Cattle do more than provide beef, milk and leather – they help provide friendly environments for other animals and conserve natural areas where people can hike, bike and camp.
Beef farmers and ranchers are committed to raising cattle in responsible ways, including taking care of the land – just like Scouts. The health of the land improves the health of the cattle, which in turn helps the health of the local environment.
Ten-year-old Marcus Schultz, a Webelos Scout in Pack 198 in Battle Creek, Neb., helps on his family ranch to improve the land using cattle. He is always eager to jump in, including his daily chores of feeding the cattle, rabbits and chickens.
“I like being with the animals and being outside; it’s nice and calm,” Marcus says. “It may seem like it’s hard, but I’ve been doing it for a while. It takes responsibility to do it without help.”
Marcus practices the characteristics of the Scout Law – to be trustworthy, helpful, thrifty and more – while caring for his animals.
Similarly, responsible stewardship is what beef farmers and ranchers do. When Scouts work toward the Sustainability merit badge, they learn to leave the outdoors better than they found it. Cattle producers also seek to improve the land in their care. Many create habitats for wildlife, monitor and enhance water quality that nourishes natural ecosystems and use their cattle to make landscapes healthier.
For example, adding cattle manure to soil increases soil organic matter. It’s a source of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium, all of which help plants grow.
Most of the water used in beef production is rainwater, which is primarily used for crop irrigation. Farmers and ranchers continue to improve irrigation methods to efficiently grow crops. In some cases, cattle ranchers are even able to create cleaner drinking water for cities!
And land devoted to grazing offers homes for animals, like ducks and deer. These natural areas, sustained in part by local farmers and ranchers, are places to enjoy, whether you’re hiking, bird-watching or camping.
It turns out that cattle ranchers and Scouts have a lot in common!
Editor’s note: This post is sponsored by National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a contractor to the Beef Checkoff.
other products from cows
Shampoo
Oleic acid soldering flux
gelatin used in Gummy Bears
Keratin is extracted from cow bones, hooves, horns, and skin used in Fire Extinguishers
Cow hair (usually from their tail or mane) is sometimes used to make high-quality paintbrushes.
tennis rackets are strung with a natural fiber found in the intestines of cows.
cow tallow candles
Ivory soap, which is made from Sodium Tallowate, the fat of cows
Some steroids and other medicines are made using chemicals found in the adrenal glands of cows.
Plastic surgeons sometimes use soft cartilage and ligaments from cows
A type of china is called Bone China
Glycerol made from cows fat is used in all sorts of products, including in antifreeze
Cow horns are widely used to make buttons and other fasteners
Before the 1980s, the only way to source insulin was to take insulin from pigs (porcine) or cows (bovine insulin).
Thanks for all you do, Marcus