Sunday, February 15, 2009

Meat Marketing


The John Ford Ranch is right here in Little Lake Valley, and makes the beef they raise available locally, with their name right on it (the package on the right). Willits is a good place to be if you value knowing exactly where your food is coming from. The cattle take a detour to Eureka up in Humboldt county, where the nearest licensed slaughterhouse is located. But the food comes back here, and I am reassured that I can talk to the Fords, see the cattle in the pastures, and trust the environment they have been in.

We can also get American Bison meat, raised near the Ukiah Valley just 25 miles south of us, from the J Bar S Ranch (the packages on the left). Nearly driven to extinction in the 19th century, they've made a comeback as a marketable food source. I've never tried the meat, but it is said to be low in fat, so appeals to calorie-conscious diners.

7 comments:

Pat said...

I don't eat much red meat, but have tried buffalo, and it is good. Also tried buffalo jerky!

Anonymous said...

I actually like buffalo meat a lot more than beef. Have for years.

Virginia said...

But the question remains.....what about YAK?
V

Kris McCracken said...

I've had buffalo from up in the Northern Territory, and it is pretty tasty. It's different to Bison though, I'd guess.

Ezra ate kangaroo for the first time last week and loved it. I can give or take it,, to be honest. The whole "lacking in fat" means that it is also somewhat "lacking in taste".

USelaine said...

Bibi - One of these days, I'll give it a go.

Eric - That's encouraging. I hear they are easier to keep fed for the ranchers as well, but are less docile than domestic cattle.

V - But we're yakking right now!

Kris - There's a diner down in Hopland, further south than Ukiah, where they have all sorts of exotic meats available for burgers. Ostrich and kangaroo seem to have been among the choices, but I haven't been there in years so can't clearly remember. I was never so bold. If I could be convinced they were environmentally preferable, I might be more eager.

Thanks all!

Kris McCracken said...

There is no doubt that roo is enviromentally preferable to hoofed grazing animals here in Australia, who contribute to erosion, methane etc.

That sad, cows are just downright tastier.

Crocodile is nice though. Wallaby, emu and possum are okay, but a bit gamey for me.

You can't even eat wombats or koalas, koalas are poisonous and wombats just too tough.

Susie of Arabia said...

I'm not that adventurous when i t comes to meat. This definitely looks more appetizing than the whole lambs and camels hanging on hooks here!