Cows Come Home

Illinois may be ranked among the worst for its business climate, but we are a hospitable place for cows. An enterprising Californian thinks it makes sense to locate cows near their food source and a major urban market. Some NIMBY neighbors in Jo Daviess County object, among them a Chicago expat, (it's 30 miles from Galena) so we'll see what happens, but it sounds like smart growth to me.

We are talking cows, lots of cows, 11,000 cows, managed by a dairyman who has a good track record on the family farms in eco-sensitive California. Rockford Register Star. Tribune:

But others, including Nora Mayor Mark Mullen, see benefits. The last time he counted heads, there were just 106 people in his crossroads community. That's down from the 118 tallied for the 2000 census.

Livestock and jobs also are vanishing, said Mullen, 47, who was born in Nora. A tree trimmer with a thick black beard and calloused hands, he travels hundreds of miles each week to find work.

Dirk Harbach, who grows corn on more than 5,000 acres near the Bos site with his father and brothers, would sell feed to Bos and buy cheap liquid manure from him to spread on their fields. Harbach said that makes more sense environmentally than using chemical fertilizer.

"It's going to be a good thing," Harbach said. "We've had talks with A.J. We feel he's honest, and we're looking forward to doing business with him."

The operation would take up only 75 acres of the 1, 45o acres, with corn on the rest. According to California inspectors their sites there don't smell. Others point out the county has lost about 8,000 cows over the last 10 years. So why not bring some cows back home to Illinois? We only produce about a quarter of our milk consumption--let's build our milk independence!

As long as they don't show up on the voter rolls. No absentee ballot requests for Bossy, Daisy, or Cowsey Moosey please... ?Hugh Heifer? Maggie Moo? Milkdud? Oink?