Meet the Herd
At Ararat Farm we raise intensively managed, mob grazed beef. This means
that they are moved onto fresh pasture at least daily (we try for
multiple moves a day through the summer). This keeps them away from
their manure and parasites and gives the grass adequate rest for
regrowth.
Mob grazing stimulates the microbes in the soil into overdrive, pulling minerals and nutrients to the grasses and increasing leaf growth. This results in a rich, lush variety salad bar that the cattle graze on. Even in the winter, we are able to graze most of the way through with just a little grass hay supplement. The cattle are grass-finished, which means that they are grassed completely to slaughter weight on pasture with no added feeds.
We have switched to using South Poll cattle. This breed is a hardy, southern grass cow that gives us a step ahead in selecting quality genetics. We rely on good genetics and management to ensure our herd performs well without inputs, such as vaccines, grain feed, or hormones.
Grass cattle are breeds of cattle that perform well on pasture as they were created to do; as opposed to grain cattle breeds which are suited for the manure lagoon feed lots that most beef is fattened in. South Poll cattle are low maintenance, low input cows that raise fat calves on our grass pastures.
Their gentle temperaments allow them to gain weight quickly providing you with a flavorful and juicy meat. Our herd has not grown big enough to fill our customer demand so we also have to purchase stocker calves that we raise for slaughter. We strive to only purchase these from farmers who have not given them any grain, hormones, or vaccines. You can learn more about our beef over on our products page. Our beef products are available for purchase in our online store.
Meet the Pigs
We manage the pigs differently than the cows when it comes to the ground
they are on. We leave the pigs on the ground longer than the cows in
order to provide proper stimulation to promote plant root structure and
soil microbes from the pigs’ tillage. Pigs need to be managed so that
they provide proper stimulation and do not cause erosion or
deforestation for the flora and fauna.
We purchase weaned piglets from local producers who raise a variety of
heritage pigs. These are older breeds that perform well with foraging
instead of a grain-only diet. Breeds such as Berkshire, Hampshire, Large
Black, and Red Waddle just to name a few, are what we have used with
delicious success. The unique design of pork fat allows it to absorb
flavor from its food within a month of changing its diet. This gives us
the ability to bring you a seasonally flavored pork, with lush greens in
the summer and rich acorns in the fall (for your food gourmands,
acorn-fattened pork is a high-dollar delicacy in Spain).
We do use some supplemental grain feed (which is okay because pigs are
omnivores). We purchase this from a local mill and the grain they carry
comes from a neighboring farm. Our pigs are not given any hormones or
antibiotics because we use Diatomaceous Earth and apple cider to cleanse
them of parasites. You can learn more about our pork over on our products page. Our pork products are also available for purchase in our online store.
Meet the Chickens
What is the difference between Organic, pasture-raised, or “free-range”
chicken at the grocery store and Ararat Farm’s Pasture-Raised Chicken?
To begin, when you go to the grocery store and see a sale on organic or
free-range chicken and cook it up, it may be the best chicken you can
find in a grocery store. The hard reality of that chicken is that it was
not necessarily raised on pasture or free range. Most times a “free
range” bird is not in a small space sitting getting fat, but, they are
still in a warehouse cramped up together on the same ground their entire
life.
Ararat Farm’s pasture-raised chickens are pasture-raised more than
free-range. We have them in coops for safety and security but they get
moved every day. This provides them with fresh ground and foraging (like
we do with the cattle). It also moves them from the nasty space they
were in the day before, protecting them from parasites and providing
them with better health.
We also use an electrolyte and probiotic supplement in the first few
weeks of the chickens’ lives which has made them stronger and healthier
during their growth. In 2020 we wanted to experiment with pasture-raised
chicken to see how they would do in one of our fields, how profitable
they would be, and how our customers would like them. Even more than
being profitable, the pasture-raised chickens grew out so well and the
end result of the meat itself was so delicious. With such a successful
product the first time, we decided to do at least 1 batch a year since.
You can learn more about our chicken over on our products page. Our chicken products are available for purchase in our online store.
Meet the Bison
At Ararat Farm we grass finished 4 bison as an experiment in 2020. We
were able to acquire 4 animals for very inexpensively so we gave it a
try. With very little information available on bison except you need
several foot high fences we knew this was going to be very out of the
box thinking.
The animals we got the first time were not managed well and came with a heavy parasite load. They were skinny and smelled worse then a wet dog due to their health condition. Once they were trained to daily rotation on polywire and integrated into the South Poll herd their health improved in a matter of weeks! The bison work and graze like the cattle so they grazed very well till we took them for their one bad day. They, along with the cattle were provided kelp and minerals for nutrition and help with fly load.
Fast forward to now. We currently have 3 two year old bison we are grazing through the summer for grassfed/finished bison to provide in the fall. These animals (along with 12 one year old bison that are being used at a local rodeo) all were purchased out of Nevada. We struggled with finding bison for the last several years locally and had to search out west. These animal came on the farm much healthier then the last ones and a lot faster. It has taken a lot more to train them to polywire and required us to far more on top of how we are fencing and keeping fences hot.
In the end, our first experience went pretty smoothly and we enjoyed providing this meat to our customers!
Every new animal (cow, bison or otherwise) provides new learning experience and humbling respect for who God designed and animal. Bison work like cattle and graze like cattle but they learn and test more like pigs. When the move fast they move more like a goat and can climb steep areas like a goat. We have learned that fences have to stay VERY HOT like with our pigs.
We are very excited to have bison available your our customers again and by next year are planning to be offer bulk bison along with our grassfed/finished beef.
