Upcycling, Sustainability, and Super-Cows!

Did you know that the Jorgensen Family Foundation and Hedgeapple Farm have worked on issues related to farm system sustainability (both economic and environmental) since well before sustainability was cool? We have always understood that for a farm system to survive in an increasingly competitive and highly regulated food production environment, that system must function with a specific knowledge of the interconnectedness of every component of potential impact both inside and outside the farming system. And, we must always seek to appropriately balance the interaction between the animals we raise and the surrounding ecosystem in which we raise them.

One common accusation leveled against livestock production is that the animals being raised compete with human food needs (or the human food supply) such as grains (corn, wheat etc.). But, that is a simplistic and short-sighted view which fails to take into account the actual nutritional requirements of the human diet and how and where things like grains alone actually fit into that diet. Here is what I mean, using our Hedgeapple Farm system as an example.

Ruminant livestock (animals with 4-chambered stomachs) like beef cattle, sheep, and goats, actually play a key role in a sustainable food system. Simply put, it is because of their unique digestive abilities, primarily the break-down and fermentation of fibrous feed sources that occurs in their largest stomach compartment, the rumen. Beef cattle (and other ruminants) consume and “process” (digest) large amounts of feeds totally unusable by us, and turn those feeds into a high-quality and complete source of protein perfectly matched to the dietary needs of us humans! For example, the protein in meat and milk is of much higher nutritional quality when compared to the protein in any feed source that might be fed to cattle.

This is why we can view cattle (and other ruminants) as vital “Upcyclers” within a sustainable food system. In simplest terms, they upgrade plant material of all sorts into high quality protein for people. In fact, recent global research suggests that 86% of what livestock eat is fully inedible by humans. Globally, livestock also eat over 1.9 billion metric tons of what might be called leftovers from human food, fiber and biofuel production. ^1.

For example, livestock eat the residues of grain harvest (the stalks and leaves left in the field after corn harvest), the byproducts from milling grains for flour production (wheat midds), cottonseed that is a leftover of cotton production, and glycerol and distillers grains that are byproducts of soy biodiesel and corn ethanol production, respectively. If livestock didn’t consume these plant-derived leftovers and byproducts, their disposal would likely result in a significant environmental burden. It seems fair then to conclude that by being a part of the global food system, livestock production actually enhances the sustainability of other food production and food-related industries.

So, next time you visit Hedgeapple Farm I hope you will have a new appreciation for the animals you see grazing our pastures. I hope you will see them as upcycling super-cows that are a vital part of a sustainable food system that helps feeds the world responsibly!

1.“Livestock: On our plates or eating at our table? A new analysis of the feed/food debate”, Global Food Security; Volume 14, September 2017, Pages 1-8.

The single most frequent comment I hear from our customers about our Hedgeapple Farm beef is; “This is what I remember beef used to taste like.” As I reflect upon this comment, I thought it might be profitable to spend a few minutes considering the role of “taste” or “flavor” in your steak-eating experience.

If you search the word “flavor” on the internet you will find some of the following definitions:

“The distinctive taste of a food or drink” or “The sensory impression of food or other substance, determined primarily by the chemical senses of taste and smell” or, my personal favorite, “An indication of the essential character of something.”

When it comes to a beef steak, there is something over 300 separate flavor compounds that work together and interact when a steak is cooked. And the method of cooking, especially the level of heat, will significantly impact the development and complexity of beef flavor as the amino acids, the sugars, the fats etc. in the steak all contribute to the development of unique flavor compounds.

In addition, the post-harvest handling process of the meat will also play a role in the final flavor (and tenderness) of your steak. For example, as a beef carcass, or primal cut is “aged”, allowed to rest from days to weeks at a controlled temperature and humidity level, before it is cut into steaks, the meat will experience a greater development of flavor and overall tenderness.

Unfortunately, because of storage space needs, production schedules, and cost, very little U.S. beef is aged, at least dry-aged, as a matter of general production and processing anymore. Most higher-end restaurants, like the better steakhouses, have their own in-house aging process that can provide prolonged dry-aging time on the primal cuts of beef they offer to their customers. This process helps insure a 5-star eating experience but also comes with a cost which is always passed on to the customer. You know what I am talking about right?

Now, I suspect that most folks who bite into a well-prepared steak can get a reasonable impression of the flavor of that steak within the first few bites. But sometimes the flavor characteristics of the meat can become masked as the meal continues and the tongue gets coated with the fat present in the meat. This can be especially pronounced when eating the fattier cuts of meat.

Ever wonder why a good glass of red wine, sipped throughout a meal can enhance the flavor of your meal? It is because the acidic nature of most wines will dissolve away the thin layer of fat that coats your tongue as you proceed with your meal. That’s just chemistry!

But, let’s chew a little deeper on all of this. The fat in your meat does play a role in “mouth feel” and even the perceived juiciness (sometimes referred to as “richness”) of each bite. It may also improve perceived tenderness. But, fat does not carry much flavor. The true “beefy flavor” that so many of our customers comment on is found in the muscle tissue (the protein tissue).

In the general U.S. beef trade where beef is priced largely based on the USDA Quality Grade, which is largely driven by the degree of fatness (primarily marbling) in the meat, it is almost always in the farmers best interest to achieve (or at least shoot for) the USDA Quality Grade of “USDA Choice”. To do this, a farmer needs, in general, to visibly fatten cattle so that there will be a transfer of fat into the muscle of the animal creating a degree of marbling (the small white flecks of fat found distributed throughout the steak) sufficient to achieve USDA Choice. In most cases, this “fattening” of the cattle will require a relatively high level of daily calories (just like you and me) and for the majority of cattle feeders, this means a high level of starch in the diet. That starch generally comes from grains such as corn or wheat or barley or even some grain byproducts. That is just how the biological system of cattle works in terms of body growth and fattening. I offer this brief explanation because as you can imagine, the way a steak ends up tasting, the “flavor” you perceive, also has much to do with what the beef animal eats.

This is about as simply as I can explain the cattle feeding and carcass grading process but I should also mention that there are other significant factors at play such as breed, genetic selection and the age of an animal at harvest.

So, now let me focus in on Hedgeapple Farm where we raise our cattle on a 100% forage diet (grass, alfalfa and clover) all of the time. The cattle that are harvested and sold in our on-farm market are grown and finished without the use of grains or grain byproducts, growth-promoting hormones, or antibiotics. They are grass-fed and grass-finished and they are harvested at an average age of 20-22 months which is significantly greater than the industry average of cattle coming out of feedlots in the U.S.(14-16 months of age).

Overall, our forage-based feeding program and grazing management plan, along with our genetic selection and cattle breeding program is designed to allow our Black Angus cattle to grow and gain sufficient, but not excessive fatness, to achieve a USDA quality grade of between Select Plus and Choice Minus. We have found that this quality grade target, along with the older age-at-harvest, will result in the right mix of fat and protein in the finished animal to reap both the benefits of the fat as I described earlier and the robust beefy flavor in the muscle tissue. And, post-harvest, the carcasses are allowed to dry-age for 12-14 days before the whole carcass is turned into retail cuts which are then quickly vacuum-packed and flash frozen to seal in the freshness, nutrition and flavor.

So in closing, how would I describe the “essential character” of Hedgeapple Farm beef? How about all-natural, adequately tender and juicy, grass-fed and finished Angus beef that excels in rich beef flavor and is packed with protein, iron, zinc, and other nutrients essential to a healthy human diet.

Now it’s your turn. How would you describe the “essential character” of Hedgeapple Beef? Let me know please! You can post your thoughts to our Facebook page or to Google or Localharvest.com. We will value and appreciate your feedback!

I frequently get comments and questions from our customers that go something like this; “I wish I could find your meat on the menu of some of our local restaurants” or “I wish I knew more about where the meat comes from when I eat out. Do you sell to any local restaurants?” or “Why don’t you sell to the local “farm to fork” restaurants?” and so on.

Like so many simple questions, the answer is not quite as simple as one might think. After all, there has been a major, and probably well-intentioned, promotional push by local economic development agencies and other advocacy groups to try and link-up local farmers and growers with local restaurants under the banner of “Farm to Fork” or the larger “Eat Local” and “Locovore”movement.

There are many and varied motivations for this effort like reducing the “transportation (carbon) footprint” related to food procurement, improving consumer “health”, enhancing the viability of local farms, moving toward “sustainability” in the food system (insert your definition of that here), improving food quality and food safety, eating “fresh”, enhancing consumer perception of farmers, “saving” the Chesapeake Bay, preventing global warming, saving Polar Bears; OK, I’m getting carried away.

My point is that sound-bites sound nice but are often not supported in fact or in reality. Let me give you an example. Some time ago we had a visit to our farm by a young lady who was hired (on a contract basis) to energize the “farm to fork efforts” in Frederick County. She was being paid to convince farmers that it was somehow in their best interest to sell their home-grown farm products to local-area restaurants (especially during restaurant week) so as to enhance their farms’ exposure to consumers and hence their profitability and sustainability. At least that’s how she explained it to little old me. Lots of glitz and glamor you know to see your farm name on such and so restaurant with their 5-star chef. “That will certainly drive customers to your farm market.” Maybe yes; maybe no. Seems hard to tell and even harder to measure. But, results don’t really matter when your contract salary is fixed and does not depend in any way, shape, or form on the actual results of the program you are selling. Just dazzle the farmer with, well you know, the stuff our bulls produce and get them to agree to sell their products to the local chefs.

Now before I hear cries of outrage, please understand that I love and respect chefs and the very hard work they do, in a very competitive environment, to provide exceptional dining opportunities to their patrons. There is no question in my mind that if you give a 5-star chef a 5-star product (like Hedgeapple Beef) to work with, the result will be a 10-star dining experience. I also know that just about every chef and restaurant owner is faced with very difficult financial and economic decisions every day as they plan their menu offerings.

I have often heard that chefs and restaurant owners use something called “The 30% Rule” as they look at their purchasing options and menu decisions. That rule goes something like this (more or less); a chef works hard to pay no more that 30% of the advertised menu price for the center-of-the-plate protein on the front-end purchase of that protein. Remember that they still have to add at least a starch to the plate and have server costs, overhead, and other expenses to cover through their menu prices. Here is an example; Let’s say restaurant X offers a 16 ounce New York Strip Steak as a menu option at $25.00. Applying the 30% guideline, that chef would seek to purchase that strip steak for no more than $7.50 regardless of the source (local farmer, provisioning company, Sam’s Club, Costco etc.).

Now knowing this, I am reasonably obligated to decide if I can profitably offer our NY Strip Steaks, which normally sell for between $15.95 to $19.95/lb. to our local customers, to a restaurant for half that price at wholesale. And, even further (now venturing into some knowledge that is often lacking with many small, local, part-time farmers) what is my cost of production on that NY Strip steak? Does $7.50 even represent any profit for us? If not, does the “glitz and glamour” balance off the loss? Am I investing in some sort of advertising that will pay dividends later in the form of more customers coming to the farm and paying the regular price? Maybe and maybe not. Hard to measure for sure.

In addition, most chefs are demanding and may not order on a consistent or predictable basis. And, working with local restaurants requires a willingness to provide an adequate volume of specific specialty cuts, generally the higher-end cuts, which are easily sold in other ways at greater profit. So, if I sell my “premium cuts” (like the middle meat steaks and specialty cuts, not ground beef) at wholesale, what does that do to my inventory of product left at the farm? Is this scheme ever economically sustainable for the farmer?

In addition, you will be hard-pressed to find any restaurants/chefs willing to accept only a seasonal supply of your products, especially the menu mainstays like steaks. Couple this with the fact that the true costs for producing “off-season” grass-fed and finished beef are extremely high and generally unprofitable for producers unless adequate high-quality, stored forage can be produced on-farm in a cost-effective manner. Most small to mid-sized farms are incapable of this if the true cost is understood and accounted for.

Listen, there is no way a local, small-scale farm, like ours and many others, can compete with the Midwest feedlots and larger cattle operations on price and we should not have to. In most cases we produce value-added specialty products that come with a higher cost of production, lower volume and limited (or even seasonal) availability. There is just no way we can or should try to compete with the “commodity giants” that deliver their wholesale products to restaurants on semi-trucks every single day. That is not our niche and no glitz and glamor can change that fact.

Remember the person who visited the farm with her smoke and mirror pitch? I asked her if she had considered asking the restaurant folks if they would be willing to raise their menu prices for the local items to be able to pay a fairer price to the farmers. I figured this would also provide a good indicator of the patrons commitment to “put their money where their mouth is”, so to say. The question insulted her!

So I have to ask; why is it always the hayseed farmer who is supposed to concede? Maybe she touched a nerve and I am overstating this but I know first-hand, with precision, what it costs us to put a pound of beef in our meat case at Hedgeapple Farm. That knowledge drives almost all of our business-related decisions as it should if we endeavor to achieve economic and environmental sustainability. That is just the cold, hard reality of the business of, well, everything that is business! How’s that for a simple answer? Happy local eating!

In a world saturated by sound bites and marketing spin it is only reasonable to expect that our food choice conscience would be pricked while standing in the grocery store or searching the online food marketplace. Terms like natural, sustainable, eco-friendly, green, humane, local, cage-free, free-range, free-farmed, grass-fed, grass-finished, biodynamic, antibiotic-free, hormone-free, organic, etc. etc. come at you with abandon. Is it any wonder that consumers are confused?

Did you know that it has been estimated that there are 455 eco-labels across 25 industry categories, from energy and clothing to food and household cleaners. It is basically the “wild west” out there in “label land”. And, the bulk of these “eco-friendly” labels are not regulated or based on truly verifiable standards.

From the standpoint of meat, and specifically beef, the best way to know where your beef comes from is to purchase directly from a local farmer who you can visit and get to know, see the animals, and talk about husbandry practices. And, I don’t mean at the farmers market necessarily although that might be where the initial contact is made and where the conversation starts. But, at that venue, the $1000 question must be; “Can I visit your farm and see the animals?” If the answer is no, I think we might have a problem with transparency and I would run away quickly!

I also commonly get questions about “online” meat sales (both one-time sales as well as some of the meat subscription/delivery services) and the integrity of that food marketing system relative to their marketing claims and labels. Something like, “Can we trust the meat available online?” The short answer is “maybe”. The longer answer involves a deeper look at the issue of verifiable transparency in both sourcing and label claims. It also involves precise definitions of terms such as “local” or “sustainable” or “natural”. And this is where the water gets very muddy.

Hard Questions May Bring Clarity

What can we really expect in terms of transparency in the new digital food economy? What should we expect in terms of honestly-defined sourcing? What does “from various farms in the Midwest” really mean? Does imported meat fit your definition of sustainable or local and is it actually source-verified? Not to mention additional questions about animal welfare, food safety, or even reliable meat quality. Oh, and God help us, the illusive carbon footprint question!

The Grass-Fed Dilemma

Here is a perfect example of what I am describing. One of the fastest growing beef categories is “grass-fed”, whatever that means. You see, back to the wild west, just about every cow on the planet has eaten “grass” (pasture, hay etc.) at some stage of its lifecycle so might qualify for a “grass-fed” label. So, the question to ask is what is it you are really after as a consumer? Is it grass-fed, grass-finished, no grain ever? What about “grain on grass” or “all roughage” or “all vegetarian diet” (like a cow might be eating a steak) claims? Does that mean “grass fed”? I know your head is spinning!

The bottom line is that as demand for a specific product grows and outstrips the reasonable local or domestic supply, the potential for deceptive marketing claims and fast-talking “spin” abounds. How do you guarantee that as a consumer you are getting what you think you are getting?

My advice to our customers who feel “greenwashed” is very simple. Educate yourselves, examine label claims, ask hard questions, demand transparency and truth, and ultimately, put your money where your trust resides.

At Hedgeapple Farm you can expect source-verified (conception to consumption), grass-fed and grass-finished (no grain ever) Angus beef raised humanely without hormone implants or antibiotics, sold by the cut, by the pound, with exceptional customer service and a 100% satisfaction guarantee. And that’s no marketing spin!

Hedgeapple Farm Beef Qualifies

for American Humane Association

Free Farmed Label

The American Humane Association (AHA) and Farm Animal Services (FAS) today announced that Hedgeapple Farm of Buckeystown, Maryland, is the second producer raising cattle for beef to qualify for the Free Farmed label.

The label, unveiled this past fall, is the first-ever program to certify that farm animals are raised in a humane manner. A Free Farmed label will assure consumers that the beef products they purchase from Hedgeapple Farm come from animals that were treated according to animal welfare standards developed by AHA.