FAQs
Farm Questions
Where do you raise your beef?
Our beef is raised on our family farm in Culloden, Georgia. We then have it processed at Mid South Packers, which is 5 miles from our farm. Then it travels about 80 miles north to Dunwoody, a suburb of Atlanta. We serve the surrounding communities with deliveries and 4 local farmers markets in season (Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, Alpharetta, & Milton/Crabapple). We plan to offer shipping to the rest of Georgia and surrounding states in 2024.
When we buy cattle to add to our herd, we try to make sure they come from farms that are grass-fed and use similar practices as ours. For more information on our cattle and beef see the products questions.
Can I visit your farm?
At this point, we are not set up to handle visitors. Our farms are leased and our landowners don’t want uninvited guests on their land. However, we would love to have our best customers out to our farms in the future. Sign up for our email list and support us by becoming a regular customer and tell your neighbors about us. More to come in the future!
How can I support your farm?
- Please email us and let us know how we are doing.
- Encourage your neighbors, friends, and family to buy our beef.
- Come visit us at the farmer’s markets.
- Give us a positive review online.
- Know that we appreciate you!
Are your farms organic?
We are not certified organic at this time. Gaining the USDA certified organic status requires significant expense and 3-years of operating history. Our farming practices are very close to organic requirements and we are pursuing several different certifications.
Our driving principle on the farm is to use regenerative practices and improve the soil and ecosystems we farm. The second is to treat our animals well with low stress handling.
What does regenerative agriculture mean?
- Regenerative means going beyond sustainable and improving environmental outcomes not just maintaining the status quo
Our regenerative practices include:
- Minimizing disturbance of the soil. This means we don't till our fields when we plant seasonal annuals. We also don't ever use any widespread application of herbicides or pesticides on our land.
- Provide rest for the soil and plants by practicing holistically planned grazing. We currently practice a 2-day grazing rotation and plan to increase our grazing control as our farm team expands.
- Limit any medications or interventions to what is absolutely necessary for cattle health. We do worm our cattle 1-2 times per year, but we use an earthworm and dung beetle friendly wormer. We are exploring moving to all natural worming agents and will drop these altogether when our farm team expands.
We are so excited to be part of the growing movement of farmers to regenerative agriculture. To learn more, please see our blog posts, follow us on social media, and check out the resources we link to. One of our favorite is Understanding Ag. Here is there overview of regenerative agriculture. https://understandingag.com/the-6-3-4tm-explained/
What type of grazing practices do you use?
We use regenerative grazing practices. This means moving our cattle to a new piece of pasture every 2 days during the growing season and allowing the land to rest. Our grazing has been informed by holistically planned grazing, AMP grazing, and total grazing methodologies. We are still improving our grazing management and are working to remove our current infrastructure and labor constraints.
Does your farm raise any meats other than beef?
Not yet! We are getting started with beef and once that is successful we will decide if we can grow and offer other products.
We may also find other farmers to partner with, but we want the core of our farm products to be something our family produces for your family to enjoy. We don’t want to be any other distributor of farm products. Many people and companies are doing that and that is fine. We want to be fresh, local, and direct from the farm. Our farm.
If we grow additional products or find the right partners we will be sure to let you know ASAP! Thank you!
Product & Beef Questions
Why is your beef delivered frozen?
Our processor freezes all of the beef in vacuum-sealed packages after it is cut and wrapped. They freeze all beef in their commercial freezers, which quickly freeze the beef ensuring the texture is great. Food safety is also greater with frozen beef. As long as it doesn't defrost, it will stay safe and high quality for a long time frozen.
Is the beef organic?
We are not certified organic. Gaining that certification requires significant expense and 3-years. We have begun offering grass-fed and finished beef recently, so are focusing first on raising the highest-quality meat. However, our farming practices are very close to organic requirements and we are pursuing several different certifications. Our first principle is to use regenerative practices and improve the soil and ecosystems we farm. The second is to treat our animals well.
Is your beef certified black angus?
Short answer - no, it's better. The longer answer will be an upcoming blog article: “Red Devon: What angus cattle only dream of becoming.” Certified angus beef is the most successful marketing gimmick in beef industry and possibly in all of agriculture. There is nothing special about an angus cow grain finished in a feedlot. Our cattle are from a variety of breeds. We are moving are herds to be at least 50% Red Devon. This ancient breed of cattle is known for producing “Gourmet Beef on Grass”. Their thick, red hides make them much more adapted, and comfortable, in our hot, humid, Southern summers. Plus, my family has over 50 years history with this breed. More to come in the future blog article.
Do you offer any meat other than beef?
Not yet! We are getting started with beef and once that is successful we will decide if we can grow and offer other products.
We may also find other farmers to partner with, but we want the core of our farm products to be something our family produces for your family to enjoy. We don’t want to be a food distributor. Many people and companies are doing that and that is fine. We want to be fresh, local, and direct from the farm. Our farm.
If we grow additional products or find the right partners we will be sure to let you know ASAP! Thank you!
Is there a discount for larger orders?
Yes, the prices for our largest bundles, a whole cow, is the lowest price per pound possible.
What cuts do you sell?
Because we are a direct from the farm business, we need and should sell every possible cut of beef on each animal. We are working with our butcher to make sure we don’t throw away quality cuts of meat. That means our family is going to stretch our culinary skills and we hope you will as well! We are going to have bundles that cater to a variety of culinary skills and preferences. Also, we are working on gathering good recipes for every cut of meat on the cow. Send us your favorites!
Can I get different blends of ground beef?
Yes, you will be able to. Every blend may not be available all the time. However, we are going to try to let you customize your order (within reason) for some of our bundles. Just email us and include your request with your order. Our standard ground will be 85% lean, 15% fat. We are working with our butcher to get 80/20; 85/15; 90/10, and 80/20 paleo blend on future cattle.
Is your meat antibiotic, steroid, and hormone free?
We only use antibiotics when absolutely necessary, which is almost never. We have not given any antibiotics in the 3 years we have been finishing beef. We never give our cattle and steroids or hormones.
Do you give your cattle any mRNA vaccines?
We will not vaccinate our animals with mRNA vaccines. We believe vaccinations have an appropriate use, but they must be used judiciously. We only vaccinate our cattle shortly after birth and when new cattle come to our farm. We hope to one day move away from all vaccines on our farm.
Is your beef dry aged?
Absolutely! Our world-class butcher dry ages all our beef for 14 days. We find this is the perfect balance of taste and tenderness.
Are your animals harvested humanely?
Our animals are all harvested at Mid South Packers, a USDA inspected butcher. Their facility was designed by Temple Grandin and is Animal Welfare Approved by A Greener World. They are also Certified Organic. We are so thankful for the great job Mid South Packers does on every animal we bring them. Learn more about them here: https://www.midsouthpackers.com/about
How will our beef be wrapped when we receive it from you?
We only offer vacuum
sealed because it keeps your beef fresher for longer in your freezer.
How long will our beef be safe to use once it is in our home freezer?
Vacuum-sealed beef will stay fresh in your freezer for one year if it is not defrosted or the seal is not damaged.
Bundle Questions
Why do you sell mostly in bundles?
If we sold individual cuts, we would be sold out of steaks and our bundle customers would not be able to get those cuts of meat. We want to use every cut that comes from a cow, so we reward our bundle customers by having access to our steaks. A private store (coming soon) is only available to bundle customers after they complete a purchase. There, customers buying beef bundles can add individual cuts (including steaks) to their delivery (subject to availability).
How much freezer space do I need?
A rule of thumb is 30 to 35 LBS of beef needs 1 cubic foot of
storage.
- Twelfth Beef Share (1/2 in 6 deliveries) is approximately 35-40 LBS.
- Eighth Beef Share is approximately 50 -60 LBS.
- Quarter Beef Share is approximately 80-110 LBS.
- Half Beef Share is approximately 200 -220 LBS.
- Whole beef Share is approximately 400 - 440 LBS.
How many pounds of meat can we expect?
- Twelfth Beef Share (1/2 in 6 deliveries) is approximately 35-40 LBS.
- Eighth Beef Share is approximately 50 -60 LBS.
- Quarter Beef Share is approximately 80-110 LBS.
- Half Beef Share is approximately 200 -220 LBS.
- Whole beef Share is approximately 400 - 440 LBS.
What is the ratio of steaks to slow cook cuts to ground beef?
We try to maximize the amount of steaks by adding cuts like denver, hanger, flat iron, bavette, teres major, and sierra in addition to the standard cuts of steak.
Still, this leaves us with about 25-30 percent steaks. About half of of our bulk bundles are ground beef.
The remainder is slow cooker cuts. We find this works best for our customers. These cuts include chuck roasts, brisket, tri-tip, short-rib, oxtail, cube steak, and stew beef.
If I order a whole beef share, do I get all of the cuts on the cow?
Yes! Every single cut! At least 400 pounds of beef. We can deliver in up to 10 deliveries over up to a year to make it easier for you and require less freezer space.
Subscription Questions
How do subscriptions work?
Subscriptions work when you sign up to order from us on a regular, automated basis. We offer half and whole cows on 6 and 10 delivery schedules.
Currently, our ecommerce is not setup to enable automatic reorders and delivery schedule modification, so you have to order each bundle and we are managing the delivery schedule manually. We expect to have this automated very soon.
Shipping Questions
Do you ship?
We are currently not shipping. We offer delivery in our pre-defined zones. Check out pickup locations to see if there are options convenient to you. We offer pickup at our farmers market locations. Purchase online and pickup in person.
Contact us if you are outside of a delivery zone but still in the metro Atlanta market. We can arrange a customized pickup time and location. We have several customers who have become Beef Club Leaders. They will organize getting 4 other people to order with them. Then we schedule a regular pickup in a location convenient to them.
We plan to offer shipping in the Southeast later in 2024.
Cooking Questions
Why is your beef delivered frozen?
Our processor freezes all of the beef in vacuum-sealed packages after it is cut and wrapped. This product is fresh from the farm - it is typically 2-3 weeks from field to delivery (10-14 days dry aging), compared with multiple months in a warehouse before being thawed and put on display at a grocery store. Food safety is also greater with frozen beef.
How should I cook my steaks?
Rare or medium rare. Medium if you have to. Never warmer than medium. Our motto: Friends don't let friends cook medium-well steaks.
Check out or website for recipes and more!
The bundle comes with some new cuts. How should I cook them?
Check out our blog. We have a collection of recipes for the lesser known cuts that are tailored to be easy to prepare and delicious!