About Us
My Brother’s Beef is a family-owned ranch located in southwestern Missouri. This area has been our family’s home since the early 1800’s and our family has been breeding, raising, and developing cattle in the United States since the mid 1600’s. Our love of cattle and country is in our blood. We know, love, and understand this land and environment and are thus best suited to work with, instead of fighting against, Mother Nature. It is these deeply-connected roots that have created our patient and understanding approach to caring for our beautiful herd and the land they graze. Our cattle have always been and will always be part of our family.
To be specific, My Brother Richard, personally tends to the cattle each and every day.....just as our family has done for generations. There is no “hired help” and there is no outsourcing of cattle or finished beef for sale by My Brother’s Beef.....EVER! We will only harvest and sell beef that was bred, born and raised right here on our farm. This consistency of care and daily observation enables Richard to become familiar with all aspects of each animal and their environment, which ultimately leads to the absolute finest beef for your dining pleasure.
This attention to the herd’s welfare and their resulting affection of their caretaker is more than evident when watching Richard interact with them. It is a treat and sight to behold! While most ranchers utilize motor vehicles or riders on horseback to “drive” cattle when the need arises for movement, My Brother's herd is so gentle and acclimated to him and the ranch that all it takes is a shout of, “come on girls” for the cattle to move and actually follow him to their new grazing area. No stressful cattle drives here. It is a very calm, nurturing, and enchanting experience.
THE RANCH:
Located on the rolling plains of the Missouri Ozarks, where numbers of animals far surpass the human population, our ranch is a cow’s paradise. It has been designed solely for the comfort, protection, health and sustainably natural pasturing of beef cattle. Along with the natural forbs, each individual grazing lot has also been seeded with a variety of native grasses that thrive amongst ample mature trees that provide shade and protection from our sometimes swiftly changing weather. Large and deep ponds were built for the cattle to take an occasional cooling swim during our warm summers and plentiful, automatic waterers installed so the cattle always have access to fresh, cold, deep, spring-supplied drinking water.
It is a well-established fact that any stress placed on an animal has a permanent and negative impact on the quality of beef ultimately harvested. It is for that very reason that My Brother’s Beef goes above and beyond normal practices to provide a stress-free life for our cattle. On average, a minimum of 3 acres of land is allotted for each animal on this ranch. This allows more than enough space for the cattle to move about and graze the lush, green grasses making their daily life as far from a feedlot approach as can be attained. It also allows us the opportunity to rotate grazing in such a way that the cattle always have plenty of fresh grass for consumption while also stockpiling deep pastures of nutrient and protein-rich grasses for winter grazing. While most ranchers are increasing their carbon footprint by cutting, baling, and hauling hay out of their fields in the summer and then hauling it back for consumption for up to 6 months in the winter, My Brother’s Beef cattle are typically able to graze on lush native grasses for at least 10 months of the year with self-grown and harvested hay used only for the remaining two winter months. This natural, stress-free, and environmentally-conscious approach to raising cattle is not the norm. Unlike feedlot-type operations, we are intent on placing the cattle’s daily lifestyle and care, and the nurture and sustainability of the land for long-term health and usage, above any perceived short-term financial profits.
Because My Brother’s Beef believes in and incorporates these practices, we are always open for a ranch tour for those interested in the purchase of breeding stock or beef for consumption. We invite you to see our ranch and our cattle. Please feel free to contact us!
ALL CATTLE ARE NOT CREATED EQUALLY
In addition to our always-calm and nourishing environment, My Brother’s Beef believes the biggest difference in our beef vs. the competition’s beef is the carefully, thoughtfully, and meticulously developed genetics of the herd. Only the finest grassfed-adapted Angus and Hereford bloodlines have been used for many generations and then only those cow families that thrive, not just survive, on a strict forage diet are retained. We will not keep any animal that exhibits even a minor physical or behavioral displeasure with a 100% grass-fed diet. This matters! It makes a huge difference in the ultimate quality of our beef. Happy, healthy, and contented cattle develop into consistent, tender, and tasty beef. Our diligence will be quite noticeable with your first bite. BETTER CATTLE do make BETTER BEEF! You can truly taste the difference!
Because My Brother’s Beef has placed such a significant focus on the quality of animals raised on the ranch, the cattle are constantly sought by other breeders. The superb genetics of the herd make the cattle clear stand-outs, and because they perform so well for other breeders, most of the sales of breeding stock are to return customers with an always-full waiting list.
An interesting side note is how my brother Richard chose this path with his cattle. Like most cattlemen, Richard grain-fed his cattle for a few years when he first started raising his own beef. That grain-fed and overly fatty meat wasn’t pleasing to his or his family’s palate. He quickly decided that he wanted leaner and healthier beef with a more natural taste and knew the only way to produce it was to allow his cattle to eat as nature intended. Their four stomachs were not designed to digest grain, but instead are perfectly created to turn grass into protein. Thus, he began the transition to grass-fed, grass-finished beef long before anyone realized that it had so many nutritional benefits over grain-fed beef, and he has never looked back. In addition to the cleaner and healthier meat, Richard has also noticed a change in the herd’s behavior. The cattle are much calmer, healthier, and perfectly content. Following our Creator’s design has resulted in a win-win situation for our cattle and for those of us that consume My Brother’s Beef.
HOW WAS MY BROTHER'S BEEF BORN?
After three decades of living away from my family, I returned home to southwestern Missouri and took up residence on my brother’s ranch. Surrounded by the exceptional beauty of the ranch and the herd of cattle, it didn’t take long for me to realize my brother had something special happening here. Never before had I seen such relaxed beef cattle living such a pampered existence .....and I’ve worked with and/or been around cattle my entire life. Once I started eating the beef raised by my brother, Richard, I knew for sure that he was on to something truly unique.
Like most people, I grew up believing that grain-fed beef was the gold standard and the only way to produce quality meat. Because I love a great steak, I've eaten in some of the finest steakhouses in the United States and I enjoyed every bite! With those beliefs and experiences, I had always thought “grass-fed" meant “no taste” (this belief was also a result of occasionally eating some grass-fed beef that had less flavor than, and a texture that was similar to, the sole of my shoes). I truly had no idea that grass-fed, grass-finished beef could be not only as tasty, but actually better than the finest grain-fed beef. All of those out-dated and close-minded beliefs were shattered when I ate my first piece of My Brother’s Beef.
But, even after eating My Brother’s Beef for a few months, I had my doubts as to whether this great beef was the norm. Maybe I had just happened on to one exceptional animal from the herd. It was difficult for me to believe that this fabulous beef could be replicated. So, I was patient and spent the next few years having a taste from every animal that was harvested from the ranch. To my surprise and ultimate pleasure, I found there was a consistency that I’d never before seen from any herd of cattle. I believe that this uniformity in taste and texture is completely attributable to the carefully-chosen genetics, consistent diet, and serene and healthy lifestyle of the cattle.
Once I was completely convinced, I began sharing our beef with friends and they quickly wanted more. They were also blown away by the tender and flavorful meat that is My Brother’s Beef. Our customers are happy and we intend to keep it that way!
So, here we are. A family-owned and operated ranch and now a retail business selling a product that we know is exceptional and a much healthier option than traditional, grain-fed beef. We care about what we do and the products we sell and we care about providing a healthy product to our family and yours. We hope you’ll try My Brother’s Beef. You won’t be disappointed!
-Judy Warren Rainey (Richard’s little sister)