Rotational grazing is a system where a large pasture is divided into smaller paddocks allowing livestock to be moved and grazed throughout the series of paddocks. This method of grazing is beneficial to the environment, helps improve water quality, and results in healthier livestock.
The Cumberland River Compact’s upcoming Grazing School is designed to help farmers move toward these types of livestock management systems that protect waterways, regenerate soil, and sequester carbon. Roughly 50% of streams in Tennessee are impaired due to the impacts of livestock. The Compact hopes to change that percentage and improve water health for wildlife and people alike.
Farmers aren’t the only ones with a responsibility to protect waterways; in order for their efforts to pay off, consumers must understand the benefits of conservation agriculture and be willing to ask and pay for meat raised in this fashion. Labels and certifications– including the Cumberland River Compact’s River Friendly Farms certification– have arisen to meet that demand and signal to shoppers that their purchase aligns with their values.
You’ve probably seen words like “grass-fed” and “pasture raised” on meat and dairy products at the grocery store or farmers market. But what do these terms really mean? Aren’t all livestock raised on pasture and fed grass?
Working Lands Division Manager, Caroline Hutchins, sat down with Tennessee livestock farmer Ira Jones to learn about what these terms mean and hear his perspective on pasture-raised livestock management.
Ira raises beef cattle in Goodlettsville and won the Davidson County Soil & Water Conservation District “Conservation Farmer of the Year” Award in 2022. He is helping mentor and teach our River Friendly Farms Grazing School along with farmer and grazing specialist Greg Brann. (Registration is now open for the October 2, 2024 workshop.)
A Conversation with Cattle Farmer Ira Jones
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Caroline: Tell us who you are and a little about your farm and its history.
Ira: Okay, I’m Ira Jones. I was raised on a farm, and for years, my family raised all types of animals. After I finished college, I went on to do other things [unrelated to farming].
I decided to start back farming because it’s something that has to continue. So I bought a little place—30 acres—in the country, in Goodlettsville.
One day my son says to me, “Hey, Dad. Why don’t you fix this place up and do some beef on it?” And I thought, well, that makes sense.
And so, it took me approximately 5 years [to get up and running]. I went to NRCS, and they gave me some advice and helped me to get going. And that’s where I started. I decided that I was gonna do grass fed cattle, and that was my thing.
The catch to that is that we have to do rotational grazing to make that work.
Caroline: How would you explain rotational grazing to someone who isn’t familiar with it?
Ira: The simplest way to explain it is that you split [a parcel of land] into paddocks, and you rotate the cows [through the paddocks] on a consistent basis while you watch and determine the growth pattern of your grass. I try to rotate them every 3 or 4 days.
There’s some benefits to doing it. There’s some costs involved to get started, but, you know, it’s investment costs.
Caroline: What are those benefits?
Ira: When I first started this, I had in my mind how many times I’m gonna have to sow grass seed and how many times I’m gonna have to fertilize. And, hey, this is going on my 6th year, and I have not had to throw in any commercial fertilizer or grass seed.
The fertilizer is the cow manure. If you walk around out there, you’re hardly ever gonna find piles of poop because it’s been scattered by turkeys and wildlife. I don’t have to get out there with a disc or plow, because they’re doing that. [That means I] don’t have to worry about the erosion [from plowing or disking my pasture].
So that’s a great benefit to the land. And that’s a great benefit to me because I don’t have to spend no money.
Caroline: I know you have a creek that runs on the edge of your property. Does that play a role in your farm at all?
Ira: According to the USDA and NRCS, they don’t want cows in the creek because manure goes into creeks, and that’ll get into our drinking water. So what I had to do is fence off the creek so the cows can’t get into it. If the cows could get into the creek, then that would cause a problem for us, and we’d have to do more to make the water clean for us to drink.
[To provide drinking water for the cows,] I have regular city water. I have these watering things, one in each of the paddocks, and the cows drink out of that water. It’s a simple thing… how would I put it? I guess you would say it’s like a commode. The cows push their head down in a bowl, they’ll drink the water. And then they take the head back up, the thing would just fill back up full of water. They smelt where the water was, and they [learned quickly]. They’ll stand and wait their turn. It’s kinda neat.
Caroline: Can you tell us the difference between grass fed, grass finished, and grain finished beef?
Ira: Grass fed means that the cow ate grass [at some point] in his life.
When you hear the term grass finished, that means this cow only ate grass. No corn. They only ate grass, period.
And if he is grain or corn finished, that means he ate grass and corn.
Caroline: Is the flavor or texture changed when meat is grass finished?
Ira: [Grass finished is] what I try to do. I don’t wanna feed them any corn. With grass [finished] beef, it’s gonna be leaner meat and lower in cholesterol and saturated fat. I think [grass-finished] tastes better. But that’s what I’m doing, so I would say that. I’m not a chef, okay?
If you’re talking to a farmer, and they say “grass fed, corn finished”… Well, every cow is grass fed! If they corn finish them, that means they’re putting fat and weight on quickly [at the end of their life]. I use the word “corn,” but when calves go to the feedlot, they’re fed different kinds of things to put weight on them.
If someone say they want a lot of grease in their meat, and they want the taste of the fat, then they need to get [a cow finished] with corn. Some people talk about marbling the meat and all that. It’s a preference, pros and cons.
Caroline: So consumers are asked to pay more for grass-finished beef because these cows take longer to raise, and they’re getting more vitamins and minerals. People are paying more for what’s better for them nutritionally, and it’s gonna cost a little more because it takes the farmer a little longer.
Ira: Right. There’s no question [grass finished is] a healthier piece of meat because it doesn’t have all the fat in it.
And if it’s grass finished, there shouldn’t be any antibiotics in the meat either. No growth hormones, no antibiotics, none of that stuff. You’re just out there eating what nature provides for them.
Caroline: What sort of questions should a consumer ask if they’re buying meat— if they’re going to a farmer’s market or a butcher— and they want to purchase a product that’s good for the land, water, animal, and farmer?
Ira: I would just say, “Did this come directly from the farm? Is it 100% farm-raised?” I think that’s the key.
Caroline: And how can people buy meat from you or support your farm?
Ira: If someone wants to buy some or support, they can contact me by my phone number, and I will be glad to work with them.
Ira’s phone number is 615-319-7186. He gave us permission to publish his number for readers who may want to purchase meat from him.
Caroline: Is there anything else you want people to know?
Ira: Growing up on the farm, we raised everything [we ate], 90% or more. Everything that was consumed when I was a kid growing up until I left home for school was raised by my parents, even down to making the molasses, believe it or not. All the fruits, all the vegetables, all the meat, all the eggs. Even the lard that we cooked with, that was raised from the hogs. The only thing we bought was flour, salt, and pepper.
We always ate well and ate healthy, good food. The garden could not have any pesticides or anything in there, and it worked, you know? I want to get back to that.
Caroline: That’s so inspiring.
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this with us and for helping with the Grazing School… We really appreciate your partnership.
Ira: Anytime, anytime I can help. Again, if anyone wants to come tour the farm, that’s fine. Just let me know ahead of time.
Contact Ira via phone to organize a tour of his livestock farm. 615-319-7186
Register for the fall Grazing School in Decatur County, TN.
