Friday, March 24, 2017

Wisconsin - Still Number One.

Wisconsin is not a proud and haughty state.  Oh, we root for our sports teams and all, but in general we don't do much bragging here in America's Dairy Land.

But a few years ago we Badgers suffered a crushing blow, a crisis that shook us to the very core of what defines us.

California took over as the number one producer of both milk and cheese.

I think there may have been an over reaction to this.  I mean, how else can you explain this sign seen at a highway rest stop?



Ah, the wonders of Sphagnum moss.  Some fresh faced intern at the DOT or Commerce department probably took this assignment seriously, and regards this marker as his or her crowning achievement.  Wisconsin.  Number one in Sphagnum production.  No other states are even trying.  In yo' face California.

Never mind that Sphagnum does not seem to have been used for surgical dressings since World War I, or that the United States imports 80% of its Sphagnum needs from - gulp - Canada.

4 comments:

jon spencer said...

Got to keep your nightcrawlers fresh when fishing.

Tacitus said...

Seems like mulched newspaper is more commonly used hereabouts.

T

a bear said...

That's... not accurate anymore.

There's only one sphagnum producer in Wisconsin (Page 6), and six were active (Table 4, page 5) in the US in 2014.

It's like a metal sign from 1974 doesn't know what market forces will be in play over forty years later.

Tacitus said...

Given the state of the print industry I wonder if shredded newspaper is next on the road to obsolescence?

T