Growing Good Food Ideas: From Seeds to Eggs – The Value Chain of Organic Grain

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Author: Ravi Singh

Posted: April 24, 2013

Categories: Growing Good Food Ideas / Videos

From Seeds to Eggs – The Value Chain of Organic Grain from Sustain Ontario on Vimeo.

When you buy eggs at a farmers market, where did they come from? Yes, they came from a chicken, but as Tom Manley of Homestead Organic explains in this video, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Farmers need seeds if they’re going to grow anything and need feed if they’re producing meat products. That’s where Tom enters the picture. Tom buys seeds from seed farmers which he cleans, bags, and sells to crop farmers after carrying out quality control. Tom also uses grain crops from other farmers, including corn, barley, and oats, which he mixes, mashes, processes, and fortifies with vitamins and minerals to create feed for livestock, who in turn produce eggs, milk, and meat.

In this video, in addition to Tom, you’ll meet the seed farmer who sells to Tom and the poultry farmer who buys three tons of feed for his hens from Tom. They’re all part of a long and complex chain of local operations that culminates in the delicious meat or produce that we buy at our local market.