Blackfoot Valley Dispatch - The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980

It took me a long time to fully appreciate the differences between a rural upbringing and an urban upbringing. These differences are not especially manifest, but they exist. Montana has no large...

Dear Readers, A few months ago, I wrote about the 2018 Escherichia Coli (E. Coli) outbreaks related to Romaine lettuce. The contaminated lettuce was eventually traced to farms in California and...

Dear Readers, Now that the holidays are over and it's back to our normal routine, some of us may resolve to eat healthier in 2019. Many of us have overindulged in certain foods and have picked up a...

Our mother had four children under six years old in the house (two more came some years later,) a wringer washer, but no clothes dryer or dishwasher. Frozen foods came later, so every meal took a lot...

Dear Readers, Chances are many of you who are reading this are taking some type of herbal supplement. Be it ginseng for better energy, saw palmetto for prostate health, or echinacea to boost the...

That summer that I was ten - Can it be only one summer that I was ten? May Swenson – The Centaur [1958] We all say that as we age, time seems to pass more quickly. There exists in the human...

Dear Dietitian, I am trying to lose weight, so I often skip breakfast. My husband insists that this is not good for me and actually works against my efforts to lose weight. What do you say? Shirley De...

Tis not the meat, but 'tis the appetite Makes eating a delight. Of Thee, Kind Boy John Suckling 1609 - 1642 The haying crews were large during the years that the ranches put up loose hay. A normal tea...

Dear Readers, The holiday season is upon us, times of glad tidings, holiday parties, and family gatherings. When we gather to celebrate, there is often food available that we don’t normally eat....

Editor's Note: This is the second part of a column celebrating 'This is Montana,' a University of Montana program delivered to an estimated 80-plus high schools and newspapers. Enjoy! Although...

Agricultural techniques, like all other facets of life, have progressed over time. With cattle and other agrarian businesses, the cultures themselves have changed. I'm old enough to remember when a...

It seems to take a while after sunrise now for birds to gather at the bird feeder by the kitchen window. On winter mornings like those recently, when the temperature struggled to rise much above...

Dear Dietitian, I have been eating healthier and drinking more water. I've heard that we need 8 glasses of water a day, but I don't enjoy plain water, and I have a hard time getting that much in. Do...

Editor's Note: In September 2013, University of Montana geography faculty member Rick Graetz and Kayde Kaiser, a geography graduate student, launched the "This Is Montana" program as an outreach...

In the days of loose hay, when the cattle were fed by hand, Christmas meant two days of extra work. - the day before and the day after. In order to lessen the time spent with the cows on Christmas...

Dear Dietitian, I have recently lost about 20 pounds, but the problem is I cannot seem to lose weight around my midsection. What foods can I eat to lose belly fat? Signed, Maria Dear Maria, Oh! That...

I was eating lunch at the hotel in Barra do Bugres, where I had been sent by the Peace Corps. The establishment offered rooms plus meals, and was the only place to stay back in the early 1970's. In...