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Farm Investment - If you are not improving then you are ape to fail.
Each year we pick a project to invest in to improve our products, service, land, etc. And, not all projects are physical - some involve educational opportunities.
Past physical projects include, but are not limited to starting our website & delivery model in 2016, purchasing 52 acres that sit in the middle of our farm, installing miles of water lines and property line fence, purchasing the 160 acres that joined our farm to the east - then clearing, mulching, digging water well, installing perimeter fence, and lately planting about 1750 trees on this parcel.
Other physical projects were adding the first on-farm USDA poultry slaughter plant in Mississippi. Soon followed by our walk in freezer, red meat fabrication room, and carcass cooler. Lastly, we added an on-farm USDA red meat slaughter facility to compliment our fabrication.
Recently, we invested to improve the quality of our ground meat products by adding a Reiser Lucky Linker stuffer and Tipper Tie clipper.
The stuffer's job is to portion the desired amount (weight) of product into packaging whether it be a bag, chub, or sausage link. The clipper is used to add a clip to seal each end of the chub and then cut chubs apart.
We have been working on this for about 6 weeks with some success. Last month we portioned ground beef into bags then vacuum sealed them and then applied the label. We also made our link sausage where each link was portioned and twisted by the stuffer vs. manually. A really big help.
Chub packaging comes in many different options, prices points, and minimum order quantities (MOQ). Based on the MOQ, we will only be able to buy printed chub packaging for ground beef because the volume for other ground meat does not justify the cost and risk of obsolence. For these items like Organ Burger, Ground Pork, Turkey, etc. we will use clear unprinted chub packaging and print labels to apply as we do now for bags.
Thursday, May 21st was our day for packaging ground beef. Unfortunately, the printed chubs did not arrive in time for us to use them (arrived the next day). So we simply used the clear chub packaging and applied our label.
In this picture, Cameron is refilling the stuffer with ground beef. The clipper is attached to the stuffer by the fill tube and a cable that communicates back to the stuffer when to send the next portion through the fill tube. The tube is inside the packaging. When the clipper lever is pushed down the jaws gather the packaging and separates the meat away. Once the lever is fully depressed two clips are added. One for the end of the filled chub and one for the beginning of the next chub.
The clipper worked great EXCEPT the valve that tells the knife to make the cut was not working. So, we simply did that part by hand on our fabrication table. Still was a big win.
Here you can see chubs ready to be manually cut apart before Beth prints and adds the label.
Parts to fix the clipper knife arrived about noon Thursday. But, since we only had about two hours left till finished we decided to continue and fix the knife valve after this job was completed.
Because we now use the stuffer to portion meat into the packaging we can update our grinding process without "overworking" the meat. What that means is our first grind we use the plate that separates bone, grissle, etc. out of the trim. Then, our second grind is with a smaller 1/8 inch plate. This will be with ground beef with pack date of May 21, 2026. We would be grateful to hear your feedback.
Half-Beef Custom Processed Orders - JUNE harvest order window is open. Last order date is May 26th. Harvest will be June 2nd. Availability will be about June 22nd. Thanks 😉
Follow this link to check out our Custom Processing Ordering Tips, to place an order, and complete your individualized cut sheet. Please reply to this email with any questions.
And, when you buy a half or whole beef receive a Jarrard Meat Maximizer tenderizer at no extra charge. Jarrard is the choice of professional chefs and cooking enthusiasts for more than 40 years! The Meat Maximizer improves meat tenderness and texture, reduces marinating & cooking time, and is easy to clean and maintain.
Jana recently left us this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Google Review "We’re on our fourth order of half beef. The quality and customer service is UNMATCHED. This is meat you can feel confident in knowing where it comes from and what it contains. We are so happy to know exactly what we’re feeding our family. We also love the eggs, sausage, and chicken!!! We’re so thankful for this farm and so thankful we get to enjoy gourmet food like this everyday."
Nature's Gourmet Farm product value proposition is to create a community that evolves around one of the most intrinsically important and critical needs of the ages, and that’s the provision of sustenance. That's our passion - to raise healthy animals to provide nutrient dense protein and saturated fat that nourish families and strengthens immune systems.
Our Beef is always grass finished with NO grains. Additionally, our animals are free of mRNA, GMO's (chemicals), Antibiotics, and Hormones. We ethically raise them on diverse forage pastures that regenerates our soils and protects our ecosystem.
Let me encourage you to "Be The Change" our food system needs by "Voting With Your Fork" at every meal.
** Product Availability Update **
NOTE: Restocks are made about 6 PM on the dates indicated below!
Chicken - Next restock is May 27th
Turkey - Restocked April 22nd
Eggs - Restock each Tuesday prior to your delivery date.
Beef - Next restock will be May 24th.
Pork – Restocked Wednesday, May 13th for FRESH items. Smoked Bacon restocks May 24th
Lamb - Restocked September 29, 2025
Custom Half or Whole Beef- Next Order Window for custom half & whole beef is May 9th-26th. Harvest will be June 2nd with availability June 22nd . Yes, I want to Order Custom Beef & Pork
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