The Liberty Leader Newspaper

Moore Farm Sausage—More Than Just A Name
My daughter Shelby and I had the pleasure to be Brad Moore’s shadow for a day on his hog farm. The first thing that we both expected was to have to put a clothespin on our nose for the odor and to step just perfectly to miss all the gift 'piles' left by the livestock, but we were surprised to not have to do either. Brad's love for the farm and the business showed with the enjoyment and excitement in his voice and the care he takes of his farm. Let's stroll behind Brad for a while. First of all Brad Moore was born and still lives right on the same land as his late father and his grandfather still resides on. That gives him the down-home roots to this area. As with most farmers in our area today, it is almost near to impossible to be just a farmer and make a living, so Brad works during the day for the State Department protecting the waters that feed into the Cape Fear water basin which then feeds into Jordan Lake to help landowners with erosion problems. If you get a chance to see Brad, ask him about that job and you will be enlightened as I was. Well, that is a story for another day. The first step was to pick up a water feeder for his chickens. As you read this story, one story always came from another story. With a chuckle in his voice Brad noted that he purchased this water feeder a week ago at Liberty Farm and Garden but walked right of the store without it. You wonder why?  Well, that is the charm of growing up in a rural area. While visiting and talking with the staff and customers there he just lost the track of time and next thing he knew he was at home. That is just something that does not happen at Lowes, Home Depot or Tractor Supply. Yes, these big stores have all you need and maybe are few cents cheaper, but where is the priceless conversations and tips you can pick up from friends of the area. You will see through my story how a lot of this area's highlights in things are being lost in the hustle and bustle of today's times. Well, Brad carried fresh water and food to the homemade chicken coop that housed his new hens. He shared with me how he had built this coop from a story he read and how it recycles the environment.  A chicken house on Rollerblades. No, I did not mess up on my writing, you read correctly, Rollerblades. Brad purchased these at a thrift store and recycled them to make this square chicken coop mobile. Mobile, Hmmm I thought, why? Well, Brad went to tell me that he rolls the chicken house about every few weeks to spread the dropping left by the chickens to fertilize the ground and give the hens fresh grass to be in. “Actually these hens are about seven months old now and should start laying eggs any day, they normally start at six months," Brad stated. I asked what do you do with them?  Brad added, “Well they will be eggs for me and my family and if there are any extra I will take them to the farmers' market to sell.” We then left the hens to move on to the hog/feed house. Brad said with a great big grin, “I cannot wait to see your face when you see what I am going to take to feed the pigs.” I was intrigued, what could it be to put such a sneaky grin on his face. Well, I would have never guessed this in a million years. Homeland Creamery milk jugs filled with chocolate to plain milk. Brad said, “You see I try to recycle as much as I can and use wholesome products for the farm. Homeland Creamery provides me with the milk when it has to be pulled from the shelves and I give this to my pigs with regular food as a source of protein.” Sure enough we followed Brad through the fields and there in the troughs the pigs pushed each other to make sure they got their fair share of the milk. So maybe Mr. Purdue's chicken may be feed on marigold petals as the famous commercial said on TV, but Moore Farm Pork products are fed rich Homeland Creamery chocolate milk. You know, milk is more per gallon than a gallon of gas. You ponder on this for a while. Brad continued to show me his farm. I asked him how there was no smell. Brad stated, “I am trying to be a good neighbor. Actually the pigs use a certain area for the droppings and that helps. I also keep a deep base in the lots for them and every few days I flip the dirt in that area. I actually recycle leaves from the town of Liberty for their base material.” Amazing!  Brad also showed me the data he keeps on each pig. He can account for every detail that is put in on these animals. Brad has for several years sold the pork products at Greensboro Farmers' Market and to faithful customers. Yes, you may pay a few cents more but as they say, “you get what you pay for.” These animals get the best attention and environment. No hormones, antibiotics and he uses no preservatives. I did a little research and did you realize the in majority of pork production, the pig lives in a concrete-slated floor box. No daylight, nothing but water and feed. Pigs have an instinct to dig, which in turns helps the environment. In a concrete floor the pigs cannot do what God intended for them to do, which causes stress on these animals that affects their quality. Just imagine yourself, how you feel when you have been cooped up in home and finally get to be outside on a