6 Environmental Benefits of Grass-Finished Beef

Food production should be good for the land, not bad for it.

When you choose grass-finished beef from a regenerative minded farm like ours, you’re not only helping yourself and your family live the life you want. You’re also helping to promote environmental stewardship.

Areas of land that are used for food production are often looked at as “sacrifice areas”. The assumption is that food production is going to have a negative impact on the ecosystem. We assume we need to kill everything else to grow food.

We shrug off the negative impacts, because… after all… we need to eat.

As a consequence, land used for growing food typically doesn’t support a diversity of life or have a positive impact on the environment.

It is also accepted that we have to set aside areas or take areas out of food production to provide conservation benefits. “Farm the best, conserve the rest”, is a phrase you may have heard before.

While that statement is well intentioned, it falls short. In our area nearly all the land might be considered “the best”. South central MN has some of the most productive land in the world. Many counties are 80 to 90 percent cropland. That doesn’t leave much room to provide ecosystem benefits.

The truth is that we should be practicing good conservation on all of the land and especially land that is used for food production.

The land where our food grows should be healthy and full of life if we expect it to produce food that will allow us to be healthy and full of life.

Good farming is good for the land.  

At our farm, we have been converting annual cropland for corn and soybean production to pastureland with grasses and forbs for finishing beef. Here is a list of some big environmental benefits that come with this change in management.

6 Environmental Benefits of Grass-finished Beef

1.       Reduced nitrates and phosphorus in our water

      Well managed pasture does not require inputs of synthetic fertilizer which tends to end up in our surface water and groundwater. In a diverse perennial pasture with good grazing management, nutrients are cycled and made available to plants throughout the growing season. Similar to a native ecosystem! Manure nutrients are applied to the land slowly by the animals rather than being concentrated and applied in large quantities that the land cannot handle. Continuous living cover also prevents nutrients from being lost to our water.

2.   Reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

       When we convert cropland back into perennial grassland, carbon is sequestered from the atmosphere. Most cropland in our area is tilled multiple times per year. This stimulates a release of carbon into the atmosphere. Annual crop production in this model also requires major inputs of energy in the form of fuel for farm equipment and synthetic fertilizer production. Perennial pasture stops the losses and starts putting carbon back into the soil.

3.       Improved water infiltration and reduced runoff.

       Well managed pasture is like a sponge! When a raindrop hits the ground, it is either going to either soak in or runoff. We want to soak in as much rainfall as possible, instead of letting it runoff. Keeping the ground covered with a diverse mix of living plants leads to excellent soil structure which is necessary for proper water cycling.  

    The picture below shows the results of a rainfall simulator demonstration. An inch of water was applied to the trays with an overhead sprinkler. Runoff is captured in the front jars and infiltration is captured in the back row of jars. Compare my pasture on the left to the standard cropland practice next to it. Nearly all of the water that fell on the pasture infiltrated, while nearly all of the water that fell on the conventional tillage cropland ran off.

4.       Provides critical habitat for wildlife

       Grassland bird populations have declined more than 40 percent since 1966. Mostly due to habitat loss from conversion of grasslands to cropland. As we have converted cropland back to grass for finishing beef, the birds have responded quickly. I’ve observed birds nesting on our farm that I never saw when I was growing up here. Including my favorite, the bobolink, which is on Audubon’s list of Grassland Priority birds. Pollinators also love the diverse mix of flowering plants in our pastures.    

5.       Virtually eliminates soil erosion

       Keeping the soil covered stops erosion from wind and rainfall. I think this is common sense, but we’ve failed to put this knowledge into practice. Most of the land in our area is left nearly bare in April, May, and early June when we receive most of our rainfall. This leaves the land prone to soil erosion at the most critical time. Well managed perennial pasture is covered with living plants year-round to absorb the impact of rainfall and hold soil in place.

6.       Improved human health.

       This may not occur to most as an environmental benefit, but I’ve written to you about this before. We as humans are not separate from the environment. We are members of a living ecosystem. What we do to the environment, we do to ourselves. When we produce food in an environment that mimics nature it has higher nutritional value and reduced levels of toxins which leads to better human health.   

Thank you for being here with me to help care for the resources we all depend on.  

Herman

What I love about being "tied down"

Do you ever feel like you and your family are so busy with summer events and vacations that you don’t even have time to just slow down and live in the present?

I know I do.

I have tied myself down for at least 8 weeks every summer for the past 10 years to raise a batch of meat chickens for my family (plus some to share with you!). I have always valued the end product, which is incredibly healthy and delicious chicken. I’ve also learned to love the space that it brings to my life.

Committing eight weeks of summer to raising and processing chickens seems like a big waste of time to some people. They’ll say things like “doesn’t that tie you down”, or “is that really worth it”.

The answer is yes, to both of those.

Yes, it ties me down.

For eight weeks, every day, I’m here at the farm to feed and water the chickens and move them to fresh pasture. This also means I’m at home, usually with my family. To me, it doesn’t feel like being tied down. It feels like a break from a busy summer schedule. A time to slow down and live in the present.

Yes, it’s worth it. Maybe I’m tying myself down, but there is absolutely no place I’d rather be.  Am I tying myself down, or am I prioritizing what’s important to me? I’m not thinking about what destination we’re heading to next, or what event we need to be at. I can just be close to home enjoying summer with my family.

Some of my favorite times during summer are the slow times. Playing ball in the yard with the kids, canoeing the local rivers, taking the kids swimming, having lemonade and snacks in the shade, watching a 9 o’clock sunset with our three-year old who should be in bed already …

You might not have commitments to a farm, but we all have commitments that “tie us down”.

Having a family, being active in your community, serving at a church, coaching a sports team, being part of a band. Lots of things can require our time and energy, and we do them because they bring meaning and purpose to our life.

Thankfully, some of them also give us a chance to slow down and live in the present, because those summer memories and connections that we seek to make with our families are not always far off on an elaborately planned vacation. Most of them are right in front of us if we’ll just take the time to be present and enjoy them.

Our Minnesota summer is flying by as usual, and I’m glad I’ve tied myself down enough to be able to enjoy it.

I hope you’re finding time to slow down and enjoy your summer too.

Herman

How to restore confidence and connection with your food

Accessing locally raised food will restore your confidence in the food you put on the table. At the end of this blog, I’ll share with you one simple practice to further build confidence and develop a connection with your food.

There are a lot of unknowns about some grocery store products. You don’t really know where the food came from or how it was produced. You don’t know if it contains toxins that you don’t want to be feeding your kids. You don’t ask, “How was it raised”, “who raised it”, “are they paid fairly”, “do the animals have a humane living environment, how about the workers”. You don’t ask because you know that the grocery store doesn’t have the answers, and it can be time consuming or impossible to find the answers yourself.

Just this week, I read an article that Consumer Reports found high levels of lead, cadmium, and other contaminants in Lunchables! Those little prepackaged snacks designed specifically for kids to build and eat! Yet another reminder to stick with whole, locally sourced foods as much as possible.   

Contrast the grocery store experience with the supreme confidence that comes from accessing local food. You know exactly where it was raised, and have the option to view the fields and talk to the farmers. You know what the land looks like, you can see what the living conditions are for the animals. You get to learn about agriculture in your community. You develop a perception and competence about food in your region, how it is produced and how it ends up on your plate. You can talk to the farmer and see that he or she is a person just like you.

Bringing home local food and putting it into your fridge or freezer can feel satisfying in itself, but for that deepest sense of gratitude take it one step further.

Next time you sit down for a meal with some locally sourced ingredients, after giving thanks and before you start eating, take a moment to appreciate the quality of the food, and how much you know about the food. Take a look at your plate and ask yourself: Where did this food come from? Who produced it? How did it get to your plate? Etc. I like to do this from time to time to remind myself how lucky I am to have access to local food, and also to think about how easy it is to end up with strange food on my plate. Strange in that I do not know where it came from.

On the best days, all of the main items on my plate come from my farm, another local farm, or they are items harvested from the local woods and waters. This doesn’t happen often, but when it does, it brings the most comforting inner satisfaction to a meal enjoyed with my family.

Try this practice of taking a minute to appreciate your food to develop that deep satisfaction and connection with your food. If, once in a while, you can answer those questions for all or at least some of the items on your plate, I promise it will give you the deepest gratification as you eat, and watch your kids eat. You’ll know exactly how you are connected with agriculture in your community, the health of the land, the health of the animals, and ultimately, the health of your own family.

Please share this with someone who would like a little more confidence in and connection with their food.

Happy eating,

Herman

6 Ways to Support Local Farms

I know you are passionate about supporting local farms for so many reasons. Having a local food system made up of successful farms gives you access to healthy, high-quality food that allows you to live the life you want.

Local farms provide clean food for you and your family and diversity on the landscape that is so important for environmental stewardship.

Here in South Central Minnesota, we have some of the most productive land in the world. You would think we could grow anything under the sun and meet all of our food needs locally. Ironically, just two crops, corn and soybeans, dominate the landscape due to high land costs driven by the American food system.  

The good news is that many farms in the area are finding ways to produce the food you use every day. Fruits, vegetables, meat, milk, eggs, herbs, mushrooms, maple syrup, honey…the list goes on! Your support is invaluable for building these types of farms in our area.

With that being said, read on to learn about 6 ways to support a local food economy right here in southern Minnesota.

6 Ways to Support Local Farms

1.       Shop at farmers markets – Farmer’s markets are a great way to access the freshest and best tasting produce you will ever eat. They’re not just for foodies either. Everybody eats, and this is a great way to eat while supporting local farms. The Mankato and North Mankato farmers markets are popular markets in the area, and there are numerous markets in surrounding communities as well.

2.       Use the Minnesota grown directory – The Minnesota grown directory will help you find local farms and farmers markets to connect with across the state. You can search by the type of product you’re looking for and also by location.

3.       Sign up for a CSA – A CSA or Community Supported Agriculture allows you to get a share of what is produced on a farm each week and could include vegetables, fruits or flowers.  Items included will depend on what’s in season at the farm so you know you’ll be getting the freshest food available.

4.       Buy meat in bulk – One huge advantage of buying meat in bulk directly from a local farm is knowing you always have meat on hand. Not to mention the confidence you’ll have from knowing who produced the meat and being able to see the land it was raised on. Buying meat directly from a farm not only supports the farmer, but also local butchers who process the meat.

5.       Visit u-pick farms – Strawberries, pumpkins, and sweet corn are some of our favorite u-pick items. U-pick farms are a great way to develop a connection with your food by visiting the farm and being able to walk in the fields. This can also be a great family experience. Last year, while picking strawberries with my family, a brief rainshower moved through and we all got poured on! We took shelter under some nearby trees for a minute, and then the kids ran out and just continued picking strawberries in the rain. We were soaking wet and laughing. The kids still talk about that day. 

6.       Spread the word – Here’s the final and, I think, most powerful way for you to support local farms. You’re already doing many of the things I listed above. When you have a great experience buying from a local farm, spread the word! Let your friends, family, and acquaintances know how valuable the local food experience can be. For those who aren’t already plugged in to accessing local food, it can seem cumbersome or feel like an added burden to work with local farms. Sharing your experiences can help them get over that hesitation to try something new and give them a place to start.

For the benefit of consumers, farmers, the community, and the environment, please help to support local food by sharing this post.

Mardy's Secret Family Pastie Recipe

Here’s a fun project for a winter day that will leave you with some quick and tasty meals for busy days ahead.

Pasties are a type of meat pie that were popular with mining communities of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Northeast Minnesota, as well as loggers in Wisconsin’s north woods.

Being from this area, my wife Meganne’s family has a long history with pasties.

After years of buying pasties from the local bakery in Mellen, WI, my mother in-law, Mardy, found a recipe and decided to try making them on her own.

So began a new family tradition of making these delicious pasties. Thank you Mardy!

We recently made a triple batch for ourselves, and I wanted to share the recipe with you, so here it is!

Try it out. You will not be disappointed!

Herman

Determined kids grow an awesome sweet corn garden!

I thought you’d like to hear that we’ve been feasting on sweet corn thanks to the determination of our two oldest boys Nolan (8) and Lincoln (6).

Last year they decided to grow some sweet corn in their little garden plot, and it was nearly a complete failure. We had a poor stand that had to be replanted, the plants and ears were small, and the raccoons got most of what little sweet corn was there. We ended up with two little ears to taste.

Rather than getting discouraged, Nolan and Lincoln immediately decided to double down. They wanted to expand their garden and plant the whole thing into sweet corn for this year!

Last fall, I helped them prepare and fertilize extra garden space. This spring the boys carefully planted and watered the sweet corn seeds. Nolan and I did most of the weeding as the plants started to grow while Lincoln assured us, he would help with harvest. We also watered the patch regularly throughout this dry summer, and put up an electric fence well before the raccoons became interested in the corn.

Finally, after months of anticipation, we are reaping the rewards of Nolan and Lincoln’s decision to try again, and all of our effort to make it work. We couldn’t be more thrilled with the results, and I couldn’t be prouder of Nolan and Lincoln for their determination.

Herman

Cook a no nonsense beef roast

If you’ve had bad luck cooking beef roast, you’re not alone. I often talk to customers who would prefer to just get some hamburger because they don’t want to deal with or aren’t sure how to handle certain cuts of beef, especially the roasts. I’m here to tell you the absolute easiest way to cook a roast and have it turn out tender and juicy.

If you look up beef roast recipes online, you’re likely to get a variety of complicated and time consuming instructions on what to do with the roast such as: let the roast sit out for 2 hours to bring it up to room temperature, sear the roast in a frying pan before cooking, roast in the oven at a high temperature for an hour and then turn the temp down for a couple hours to finish cooking, roast for 30 minutes per pound, sauté vegetables in a pan and set aside for later, cook the roast for 2 hours, 3 hours, 4 hours, etc.

Some of these recipes may be good, but they’re also going to require more dishes and more time in the kitchen. Plus, questionable results to go along with it.

We don’t use these recipes in our house and the reason why is simple. We just want to put a healthy, delicious meal on the table for our family. Complicated recipes are not required.

The one thing that is required for this method is a crock pot/slow cooker. We have a simple crock pot with a manual control knob and a low, high, and warm setting. We choose not to keep a multi-cooker/instapot, air fryer, toaster oven, or indoor grill, because the slow cooker is such a simple and versatile small appliance. Its inexpensive, reliable, and we use it every week. You can get one for $40.

Here’s a frozen arm roast that has just been put in the crock pot.

Simple steps for a delicious roast:

1. Take a roast directly from your freezer, remove that wrapping and place it in the slow cooker.

2. Add your favorite seasoning (we like beef bullion)

   • You can also add cubed vegetables for a full one pot meal (onion, potatoes, carrots…)

   • Adding just enough water to cover the bottom of the pot is a good idea if you won’t be around to check on it

3. Put the lid on the slow cooker and set it on low

4. Go to work

5. Come back 8-10 hours later to a hot and ready meal at home

9 hours later, it’s ready to be shredded

No nonsense shredded beef roast

That’s it! One of the best parts about this, is that it can be a last-minute decision before you go to work for the day. Not sure what you’re going to prepare for supper? Grab a roast from the freezer and throw it in the crock pot.

If you’re making roasts this way, and they’re not turning out fork tender, chances are that they need more cooking time. 8-10 hours is a good range. Again, this is for a frozen roast. If it’s already thawed, the time will be less. 

Because of the low and slow heat, and high moisture in the crock pot, this method is hard to screw up. The one time I thought I really messed it up, ended up being one of the best roasts I ever made.

I put a roast in a 6am, and I didn’t add any water. I left for work, and I got home around 5:30. When I looked in the crock pot, I thought I had made a big mistake. The bottom was dry, and the roast looked a little shriveled up with dark brown and black edges. Turns out, the dark brown was just an extra flavorful crust around the roast, and the inside was still tender with plenty of moisture. So even when I thought I screwed it up, this method proved to offer plenty of flexibility.

We also use this same method, for pork roasts, and whole chickens. Sometimes, whole chickens don’t fit because the legs stick up too high to put the lid on. In that case we just make a lid out of tinfoil and seal it around the edges of the crock pot.

If you want to practice your chef skills and use an in-depth roast recipe, go for it! If you’re just looking to put a week night home cooked meal on the table for your family, try this no nonsense method. I think you’ll like it!

Sincerely,

Herman

Our Farm Mission

We’re on a mission at Deep Roots Farm to build a healthy landscape and provide quality food using practices that are good for the land, animals, and people.

I believe we can create a diverse, productive and stable ecosystem that provides benefits for wildlife, and water quality while at the same time producing nutrient dense food. On our farm, we are striving toward this goal by using a grass-based system with grazing animals.

Our farm mimics the prairie ecosystem that existed here before European settlement by maintaining a diversity of perennial and annual grasses and forbs. Cattle are used to prune the vegetation (as bison and elk did), and the nutrients from their manure and urine are cycled back through the soil to the plants in a continuous loop. The cattle are moved frequently to allow plants to recover before being grazed again.

This style of grazing creates varying heights of vegetation that are favored by different grassland bird species. For example, kill deer prefer grass that is less than four inches tall. Meadowlarks and bobolinks prefer areas with four- to six-inch-tall grass. Dickcissels, red-winged black birds, and pheasants prefer grass that is greater than six inches tall.

Over the past six years, we have been converting cropland to grassland. In that time, we have observed numerous bird species, that were previously absent on the farm, using the grassland area. In addition to the birds, we’ve seen an increase in butterflies, spiders, and soil life. We interpret this as a sure sign that the ecosystem is responding positively to the changes we’ve made.

Another beautiful part about this grass-based farming is that while the cattle are filling an important role in the ecosystem, they are also producing nutrient dense food for us. Cattle harvest sunlight that is captured by the plants through photosynthesis and turn that energy into beef. When livestock are able to graze a diversity of plant species, their health improves, and the quality of their meat improves. The diverse plant diet imparts phytochemicals (plant nutrients) into the meat of the animal. Those phytochemicals benefit us who consume the meat by protecting against inflammation that is linked to heart disease and cancer.

In this way, by focusing on the health of the ecosystem, our own health is improved because we are all members of the biotic community. When it is healthy, we are healthy. When it suffers, we suffer.

Aldo Leopold wrote “When we see the land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect”  

We are expressing our love and respect by using the knowledge and tools that we have to mimic the prairie that developed here over thousands of years. We may not be able to bring back the prairie as it existed before European settlement, but we can certainly bring back some of the ecosystem services that it provided including health for the land, animals, and people.  

Thank you so much for being here to join us on this mission!

Herman

Sharing a piece of our past - Great Grandpa’s Farm

My family has developed a deep love and connection to the land we have lived on and cared for over many generations.

Now that the holidays are past and we’re settled into winter I want to take a little time to share some of the memories and stories of this farm from the early 1900s. I hope this will help you gain a sense of connection to our farm and the land, and remind you of your own family’s history.

My great great-grandfather, Gottlieb, immigrated to America from Germany and settled with his family in Rapidan Township in 1884. In 1910, my great-grandpa, Herman, purchased the land where we currently live. He and his wife, Anna, raised their family of six children here.

At that time, the drier parts of the land had already been converted from prairie to cropland. There were still sloughs and wet meadows. My grandpa (Melvin) remembers his mother telling him that there were a lot of “lakes” on this farm when they first moved here. (For drainage,) clay tile was installed to help make the land more suitable for farming. The tile was just one line that ran through the wettest part of the farm. The local tile contractor was a Russian immigrant, and he and his crew worked day after day digging by hand, in the sticky ground, to lay tile on farms around the area.

Like most farms back then, the farm was diverse with a few dairy cows, a flock of laying hens, and hogs, with oats, barley, and wheat in the fields. Some areas were kept in grass for pasture, and the wettest land was used for hay. The family also kept a team of work horses.

Cream was separated from the milk on the farm. Once a week, they would take the three-mile trip to the Rapidan Creamery where the cream was sold to be churned for butter. This once-a-week trip was also an opportunity to pick up any other supplies that were needed at home. The kids considered it a treat if they got to ride along to Rapidan.

As a child growing up here, my grandpa has many memories of life on the farm. He remembers riding on the bobsled down into the river bottom to harvest firewood in the winter time, sledding on the nearby hills, and watching meadowlarks in the fields.

Great grandpa Herman and his team of horses with a load of firewood on the bobsled.

One of the favorite stories of the farm is about the barn.

The barn was built in 1928, 18 years after great grandpa purchased the farm. In 1929, one year after it was built, a tornado came through the yard and knocked the barn off of its foundation! The barn was not torn apart completely, but it had to somehow be moved back onto the foundation. A neighbor from down the road was the local carpenter and he came to help rebuild the barn.  It has been standing ever since.

Tornado Damage 1929

The barn as it stands today (2023)

Out in the pasture, as an eight-year-old, Grandpa remembers trapping gophers nearly every day in the summer. He had to learn to set the traps without getting his fingers pinched. Gophers were abundant back then, and the township paid a bounty for each pair of pocket gopher feet that were presented to the town supervisor. Grandpa would save up the feet in a quart jar with a little sprinkle of salt to help preserve them.

One time he turned in a quart jar full of gopher feet that he had been saving for quite some time. The feet were beginning to rot, and the jar smelled to high heaven.

He handed the jar over and said “You can count them if you want”.

“I’ll take your word for it,” said the supervisor, as he turned up his nose.

Grandpa Melvin and Aunt Anita with a successful trap

On weekends, the kids would hike down to the Maple River. Grandpa remembers going with his older brother (Leonard) and cousin (Edwin), and stopping to fish as the older boys went farther on. One time the older boys came back with a great big watermelon. There were a lot of watermelons grown on the land in the river bottom, at that time, and the boys must have snuck up into a field and snatched a watermelon for a treat!

It's fun to think back and imagine what life was like on the farm back then. I’m lucky to have a Grandpa around who can share his firsthand experiences.

Even as I focus on where we are and where we’re going, it’s always good to look back and remember where we came from.

I hope this gives you just a little sense of my family’s history here, and inspires you to think about your own family’s history and connection to the land. Reach out to your elders and pry on their memory a little. You never know what stories they might have to share.

6 easy, healthy meals your kids will love

I know you put real food first, because you want to put a healthy meal on the table for your family. The trouble is, we all get busy, and coming up with supper every night can be challenging. It doesn’t have to be. 

At supper time one night I asked our young boys what their favorite beef meals are, and they quickly rattled off several meals. Most of them include ground beef, are easy to prepare, and can be dressed up to satisfy the taste buds of moms and dads. No big surprises here, but if you’ve got a quarter of beef in the freezer and want to make a healthy meal that your kids will eat, try taking Nolan and Lincoln’s advice. Here are their top six beef meals.

1. Spaghetti - Ground beef, spaghetti sauce and noodles. This is a great one for sneaking vegetables onto the plate. Whether you're making your own sauce, or starting with a store bought sauce, dice up some fresh vegetables, no big chunks, and saute them with the sauce until they’re soft. 

2. Taco Cups - Ground beef with taco seasoning on top of a scoop style taco chip with shredded cheese melted on top. If you’re used to using a store bought taco seasoning, try making your own with cumin, chili powder, garlic, salt, and pepper. Guacamole goes great with any Mexican meal. Taco salads for mom and dad?!

3. Burritos - Ground beef mixed with re-fried beans or mashed up pinto or black beans, rolled up with cheese in a tortilla. Heat your tortillas on a griddle instead of the microwave, and be sure to make extras. These make great leftovers, and you can grab one for a quick bite on the go.   

4. Grilled Steak - Nail this one and it will be the first thing to disappear from their plate. Here are some tips for an amazing grass-fed steak. 

5. Beef and Rice - Ground beef mixed with rice. Be sure to season the rice. We like to add chicken broth seasoning to the rice water as it cooks, and you can also try sneaking in some diced up veggies of your choice. 

6. Hot Dogs - Dick’s Locker makes an awesome all beef hot dog with our grass fed beef! Of course these are best enjoyed outside after roasting over a campfire, and they’re great to have on hand when you’re in a meal-time pinch. 

There you have it, Nolan and Lincon’s top 6 beef meals. No stress or recipes required.

Herman