Why Purchase Beef from Royal Family Farming?

If you imagine a ranch, your mind might conjure up a typically scenic white fence and red barn. Cowboys with their horses out front and innumerous cattle speckling the green pasture in the background.

This is not our ranch.

Royal Family Farming is a large-scale regenerative farming business. We are responsible for the growth and processing of potatoes, apples, cherries, cover crops, milk, worm castings, and beef. It’s important that you know that, because what we are doing with these crops and animals, has never been done before.

All the care and attention to detail that a picturesque small-town family farm can contribute to the world, is accessible to large farming operations. We have found a way to utilize our God-given natural systems to create sustainable production of beef and other goods to feed the world in a more holistic and transparent way.

Yes, we are small town people. Yes, we are a multigenerational family farm. Yes, we care about our animals and the planet. These are our inspiration; we provide for the world with a heavy emphasis on stewardship and the responsibility we feel towards the community of people who trust us. We are leading a revolution in modern agriculture by educating people, so they know cows have never been the problem. In fact, on our farm, they are the solution.

My dad farmed potatoes and apples, so that’s where it started for me. Days of my youth spent laboring, nurturing, learning, making mistakes, learning some more. All my experience on our family farm created the path I walk now. In 2016 we acquired what is now Royal Dairy, and running it was new territory for me. Farming is not one size fits all, I walked into my role fresh out of college already battling and fighting for the survival of the dairy. The frustrations surrounding the industry and its reputation that villainized cows for the destruction of our climate weighed heavy on my mind. I had the option to buckle-up and follow the lead of many others before me who were honest to goodness doing their best to provide, or I could roll the dice to find solutions and do my best at educating others along the way. I chose the latter, and it required a lot of sweat, frustration and sacrifice but I can tell you now that we are here, it’s not something I will ever regret.

Our regenerative work began when we integrated the BIDA filtration system in order to utilize our water more efficiently. From there, it only made since to keep pushing our conventional modern farm towards something greater. You may be wondering, why am I talking to you about the worm farm? Isn’t this meant to educate me about the ranch? I cannot emphasize one without the other, and hopefully by the time you’ve finished reading this you will see the beauty in that relationship.

Our farm has evolved into an interdependent network, and I feel pride knowing that our cows are not just born to be a product, they are purposeful and essential to sustain our carbon neutrality. They are valuable pieces of a much larger regenerative ecosystem.

If applied properly, cows are remarkable up-cyclers. When grazing and socially roaming the fields of our cover crops, ruminants naturally enhance the soil with their manure and by aerating the soil beneath their hooves, they add nutrients and literally create the groundwork for the next crop. Along with grazing, our cattle consume other byproducts from our farm that would have otherwise gone to waste. Corn, potatoes, apples, hay, any vegetation deemed unworthy by our standards for human consumption won’t go to waste because of these amazing animals. That means that our beef cattle are born and raised local to the farm and fed NO unnecessary antibiotics or synthetic fertilizers.

We have found that a diet combination of grass, grains and vegetation helps to produce the perfect ratio of flavor and quality. The marbling in our beef creates a beautiful render and we are confidant you will taste the superiority we have fostered all without compromising the integrity of the nutrition because your cut is full of protein, iron and other essential vitamins.

Physiologically speaking, cows that have felt extreme stress in their lifetime experience a depletion of the glycogen. This would be evident in the meat because higher pH levels result in tougher, dryer texture of the final product. You can feel confident in the care that goes into our farm, because the overall comfort of our cattle is mutually beneficial, and the quality of the meat speaks for itself.

If you have learned anything from this, I hope it’s that we do honestly care, from leaf to beef. I am not just a farmer, I am morally obligated to be a responsible steward of all that I have been blessed with. From the beginning, it has always led back to my family. Someday, my children will be grown and carve out their own paths; I want them to know without hesitation that I did what was within my control to make this world better for them. We are dreaming big on the farm and making big moves towards transparency because in the end, our progress will be measured by you, our supporters.

Royal Family Farming started with my grandpa, I can imagine him overlooking his small green pasture and dreaming about making the world better for his posterity. I am doing all I can to honor that authenticity and devotion for my family, my community, our animals, and the world.

I am grateful to people like you for supporting our dreams--happy grilling!

-Austin Allred, Owner of Royal Family Farms