Why is local, sustainable, grass-fed beef sometimes more expensive than grocery store beef?

Local, grass-fed beef supporters are in many ways food rebels. We want local, ethically produced food. We want to know what is in our food, and where it is grown. We want animals treated humanely and want to see our local food supply chains restored to a sustainable food supply that will be there when the "just in time food delivery system" run by the corporate, industrial food supply fails again, as it did during the pandemic. Grass-fed farmers are also food rebels. They intentionally leave the normal food supply system behind and attempt to create a new one, sometimes from scratch, that will be less efficient, but much more resilient than only one huge, corporate supply chain. The trade-off is farmers in this self-built local food supply chain must charge more than Walmart, or the big box grocery stores to make a profit and thrive.  But considering our health, animal welfare, the environment, and the local community, people who are food rebels, think it is worth it.

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  • No Antibiotics Ever!

  • No Genetical Alter Feed!

  • Better for you, the animals, the planet, the local community, and the local Farmer!
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Naturally Raised Beefipedia

The health benefits of all natural, ethically raised beef.

Did you know that the way animals are raised can affect the nutritional content of their meat? Studies have shown that meat from animals raised on a natural diet and in humane conditions can be higher in nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA).Here are a few more nutrients present in locally raised, farm-to-table meats…

  • Protein: Protein is essential for building and repairing tissues in the body and is necessary for the growth and development of muscles, bones, and other tissues. Consuming sufficient amounts of protein can help support healthy weight management, muscle growth, and overall health and well-being.
  • Iron: Iron is necessary for the production of red blood cells and the transport of oxygen throughout the body. Consuming sufficient amounts of iron can help support healthy energy levels, cognitive function, and immune system function.
  • Zinc: Zinc is essential for immune system function and wound healing and is necessary for the proper functioning of enzymes in the body. Consuming sufficient amounts of zinc can help support healthy immune system function, skin health, and cognitive function.
  • B vitamins: B vitamins are necessary for a variety of functions in the body, including energy metabolism, nerve function, and red blood cell production. Consuming sufficient amounts of B vitamins can help support healthy energy levels, cognitive function, and nerve health.
  • Recent Research at the University of Chicago Biological Sciences division found trans-vaccenic acid(TVA) - a long-chain fatty acid in red meat and dairy products from grazing animals like cows and sheep improves the ability of CD8+T cells in the immune system to infiltrate tumors and kill cancer cells (Nov27, 2023)

Rabun Ranch Beef is antibiotic, hormone, and GMO use free.

We are always antibiotics, hormones, and GMO free! These commonly used additives found in the meats of industrial/corporate food producers will never enter your food supplied at Rabun Ranch Beef!

Rabun Ranch is better for the animials.

Rabun ranch beef's cattle are on pasture for life. We graze our cattle like their ancestors grazed, on grass for life. We utilize rotational grazing to move the cattle to clean paddocks with fresh, nutritious grass every day or two. Rotational grazing is also great for our soils, grass, and sequestering carbon.

Rabun Ranch Beef is better for the local community and local food supply.

Rural America has suffered a debilitating decline due to policy decisions made in Washington. The once busy towns and communities along our rural highways are a shell of what they were just 50 years ago. Why? Good intentions gone bad, I think. The globalist policies set in Washington sent most factory and manufacturing jobs overseas.

The next generation rural kids grew up with no local jobs choices. Therefore, they were forced to move to larger cities to find work.

Corporate Agriculture followed this trend by making our food supply chains more efficient. They did this by moving most of the feedlots near the corn belt. Our cattle began to be shipped out West to finish their lives in confined and crowded feedlots. Due to the concentration of thousands of cattle in small spaces, the use of antibiotics to keep the animals from getting sick became common practice. Hormones and GMO grain where also added to grow out the cattle faster and thereby increase profit margins. This made our food supply chain more efficient, but also much less resilient. So, what happened where the unintended, but inevitable consequences: The factories left, the kids left, the cows left, and the meat packers left.

The result has been small rural America struggling to survive.

Rabun Ranch Beef wants to be part of the local food movement to rebuild our local food supply, provide jobs for the local community, and inspire young people everywhere to return to rural communities to raise their families and reinvigorate local rural economies.

Please join us in this movement by supporting your local farmers!

Rabun Ranch Beef is better for the environment.

Rabun Ranch uses holistic, rotational grazing on poly-cultured pastures to sequester more carbon. This method also positively affects the water, nitrogen and many other cycles healthy meadowlands possess.

We also fence out streams and ponds from our herds to keep our treasured waterways free of manure and runoff.

We do not use herbicides.

Because of these methods we have positively affected growth in the insect populations. Our dung beetle population has developed wonderfully on the ranch. By burying dung they sequester carbon. Also, by burying the fly larvae in the dung, they are a natural mode of fly control for our cattle

Along with the dung beetles, Rabun Ranch has seen a growth in many other insect species. The birds followed. Swallows, Spit Tailed Kites, Missouri Kites, Cow Birds, Dove, Quail, and may other species. With the healthy grassland, rabbit and mice populations increased. This brought in a large number of hawks and an occasional bald eagle.

We are overjoyed with the explosion of wildlife here on the ranch. It is a wonder and a blessing to see!

Rabun Ranch Is better for the farmer.

We all want local, ethically produced food. We all want to know what is in our food, and where it is produced. We all want animals treated humanely. We all want to see our local food supply chains restored to a sustainable food supply that will be there when the "just in time food delivery system" run by the corporate, industrial food supply falls again, as it did during the pandemic.

Because of this, we all have to agree the local farmer has to make a profit.

Farmers are the indispensable part of the healthy food system we all want. To make this system work, local farmers will not be using the corporate/industrial supply chains to get their products to market. Instead, they will be building, sometime from scratch, local supply chains that will be less efficient, but much more resilient than only one huge, corporate supply chain.

The trade-off for this will be farmers in this local food supply chain will have to charge more than Walmart, or the big box grocery store to make a profit and thrive.

Please join us in this revolution. Yes, it will cost us a little more than food at a big box store, but for our health, the animals health, the environment, the health of rural communities and their economies, and the farmers, is worth it.

Founder's Story

Dr. Henry E. Rabun Jr., DMD, founder of Rabun Ranch Beef, is a food rebel who aims to redefine our relationship with food. Passionate about the benefits of grass-fed beef, Dr. Rabun believes that it is healthy for our bodies and nourishes our souls. He would like to see a world where families and friends gather around the grill instead of being glued to their devices, reconnecting over delicious meals that spark joy and foster community is. By raising cattle in a sustainable, humane environment, Dr. Rabun is committed to providing high-quality beef that brings people together around the fire, encouraging laughter, storytelling, and the cherished bonds of sharing food. Through Rabun Ranch Beef, he invites everyone to step outside, savor the rich flavors of nature, and experience the transformative power of communal dining.

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