A bit of history.
“For five generations, cattle have been raised the old-fashioned way on The Louden Ranch, with patience, attention, and generations of know-how. The Ranch boasts wide-open spaces, plenty of fresh air and grass that the early cattle barons drove cattle hundreds of miles for - the Short Grass Prairie. ”
The shortgrass prairie: Anderson pasture.
“Established in 1911, the ranch has been family owned for over a hundred years. Cattle are raised the old-fashioned way on the Louden ranch. There are no industrial feedlots here; just wide-open spaces, lots of natural grass, and plenty of fresh air. Historically, this beef was only available to local families, who were living and ranching the land. Finished on grain for delicious flavour and marbling, each animal is processed and finished individually, ensuring quality and transparency of source.
Pasture raised at a minimum of 40-acres per cow, our beef knows space and freedom, and that comes through in the flavour. For five generations, cattle have been raised the old-fashioned way on The Louden Ranch, with patience, attention, and generations of know-how. The Ranch boasts wide-open spaces, plenty of fresh air and grass that the early cattle barons drove cattle hundreds of miles for - the Short Grass Prairie.
Shortgrass Prairie Beef is how beef was meant to be: natural, artisanal, delicious, raised the old-fashioned way.
”
Richard Louden circa 1940
Granddaddy Roy “Dick” Louden at Headquarters
Natural Beef - Our promise and commitment.
What is “natural beef”? Natural beef is derived from animals that have been raised free of hormones, and antibiotics.
Most meat (not just beef) available in a supermarket is raised with hormones to shorten the natural growth cycle leading to quicker maturity, less days spent on feed and thus lower costs to the producer, increasing productivity and profits. Bottom line? …. with hormones a producer can raise more animals in a shorter period of time and less days on feed. When many animals are kept together in a feedlot or an intensive farming situation, keeping “social distancing” and keeping illness from spreading is difficult. In order not to have large amounts of the population fall ill and stop eating (growing and gaining weight) or perish, anti-biotics are given widely as a preventive measure.
We at Shortgrass Prairie believe there is a better way and choose to raise our beef differently - the old fashioned way!
We do not administer growth hormones at any stage of production.
We do not administer anti-biotics as a matter of practice. We do administer them when an animal is sick. If and when that happens, that animal is marked and not considered acceptable for our consumer beef program.
We do practice stewardship. We care for our cattle and the land. The land is the most important resource any of us have. Taking care of it, making sure the grasses are healthy, the weeds are reduced, the erosion controlled, and there is enough water to support the livestock on it is of primary concern. For any of us to be healthy, we need to have quality land, good water and healthy animals. Stewardship from previous generations is what got us here today and stewardship from this and future generations is what is going to get us to tomorrow!
To see our full guidelines and detailed practices, click here.
A little bit about me.
I’ve taken the long way home…. After growing up here in the little town of Branson, I literally travelled the world for 30 years, (visited over 30 countries and lived on 3 continents) my husband and I returned to Branson, Colorado, a few years ago to finish raising our two children. Having grown up close to the land, the thought of working with people and products that come from the land was never far away. I would visit and support any farmers market remotely close to us, and searched out the best and freshest products we could get access to, and afford. It was always a dream in the back of my head to promote our beef and our region - having seen examples of this in France and Italy and to some degree in Great Britain and Australia, I knew there was much more that could be done in the U.S. This is the goal. To bring the dedication and passion for what my family does, direct to you! There is a difference in quality and taste, and there is a difference in knowing where your food comes from and your individual consumer choices make a difference when supporting the small industry around you - where ever you are. Thank you for choosing Shortgrass Prairie and your support of American agriculture!
