Do you want fries with that burger?

I was reminded that I hadn't updated you on the status of mini horse.

While we vacationed, the mini horse's owner traded in mini for a full size model. Horses, it seems, are more like cars than pets in this regard. So, no mini for me. (Or no "Mini Me," a nod to you Austin Powers fans.)

I was also reminded that horses can be consumed, and indeed are consumed, throughout much of the world. Although there isn't a market for horse meat in the U.S., there are processing plants where meat is prepared for export. These plants are in the crosshairs of the Humane Society of the United States, though, and a bill to outlaw these plants is moving through the halls of Congress. (It's good to see elected officials getting down to the important business of keeping our nation safe from horse meat.)

And speaking of safety as it relates to meat, I was reading an article in Midwest Ag Journal about improving feedlot technologies to improve profitability. The article examined the when, why and how of applying growth-promoting implants in feedlot cattle, a practice underway at 92 percent of all feedlots. I'll spare you the technicalities except for this tidbit ... the implants that are given to cattle between one and three times to accelerate growth (and thereby profitability) are mostly medium-potency estrogen...

Enjoy your hamburger, fellas.