Comparing the Structure, Size, and Performance of Local and Mainstream Food Supply Chains
USDA: Economic Research Report Number 99, June 2010

Do you know where your meat is from? Is local always better? Not necessarily in terms of transportation fuel. Thousand Hills Cattle Co., a regional purveyor that sells to retailers, restaurants and natural food co-ops provided the lowest ratio of gallons per pounds of meat.

View the entire report.

Thousand Hills Cattle Co. Provides Realistic Tour of Livestock Farming. Angelique Chao, Minneapolis

Opportunities to escape the concrete jungle and get a taste of small-farm life abound in the Minnesota summertime. Whether you?d like to do a basic farm tour, enjoy dinner served up right on the pastures where the food was raised, or even help out with farm chores for a day as part of a "crop mob," you can find an option that gets your city-slicker self out in the fields for at least a few hours.

One fine Friday a couple of weeks ago, about 40 of us curious folk took advantage of one such opportunity to join a monthly tour run by Thousand Hills Cattle Company, a beef producer based in Cannon Falls specializing in 100 percent grass-fed, primarily local, meat. And we got more than a stroll through the pastures, which is what makes this tour stand out among others that I've taken. In addition to guiding us through his ranch, Todd Churchill, the founder of Thousand Hills, gave mini-lessons in nutrition (human and cattle) and land management to explain the purported health and sustainability benefits of pasture-based farming. Plus, we ate a delicious free lunch featuring Thousand Hills burgers and beef franks. Finally, we went where his cattle go after a lifetime of grazing has come to a conclusion -- Lorentz Meats, the slaughter and processing plant that Thousand Hills uses.

Usually farm tours stick to the fun and photogenic parts of farming: the rolling hills, the pumpkin patch, maybe even the baby-animal barn, if you're lucky. This tour refused to allow you to ignore the grimmer side of raising livestock for food, and there's a lot to be said for that. As we all piled into the Lorentz Meats lunchroom, which ironically houses the viewing deck that overlooks the slaughterhouse's kill floor, people immediately gravitated to the window to see the action. A couple of parents brought their young children along, clearly intending for them to learn the whole story of where their food comes from. The mood was sober and respectful, but stopped short of being either sad or sentimental. In fact, most of the tour-goers were impressed with Lorentz's dedication to both humane animal treatment and clean, safe food, and told our tour leader so as they left the room.

That's not to say that no one was shaken at the sight of cows being led systematically to their deaths. One sometime-vegetarian I met was visibly disturbed, but said she felt better after seeing the cow herd at Churchill's ranch (which we visited after Lorentz Meats). The cows milling in the shade of huge old trees looked, she said, like they had a good life. Another visitor concurred, saying "They seem like happy cows to me!" And indeed, they were calm and collected as could be, even with a crowd of people gaping at them. The lush grass clearly trumped our presence as an object of interest.

If you are interested in exploring the lives of grass-fed cattle from beginning to end, Thousand Hills Cattle is offering two more tours this summer, on August 9 and September 10. Visit its open house page for details.

Angelique Chao is a freelance writer in Minneapolis who spends her time noodling about the ethical implications of what we choose to eat. She's a frequent contributor to Simple, Good and Tasty and is author of a post that continues to attracts comments from meat-eaters and vegetarians alike.

Good food? It's academic.
Sarah Moran, StarTribune

At St. Olaf and Carleton colleges, in Northfield, MN, learning about the benefits of local, sustainably raised food comes from students growing and eating it as much as does from their academic studies. At these and other Minnesota colleges, students' interest in where their food comes from – and the health benefits of sustainable farming practices – is increasingly causing school menus to change while it's providing a real-world connection with how food choices are related to economics, sustainability and health.

And, the inclusion of generally more expensive organic and pasture-raised foods is being proven cost-effective. By making the most of what's available locally, they are reducing the miles food travels. And, by bringing ingenuity to their portioning and menu planning, the schools are offering the highest quality nutrition and flavor available at roughly standard cost. Nearby Thousand Hills Cattle Company in Cannon Falls, MN, provides 100% grass-fed beef to both schools, as well as St. Paul's Macalester College.

Grass Roots
by Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl, Minnesota Monthly

A thorough, pleasurable and sometimes passionate appreciation of grass-fed beef – especially when it is lovingly and artfully prepared by St. Paul's Strip Club founder and chef J.D. Fratzke. Under his watchful and inventive eye – described here in mouthwatering detail and a with wine-lover's vocabulary – a grass-fed ball-tip steak is bound to be as tender, delectable and flavorfully nuanced as any top dollar grain-finished steak, anywhere.

The article describes with cinematic sweep, historical color and loving detail—from pasture to plate—what makes Thousand Hills' and other grass-fed beef what it is. According to the author, it's beef the way it's supposed to be raised, honoring the animals and the land; the way it's supposed to be fresh food provided by people we know close-by; the way it's supposed to enhance our well-being; the way it's supposed to be cooked to evoke flavors we'll long savor. The article concludes with Fratzke's basic secrets of preparing grass-fed beef, and intimate memories of experiences that shaped Fratzke's local, sustainable ethic.

Grass-Fed Cows A New, Healthy Food Trend (WCCO-TV)
Read the transcript or watch the video of WCCO TV's June 23rd Special Report about the increasing awareness and sales of grass fed beef in the Twin Cities area. Including brief interviews with farmer Dan Coughlin, Thousand Hills CEO Todd Churchill and the Strip Club's chef JD Fratzke, it's a quick but well-rounded introduction to why the grass fed approach is preferred by the cattle, the people who buy grass fed beef and the stores and restaurants that sell it.

Read the transcript or view the article with video of the report.

Hear it here! WCCO's Don Shelby and Chicago TV journalist Bill Curtis discuss the joys of grass fed beef.
(.mp3, 6.9Mb, click to listen, right click and "Save As" to download)
From health factors to marbling to flavor to preparation to where to find it — they touch on it all in the first 7:20 minutes of this warm-hearted interview between two long-time journalist friends. Curtis, a nationally-known former Chicago TV anchor, A&E producer, rancher and conservationist has now donned the hat of a committed grass fed beef producer (and eloquent advocate) with his Tall Grass Beef operation, which supplies selected outlets in the Chicago market. He includes gracious praise for Thousand Hills Cattle Company's beef, though mentions only that our beef can be found in numerous Twin Cities restaurants. It can also be found in Twin Cities Food Co-ops, Kowalski's Supermarkets and Fresh & Natural Stores. And, you can order it direct from us or through SimonDelivers.com. We think highly of Bill and Tall Grass. They're doing a great job helping build a healthy food system for us all. And we thank him for his kind words. (The remainder of their 15 minute interview is made up mostly of reflections on their careers in tv and radio journalism.)

Read the article that inspired the creation of Thousand Hills Cattle Company

Have you herd? A recent StarTribune "taste" section feature article telling the Thousand Hills story as well as it's been told. Page 1 (PDF), Page 2 (PDF) (Star Tribune, March 15, 2006)

Fresh & Natural local interview with Todd Churchill Shoreview early adopter health food store Fresh & Natural asks the questions their customers want answered about grass fed beef, and Todd replies.

Cardiovascular Disease Resulting From Our Diet and Lifestyle At Odds With Our Paleolithic Genome A fascinating and in-depth comparison of the diet human beings are designed to eat vs. what we eat today. Contrary to prevalent beliefs, in our hunter-gatherer ancestors a diet of lean meats, nuts, fruits and vegetables afforded them many health advantages that have diminished where cereal and grain-rich diets have become predominant. Hunter-gatherers enjoyed greater adult height, lower infant mortality, longer lifespan and a lower incidence of chronic diseases such as osteoporosis, rickets, obesity, type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis. The article includes notes about an ideal human diet. Written by James H. O'Keefe, MD, and Loren Cordain, PhD, published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a peer-reviewed medical journal sponsored by Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.

A Fresh Start. A guide to shopping organic, fresh and local -- primarily in the Twin Cities, with mentions of Rochester and Stillwater. See the brief highlight of Thousand Hills on page 2 in the "Shopping cart" section about Minnesota grown foods. Page 1 (PDF), Page 2 (PDF) (Star Tribune, August 11, 2005)

Trend Report 2006 - Ingredients, Food & Wine, January 2006