How we raise our grassfed beef
Our cattle are 100% grassfed and finished, meaning they only eat pasture and do not receive any grain. Because cattle have a ruminant stomach, they have the ability to get all their nutrients from pasture. While most cattle are on pasture at some point in their life, only a small percentage are finished on pasture like ours. There are many benefits to their health and the nutrition of the beef they produce for us to consume. It can be confusing with all the different labels on meat in the grocery store, but you can be confident Grassfed Cattle Co. beef cattle only consume pasture.
Owners Jared and Valerie Luhman raise some of the cattle on their farm near Goodhue, Minnesota, but also have a handful of other farms who follow the same regenerative practices who raise beef cattle for Grassfed Cattle Co. To read more about our other farmers, check our About pages. We interview each family and visit the farm to make sure their practices align with ours and the beef will be consistent in taste and quality.
On our farm, we are just completing what we call calving season where the cows give birth to their calves. It’s a busy, exciting time! Each calf will drink milk from their mama cow in the pasture until the end of October when they are weaned and begin grazing in a separate pasture. The cow-calf pairs are moved to fresh pasture each day, sometimes more than once a day! Rotational grazing is beneficial to the cattle, pasture and soil too. Read more about our grazing practices in our What Regenerative Means to Grassfed Cattle Co. Blog.
As fall comes to an end and the grass grows slowly, we begin grazing sorghum sudangrass, a cover crop we plant to extend our grazing season. Our cows will also graze the stalks and leaves of corn plants left after the grain is harvested from the corn fields. However, our cattle that are close to processing do not graze corn stalks, but rather are fed stockpiled pasture and/or dried hay.
Typically, our cows are able to graze into January or February, depending on how much snow we have here in Minnesota. They are very hearty animals. Then all the cattle are fed bales of hay, which is pasture we cut and dry in the summer months. Around May 15, we begin rotationally grazing the pastures again!
No matter what season, our animals are checked every day to make sure they are healthy. If one is sick, we utilize our local vet and give antibiotics when needed. However, that animal will be sold to another farmer or the local sales barn, not to Grassfed Cattle Co. We do not use hormones or other chemicals when raising our livestock.
The cattle always have access to fresh water and organic minerals. Our cattle are typically processed at around 24 months at Lorentz Meats, a USDA processing facility in Cannon Falls, Minnesota about 30 minutes from our farm. The beef is vacuum sealed in plastic packaging and transported to our freezer space in Edina where we put together bulk boxes, bundles and meet customers or deliver it to homes like yours in the Twin Cities. We are incredibly blessed to raise our cattle in the best way we can for their health and yours too. To learn more about our farm and see video footage, check out our Farm Feature Video!
Photos by Greener Pastures