+ How do you sell your grass-fed beef?

Our grass feed beef is available year-round in whole, half (side), quarters, 50-lb, 25-lb bundles, and individual cuts including ribeye steak, porterhouse steak, T-bone steak, chuck roast, and one-pound ground beef packages. We sell our beef by the retail weight, not hanging weight. Our prices already include meat processing, clear shrink-wrap packaging, and labeling. You will not need to call our butcher shop to complete your beef order, unless previously arranged. Cuts vary in size. Your invoice will list the actual weights once your order has been prepared. Please contact us for a list of cuts you can expect to receive when buying one of our grass-fed beef packages.

+ How much freezer room?

A quarter varies 80 to 100-lbs in weight (depending on animal size), and measures about20 x 20 x 20 inches, or 4.6 cubic feet packed tightly. A quarter is enough to feed two adults for one year. If you do not have a chest freezer, the 50-lb and 25-lb bundles are designed to fit into refrigerator freezers.

+ Is your beef considered organic?

Our farm is not “certified organic,” but we do use organic principles in our daily farming practices. Our beef is all-natural, raised strictly on pasture, offered free-choice “certified organic” minerals, with no hormones, no antibiotics, and no chemicals. Our farm has not been sprayed since 2004. You could say our beef is farmer-certified organic or beyond organic. Please understand the term “organic” does not necessarily mean the animal was raised humanely. There are commercial feedlots that raise animals on organic grain, and hence, those confined animals can be marketed as “certified organic.” Also, the term “organic” does not imply land stewardship and proactively caring for our environment; growing “organic” row crops still requires fossil fuel consumption and poor tillage practices can cause massive soil erosion. We believe that all-natural can be better than “organic” based on the aforementioned reasons. Hence the term, beyond organic.

+ How do you raise your animals?

Since our animals are grass-fed, they are raised on pasture for 100% of their lifetime. During each year’s growing season we implement a rotational grazing pattern, holistically managing the cattle by moving them to a different pasture every day. This exposes them to fresh grass daily and allows the previously grazed pasture to regrow for approximately 30 days before the animals return to that same pasture. This system requires daily moves of temporary fencing consisting of step-in posts and portable wire reels. With daily exposure to humans our animals are much more docile than herds that roam the back 40 all summer long without ever seeing a human face. During hot periods in the summer we give the cattle access to shade. When there is rain-snow mixed precipitation or subzero wind chills, we offer them access to covered shelter (barn). But because their thick coat keeps them warm, they tend to reside outside even on some of the coldest, snowiest days. In general, our animals are healthy, happy, and stress free.

+ What do your cattle eat in the winter?

In the winter, the beef cattle are fed balesof hay that do not contain chemical preservatives. This dry hay is harvested off of our farm and nearby fields. Each winter our cattle outwinter on about five acres of land we select. Instead of the conventional “feedlot” method of feeding them near the buildings on a concrete slab, our cattle are fed baled hay in round bale feeders that are moved across the frozen pasture every few days. During outwintering the cattle deposit their manure across a smaller, concentrated area of pasture, which in turn, produces even greener grass the following summer. Not to mention there is no need to use a manure spreader come spring once everything thaws; the cattle have already distributed it for us. In about ten year’s time, we hope to outwinter across the entire farm in a continuous effort to naturally refertilize our farmland.

+ Do they get fed grain?

No. The cattle are not fed any grain. They are grass-fed for 100% of their lives. They eat grass, clover, and certified organic minerals.

+ Are the animals confined?

No. We do not raise our cattle in a confined feedlot.

+ Do you vaccinate?

No. We do not vaccinate the beef cattle. We believe that if we are managing the animals correctly and keeping them strong and healthy, they do not need to be vaccinated. This ensures our customers that they are not getting any foreign substance in the meat they purchase.

+ How do you process your cattle?

Our cattle are hauled two miles down the road to a family-owned federally inspected plant. After being unloaded, the cattle remain in a shaded, solid-wall holding pen until time of slaughter. They are processed in a well-lit, clean, state-of-the-art facility that was constructed in 2008. The carcass is aged for fourteen days to tenderize the meat before it is cut and packaged.

+ What is marbling?

Marbling is the intermixture of fat with lean in a cut of meat, which contributes to flavor and tenderness. The Polled Hereford and Devon breeds we raise begin to marble intramuscularly at a young age.

+ How does grass-fed beef taste?

We cannot answer this question because each person has a different sense of taste. We have received numerous compliments regarding our farm’s grass-fed beef.

+ Do you deliver?

We currently hold a Mobile Retail Food License from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture which makes our farm’s poultry and beef products eligible to be sold both directly from the farm and at your local farmers market. Since we are not current vendors at area farmers markets due to time commitments, we do offer product delivery for larger orders, providing we also have prior travel plans your direction and can meet you at a mutual, pre-determined location.

+ How do I order?

You may contact us by emailing info@farmsweetfarm.com or by phone at (715) 289-4896 for an order form.