blackfoot-valley

Angus Beef are willing to pay us a premium for the things we don’t do with the cattle.” In 1998, MNA processing operations started with 15 head per week; this increased to 300 head by the year 2000, which is roughly 15,000 per year. Fifteen percent of this number consisted of cattle raised on the Ranch itself. The rest are purchased from independent ranchers whose ani- mals are all at least 50 percent Angus (Red or Black), and most importantly, whose cattle raising methods meet the Meyer guidelines for natural beef. What is “natural beef?” Meyer Company policy in producing and mar- keting its distinctive product - Meyer Natural Angus - has been summarized by the management: When people first hear of a product called “natural beef” and see a point-by-point explanation such as the above, many quite reasonably wonder: “This sounds great, but what does it mean to me that an animal raised for Under the USDA’s guidelines, meat companies may la- bel their products “natural as long as the meat has been only minimally processed.” The Meyer program sets a new industry standard for natural . * Animal byproducts are prohibited in Meyer Natural Angus feed. Meyer cattle are strict vegetarians, with a diet consisting of pure grains and good forage along with fresh water. * Meyer cattle are never fed antibiotics. * If antibiotics must be used to treat an animal for an illness, it is sepa- rated from the herd, removed from the Meyer Natural Angus program, and sold as a conventional product. (Any animals thus treated are given a green ear button for positive identification for life.) * No growth-stimulating hormones are ever administered to a Meyer Natu- ral Angus animal. * In response to consumer-food safety concerns about e.coli contamina- tion of hamburger, Meyer tests all raw beef for e.coli 0517:H7 before it is ground. * All Meyer Natural Angus cattle are born and raised in the United States by certified ranchers who strictly adhere to Meyer’s raising practices. 174