
• 40:24
  Welcome back to the Maha Lowdown.
• 40:26
  I'm Jeff Lauderback with Mary Joe Perry as my guest today.
• 40:29
  And we're in our final segment.
• 40:32
  And uh Mary Joe, earlier you were talking about how you were involved in uh the uh glyphosate bill and in Mississippi, and we've talked about uh with other guests uh on the show over the last month uh about the topic where across the country and state legislatures the uh chemical manufacturers led by uh Bear Monsanto are trying to get immunity from lawsuits for people who have uh health issues from their products, much like the vaccine manufacturers were able to do back in uh what was it, 1986.
• 41:13
  So uh in Mississippi is a success story.
• 41:17
  Uh I I think that that's pretty encouraging.
• 41:20
  Can you share that?
• 41:21
  Yeah, so um I and I learned a lot.
• 41:24
  So a couple sessions ago, not this past legislative session, but in 2025, uh I found out that our legislature had a bill that would prevent it would deprive Americans of what is their constitutional right to have their day in court with a pesticide company that caused them harm.
• 41:45
  Um it it was sold as protecting farmers.
• 41:50
  So the story that that I was told by the legislators was that the somebody in in Bayer came to Mississippi and said showed them the numbers, um, the chairman of agriculture and of the agricultural committee in the Senate and said that that they were losing so much money through lawsuits that they were gonna have to quit producing Roundup.
• 42:17
  And if they quit produce producing Roundup, then all the all of our agriculture would collapse and we wouldn't be able to feed the world.
• 42:25
  So they were asking our legislature to pass a bill that that would protect them from being sued anymore for chemical injury.
• 42:36
  And you know, of course, we were outraged over that.
• 42:40
  Uh, I do understand the concerns about our addiction to glyphosate in the United States.
• 42:46
  Uh, but at the same time, you know, we know that there are ways to farm and off ramp from you know the the big chemicals that we're currently using.
• 42:58
  The United States is very ingenious, like we can figure out how to put somebody on the moon.
• 43:04
  We can figure out how to grow crops without spraying poison.
• 43:07
  So um anyway, but but but but the main thing was it was the same play from the same playbook that we've seen from the vaccine companies.
• 43:15
  After all, uh Monsanto is now now owned by Bayer, who is a pharmaceutical giant.
• 43:21
  So um what I found out, Jeff, that just really infuriated me because I'm a farm bureau customer, is that Farm Bureau was doing the bidding of Bayer to our legislature, and and I did some research on Farm Bureau, and I learned that Farm Bureau started out as a grassroots organization in the in the early 1900s for farmers, so that they would have a voice, you know, and in the legislature.
• 43:53
  And so uh they formed this organization, and then like in the 20s, you know, when when people started driving automobiles, uh they got into the auto indust the auto insurance business to offer their members good rates on auto insurance, and that's why we still pay membership dues if we get our insurance from farm bureaus.
• 44:18
  So every October, all of us who have farm bureau insurance on our vehicles or on our home or whatever, we have to pay membership dues.
• 44:26
  I think it's 35.
• 44:28
  Well, those dues are used in part in large part to to supposedly represent the farmers, but just like everything else, it's been captured by big chemical and big ag.
• 44:43
  And so at the top, they're influenced by you know Bayer and the chemical giants, and so when Bayer went to Farm Bureau, Farm Bureau um took up the cause and went to our legislature, and you know, the the tricky thing is that it seemed to our legislature that Farm Bureau really was just the small farmer, farm bureau has got county boards in almost every county in Mississippi, and it's made up of small farmers, but the truth was that this bill did nothing to protect farmers, it protected the pharmaceutical giant bear, and it protected whoever was selling the product, but it left the farmers just wind.
• 45:37
  Um there was no protection for farmers whatsoever.
• 45:40
  So, you know, if you think about it, if if you were poisoned by something that your neighboring farmer was spraying, and you couldn't go after the company that made the chemical, and you couldn't go after the outfit that sold it, who's next?
• 45:58
  The farmer.
• 46:01
  And I think um, I think that after you know, some of these legislators, you know, studied it and looked at it.
• 46:08
  And of course, we we launched a huge campaign, and and we've got a friendly legislator in the Senate, Senator Angela Hill, that was a huge help, you know, in educating people about about this because it, you know, it's it's the real simple talking points that they you know, they just spout these talking points, and they're like, Yeah, that sounds like a great idea, without really paying attention and reading the bill and thinking about it.
• 46:33
  They all jumped on board because hey, we all want to protect our farmers, but truly it was all a manipulative tactic by a big chemical giant, a drug company, just like what they did with our vaccines years ago, where they said, hey, we're not gonna be able to make you know vaccines anymore because the pretussis vaccine is so reactive in children that it's causing injury and death, and we can't afford all the lawsuits, so we need protection from the federal government.
• 47:03
  So now the federal government has protected the vaccine makers, and you know, if a vaccine is on the childhood schedule, it's protected from liability.
• 47:12
  You can't sue no matter how grievous the injury and know how no matter how negligent the vaccine company has been.
• 47:20
  You can't sue anybody.
• 47:21
  You can't sue the doctor, not the nurse, not the clinic, not the state government that you know that makes you do it in order to send your child to school or daycare.
• 47:29
  Nobody's liable.
• 47:30
  The only liability lies with that child.
• 47:33
  And so I was like, I recognized what this was right out of the gate.
• 47:39
  It was the same, it was the same play, uh the same playbook.
• 47:44
  And and our legislators were falling for it.
• 47:47
  Um, but but what I know is there were some that took their names off the bill after they realized exactly what it was.
• 47:53
  Um, and then others who were very relieved because they had lost sleep over it after putting their name on it, and they were glad that it died.
• 48:01
  And um, and even our ad commissioner had said if it ever came up again, he was not getting involved.
• 48:07
  So I feel like we made um we made some strides there.
• 48:12
  And it's really good to know again that we have you know, some folks in the administration that um that value clean food and uh and that are that are willing to stand up and say, hey, you know, we do have an addiction to glyphosate, but we need to figure out how to get away from it because it's not it's not in the best interest of the people.
• 48:33
  So um, but yeah, that was that was quite a session.
• 48:38
  I stayed very busy and I learned a lot.
• 48:42
  Yeah, and that's uh that that's inspiring to hear when uh grassroots groups get together and have an impact like that.
• 48:50
  I I was just in Iowa interviewing uh Zach Lane, who's a regenerative farmer, a sixth generation Iowan, and he uh he bought back his family farm in I think it was 2014, and he transitioned it from conventional to regenerative, but he's the first Maha action endorsed gubernatorial candidate.
• 49:16
  So I was there doing a story on him, and he was talking about that.
• 49:19
  That I I know Iowa's facing that.
• 49:21
  Uh I believe the state senate passed a bill uh protecting chemical manufacturers and it's uh waiting.
• 49:32
  It sits in the house, I believe.
• 49:34
  Yeah, I know they they it seems like they killed it last year.
• 49:38
  But it's still sitting in the house.
• 49:40
  It's it's not uh in Iowa being the uh Iowa's the pretty much the number one agriculture state in the country.
• 49:48
  And isn't Iowa where they store some of the raw materials that they use to make glyphosate?
• 49:53
  Uh I'm not sure about that.
• 49:55
  I just know that um and
• 50:00
  Zach uh Lane was talking about how one of his campaign platform uh focuses is reducing the cases or addressing the cancer epidemic there, what he calls the cancer epidemic.
• 50:13
  And he believes it's it's directly tied to the fact that Iowa's an agriculture state and and chemicals are widely used.
• 50:24
  And that's that's just one of his issues that he's talking about.
• 50:28
  And I know it's been in the news uh what I think it was last month when President Trump signed an executive order uh on glyphosate, and then I know that caused a lot of backlash from uh some people in the uh Make America Healthy again movement.
• 50:46
  But what's interesting about that is, and a couple people have talked about it, how it's brought a lot of attention on glyphosate and and is really reinforced the importance of education for farmers and consumers uh for different ways.
• 51:06
  Uh what are your thoughts about that as far as the importance and you kind of alluded to it, but the importance the importance of educating people like a farmers that there's an off ramp and then consumers that yeah, I mean that that's it's super important because a lot of farmers don't you know there are a lot of them that don't want to be spraying all that stuff, but they just don't see any other way to do it.
• 51:30
  And so um one of the things that we're doing here in Mississippi, and we're we're working on nailing down the date, and I'd love for you to come actually when we have it, but um, but our ag commissioner has actually worked with me, um, offered to allow me to host an event at the Ag Museum in the forestry building.
• 51:50
  It'll probably be in maybe July or August.
• 51:53
  We're gonna do two days, and I'm having Dr.
• 51:56
  Alan Williams, who is an expert in regenerative farming, both um livestock and road crop, and he's going to come for two days and do um a seminar educational on um regenerative grazing with livestock and also the second day regenerative road cropping.
• 52:19
  Well, I would definitely like to attend that because I've been wanting to do a story on uh Dr.
• 52:24
  Williams and and I uh thank you again for you put me in contact with him, and he's been a valuable source for a couple of my stories.
• 52:32
  And and he's right up there with Joel Salatin and Will Harris, uh Gabe Brown on being a valuable resource and an expert.
• 52:42
  And he really travels all around the world to help educate farmers.
• 52:48
  Yeah, and I I mean he's he farms, but but to me, his his biggest contribution is his teaching.
• 52:58
  He teaches, he teaches more, spends more time teaching, and it and and he just he you can tell he loves teaching and he's an excellent teacher.
• 53:06
  Um teaches the science behind and and the practical how to of regenerative farming.
• 53:13
  And you know, I told you I I've got a sci I'm a science nerd.
• 53:17
  I really like science, and um, and I I just I could just sit for hours and listen to him talk about how our whole ecosystem works together.
• 53:29
  Um like this magnificent design and how if we work with it instead of against it, that we actually get better yields, healthier food.
• 53:41
  Um it's just it's just fascinating.
• 53:44
  But that to me is his biggest contribution.
• 53:47
  I don't think I just think he's unmatched when it comes to that.
• 53:50
  The rest the rest of them are you know, they're like star farmers and they help other farmers get started, and they you know, they have educational stuff, but he just gets like really into the granular details of why it's important to never have any of your soil showing.
• 54:06
  When you walk out through your field, you should have a layer of soil armor of um plants that are growing and plants that are dying back to keep the soil covered and why that's important to the to the life that lives beneath the soil and why the life that lives beneath the soil is important to the root system, which is important to the plants, and it's important to the amount of water absorption and and important to preventing runoff and and um erosion.
• 54:33
  And I mean, it's just it's all so interwoven and it's so it's so intricate and so closely connected and just really miraculous.
• 54:44
  But but for me, that is that is his biggest contribution, and and I'm really really excited to have him available and willing to come talk to Mississippi farmers and start teaching them how they can stop producing a commodity for a big corporation and start farming and selling their you know what they grow to consumers and cut out the middleman and actually make money and not have to sell the family farm and not have to file for bankruptcy and not have to you know spray things on your crops that might make you sick or give you Parkinson's disease.
• 55:22
  Um I'm really I'm looking forward to it.
• 55:25
  And it's you know, the whole plan is in its infancy stages.
• 55:28
  We're just now nailing down a date, and I've got, you know, I've got the venue, and so um the details are forthcoming, but I'm really looking forward to that.
• 55:36
  And I do think it's extremely extremely important.
• 55:39
  I think it may be, you know, that and medical freedom are probably two of the most important um important issues of awareness.
• 55:49
  I think people need to know about today.
• 55:52
  Yeah, that sounds interesting.
• 55:53
  I can um uh attend and cover that and then uh arrange to visit uh his farm because I know his son manages his farm, and that's a little north.
• 56:05
  I think it's on the outside or north of Oxford.
• 56:08
  And uh Yeah, I I think it is like up between Oxford and Starkville somewhere.
• 56:14
  Yeah, and he's he's definitely uh I think that would be a valuable resource for people.
• 56:19
  Uh so I'll I'll be sure when you get that set.
• 56:22
  I not only want to cover it, but I'll help uh promote it on my social media.
• 56:27
  I'd like to talk to uh talk to you about uh in depth, but we've run out of time and uh I'd like to have you back on and we could talk more about the carnivore, the healing with food aspect if uh and um but we've run out of time and uh I appreciate uh you, Mary Joe Perry of Bears but Barefoot Springs Farm for being on and uh look forward to having you on again.
• 56:52
  Thank you.
• 56:52
  I enjoyed it as always.
• 56:55
  And I'm Jeff Laterback, and that is the Maha Lodone.