Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Powell, Wyoming
For Rod Morrison, raising grass-fed organic beef is not just a business; it is a crusade. Mor-
rison always has believed in farming the old-fashioned way, as organically as possible. He is
part of a farmer-owned meat company that raises cattle without hormones, antibiotics, or
synthetic fertilizers. The land ranched for the company includes 600,000 acres of the
Arapaho reservation near Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Morrison is a follower of
Wendell Berry, the writer who champions sustainable agriculture, stewardship of the land,
and the value of rural communities.
Morrison hopes that more producers and customers realize the benefits of organically raised
grass-fed cattle. He argues that conventional agriculture uses energy at an unsustainable
rate. Morrison's goal is to use no more energy each day on his farm than what reaches the
Earth as sunlight.
“Honestly, it is the only way we are going to be able to sustain ourselves in the long run,”
Morrison said. “You cannot go halfway. That is like being half married. If you are half mar-
ried, then good luck.”
He is the president and chief operating officer of Rocky Mountain Organic Meats, a
producer-owned company of between ten and 15 farmers that raise grass-fed organic beef
and lamb near the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming. All the producers are certified organic ac-
cording to National Organic Program standards. This certification is important to the com-
pany's producers because they want their customers to be confident of what they are buying
and of where it came from.
He ships boxes of meat to customers all over the country. But he does not just take orders;
he wants to communicate with his customers and ensure they understand why he raises his
beef organically and why it is important that they choose such food. Most of his boxes go out
weighing 20 to 30 pounds, but he also offers a package that equals a side of beef — roughly
175 pounds of steaks, roasts, burger, and specialty slices — for $1,400. He charges about
$7 a pound, a price that most customers will not pay, but which is worth it to customers who
understand the benefits of raising cattle organically on pasture.
“A few are [discovering the benefits] every day,” Morrison said. “And as they figure it out,
they are understanding now they have a relationship with someone who produces food, and
they are very happy about that.”
Morrison's farm is nestled in the Big Horn Basin at the base of Heart Mountain. His fields
used to be raised for sugar beets and malt barley. He planted everything with a mixture of al-
falfa and cold- and warm-season grass seeds. He let these plants establish themselves for a
