Interest in grass-fed beef on the rise

Cattle graze on Wallowa County prairie grass. According to the OSU Extension Office, there are 24,000 resident cows in Wallowa County - Photo courtesy Sara Miller

As Wallowa County agricultural products gain in brand recognition, the demand continues to grow.  Keeping up with that demand is creating new ways to think about the raising, production and storage of beef.

The North East Oregon Economic Development District has completed a study on Wallowa County grass-fed beef funded by the USDA’s Rural Development branch. The district conducted the study to assess the long-term outcome of raising grass-fed beef in support of new ranchers entering the market and existing ranchers who are considering raising their beef differently.

The study included meeting with producers and discerning what products the public desires, outreach to potential buyers, working with marketing consultants, policy makers and funders.

“The situation with agriculture is that it is difficult to get into the business,” Sara Miller of NEOEDD said.

Equipment, purchased land and leased land are all huge expenses coupled with the fact that raising grass-fed beef is costlier than traditionally raised beef. 

Most cattle are sold as weaned calves and sent to feedlots to fatten on grain before slaughter.  One main expense of raising grass-fed beef is the two years it takes for a steer to be finished and ready for sale.

A lot of freezer space is necessary to store grass beef after it is processed. This can create a storage problem with some retailers and restaurants.

Another concern is that the market price of beef often does not represent the cost of production, Miller said.

“Beef is a commodity market that fluctuates. Processing creates the biggest bottleneck,” Miller said.

The number of tools for producers, choosing between a mobile or a fixed slaughter facility, local, high quality dry aging storage and hand cutting availability are included in that list.

The USDA meat certification is a “one size fits all,” Miller said, and much of the beef directly sold to consumers is not USDA certified. To fill this gap there are two state-sanctioned producers in the county, Valley Meats in Wallowa and Mt. Joseph Family Foods in Joseph. 

Food co-ops, restaurants, retail stores and caterers are finding a healthy market, but the production side has a long way to go to catch up.

Grass-fed beef can only be produced roughly five months a year in Wallowa County.

In a study of 112 volunteers conducted by the Food Innovation Center, 51 percent switched to natural, organic beef.  In a related survey, 72 percent were willing to buy frozen beef, and 81 percent would consider purchasing beef directly from the producer.

The “foody” set in urban areas have caught on to a trend that rural Oregonians call their “way of life” — eating home-grown vegetables and either home-raised stock or stock purchased from a neighbor or from the county fair.

Driving the increase in local food interest begins with taste, but reduced fuel needed for transportation and food safety are also influencing the local food movement. Some consumers add that they believe grass-fed beef is healthier due to its lack of added hormones and antibiotics, more humane because the cattle are not in stock pens at a feedlot, and that it is better for the environment, Miller said.

Raising cattle has been a tradition in Wallowa County since pioneer settlement. According to the OSU Extension Office, there are 24,000 resident cows in the county and 8,000 that are brought to graze seasonally.  Despite the time and expense, interest in raising grass-fed beef is on the rise.

Though Miller says no one locally is taking a leadership role to create a co-op, many producers are getting the word out about their product by meeting face-to-face with restaurants, caterers, selling their product at farmers markets and advertising online.