Why Soy Free?
Soy as it is used today is a newfangled foodstuff. In its natural, unprocessed state, soy is toxic to animals and people because it contains chemicals that inhibit the availability of trypsin, an enzyme that is essential to protein digestion. In order to make soybeans non-toxic, they must be roasted or processed with a solvent (typically hexane, a powerful toxin in itself). Once rendered “non-toxic” soybeans still contain powerful hormone analogues and other chemicals that inhibit the absorption of other nutrients. These substances affect the health of the animals and the quality of the meat and eggs produced. We find that our heritage breeds prefer and produce better using traditional protein sources like fish meal, meat scraps (from our own animals), insects, field peas, and greens like grass and alfalfa. In a state of nature, an animal could not and would not eat a soybean, so we’re sure not gonna make ‘em!
In addition, on an environmental level, the rise of soy as a human foodstuff and feedstock for animals contributes to environmental collapse and industrial control of the food system. Soy is grown as a monoculture. Most soy is genetically modified and controlled by agribusiness giant Monsanto whose business and cultural practices we do not support. Huge quantities of soy are grown on plantations carved out of Brazillian rainforests by poor farmers essentially enslaved through unfair sharecropping arrangements. Soy is cheap, and that’s about the best that can be said for it.
