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Cattle Play a Major Role in Keeping us Healthy Says Dr. Sara Place

Thu, 04 Feb 2021 08:15:08 CST

Livestock play a major role in keeping humans and the planet healthy through a process called upcycling said Dr. Sara Place, chief sustainability officer with Elanco Animal Health, Inc.

The former Oklahoma State University animal scientist and NCBA staff person, was recently interviewed by KC Shepherd, Radio Oklahoma Ag Network associate farm director.

Sustainability can sometimes be a controversial topic but if viewed from the perspective of converting low value or low-quality products into a higher value product, a process called upcycling, it makes more sense, Place said.

Beef cattle production is an incredibly resilient system, Place said.

Cattle are excellent at converting solar energy through forage into a high-quality food for people, she said.

This is incredibly important in the Great Plains and other states and has implications for wildlife habitat and water quality, Place said.

Place pointed out this is important for vegans too as we all depend on animals for a sustainable future.

We need cattle and other farm animals for all the byproducts that are upcycled in cattle, she said.

Upcycling is taking something of little value and making a higher value product which is what cattle are doing every day, Place said.

Grazing forage and converting low quality feedstuffs to high quality protein is a good example.

That's the beauty of a ruminant system and all the microbes that cattle have a symbiotic relationship with as they are able to convert lower quality products into a higher value product, Place said.

It's all part of the great story animal agriculture has to tell the consumer which is sometimes confused by misinformation, she noted.

I think it's a real challenge across agriculture to combat misinformation, Place said.

The animal scientist noted when animals are healthy, they are going to be better at converting natural resources into quality food.

The story Place wants to get out there is the fact beef producers are nourishing your family with fewer natural resources and not coming at the expense of animal welfare

The better quality of life we provide farm animals the more sustainable we can make the food system, Place said.

Click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear more of KC's interview with Dr. Sara Place.

The Beef buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network and is a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR below for today's show and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.


   
   

Ron Hays Beef Buzzes With Dr. Sara Place right-click to download mp3

 

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