The Ranch on Salmon Creek: As the Sun Rises

Frequent Photo

A little wilder, a little leaner, and a lot tastier, the beef that comes from The Ranch on Salmon Creek is a gourmet’s delight.  Last year, Tami and Mark, my neighbors whose ranch can be seen from my home (and who are local bloggers) began selling their delicious beef at the Farmer’s Market.  If you got addicted then, now is your chance to buy a half or even a quarter of a beef.  They will also be back starting tomorrow at the Garberville Farmer’s Market with individual cuts for sale.

These animals are practically hand raised.  In December, we even got on hay wagon and sang them Christmas Carols (this is an innovative technique to soften them up.)

Tami explained to me:

“There probably is no real practical difference between ours and organic.

We looked into getting certified and the problem we have is that we have railroad ties for our larger posts.  … they are not permissible for certification.  We also supplement some in the winter with hay that is not organic…  Our beef is considered natural beef…

We are moving slowly in this process, because every change we make has the possibility to make a big difference to the land.  We are cutting our cow herd so that we have enough grass for the calves we keep for the extra year.”

I’ve again put my order in for a half beef (I split with my parents).  If you haven’t tried this delicious local product yet, stop by and meet Tami tomorrow (you’ll love her) and buy a package.  The young beef grazes on the knee deep  green clover that splashes over the hills in the Spring.  The local tall grasses have had time to plump the grains which makes the animals fat and the resulting taste is unbelievably mouthwatering.

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Here is Tami on Cost and Corn feeding [which you can choose to add if you prefer to grass fed]: “Pricing is the same as last year: 1/2 or whole animal (We can also do 1/4 if needed, but it is a little more complicated) is $2.00 per pound on the hanging weight.     Most of our halves are around 250 pounds and a whole is about 500 pounds, give or take a little.  By the time you figure in loss from butchering and the cut and wrap fees the actual cost comes to about 3.75 per pound for all the cuts.”

“I do the corn finishing in an area in and next to the barn, so they

can go inside or outside.  I feed them corn twice a day as well as some

grass and or alfalfa hay for 90 days, and it will add about $250 to $300 [extra]

dollars to the animal”

UPDATE: For Prices, times they are at the market etc.  read Tami’s post.

I also forgot to mention their firewood.  My husband works long hours and we decided a few years ago to allow him more free time by buying our winter heating wood.  We started buying from the Chapmans three years ago and have been delighted. Read about their carbon neutral firewood here.

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Note: Eating beef is good for you according to some of the  latest research.

Hat tip to Learn something New everyday.