Karina Jones is a real-life ranch wife in the Nebraska Sandhills and one of the most highly sought-after speakers in the cattle industry nationwide!
Thanks for starting your week with me right here on Ranch Raised.
It seems that grocery shopping has become a rather daunting topic among most of the American public. I certainly have noticed the increase in costs which has led to decisions to skip some choices. I have become more intentional about meal planning and basing those meals around what I have in my freezer and pantry.
There are some aisles that I pay no attention to because I work hard to provide my family with those items at home. It seems that the last few days my social media feed has been abuzz with news that there have been empty shelves where cartons of eggs should be. Maybe this is an isolated issue to big box chains here in Nebraska, or maybe it is being seen elsewhere.
This is not a new supply chain issue. In the last few years, I have watched as local egg producers have served the needs of their communities. Last spring, I noticed eggs in my local grocery store were upwards of $5-6 a dozen, yet the locals kept their prices steady and didn’t jump on the opportunity to increase.
So maybe, just maybe, the corporate supply chain model isn’t the most reliable. We have been told for decades that consolidation in the food supply chain was the efficient way to go. But how do you measure efficiency when store shelves are empty?
While I many not get to take my kids on any fancy vacations because we always have chores to do, at least I have dozens of eggs at the ready, a freezer full of home raised meat, and a pantry full of home canned goodness. It is looking like that might be worth more than fancy cars and trips to Disney at this point.
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Karina ranches with her husband, Marty, and 3 daughters near Broken Bow, NE. She grew up in western NE, with roots also in southwest SD. The cattle industry and raising kids is her passion.
Watching the cattle industry go the path that it has gone, she could no longer sit quietly at home checking cows, fixing fence, and doing all the everyday tasks wondering when some else was going to make it all better. As she became more active and outspoken on industry issues, she was asked to join the R-CALF USA staff in September 2020 as the Checkoff Petition Campaign manager. That position transcended into her current role as full time Field Director for R-CALF USA.
You can hear her almost every Friday on Your Ag Network’s Hot Barn Report that is broadcast on 60 radio stations with coverage in 9 states, where she deep dives into cattle industry issues and highlights R-CALF’s work on industry reforms. Listen to Ranch Raised on a Your Ag Network hometown station or www.youragnetwork.com where she talks about her daily life on the ranch.
Cattle producers are her people. She will meet you at the county fair, at the sale barn, or anywhere the dusty trail leads.
[email protected] or visit facebook.com/ranchraisedwithkarinajones
