The Beef
100% grass-fed.
100% grass-finished.
No exceptions.
Most beef labeled grass-fed in this country is grain-finished. There is a finishing period, typically the last 90 to 120 days before processing, when the cattle go into a feedlot and are fed grain to accelerate marbling and bring the animal to market faster. It's standard practice, and it's legal to call that beef grass-fed. Eric's cattle never see a feedlot, and they never eat grain. They eat grass from the day they are born to the day they are processed.
Doing this with Wagyu genetics is genuinely uncommon. Wagyu is almost universally grain-finished because grain drives up marbling quickly and shortens the time to market. Raising Wagyu on grass only, and finishing on grass, requires patience and a willingness to let the animal develop on its own timeline. For Eric, that timeline is about three years, and he won't cut it short.
The result is beef that is deeply marbled and rich, with a clean finish that grain-fed beef simply doesn't have. The fat composition is different in a way you can taste. It's what grass-fed beef is supposed to be, but rarely is.
North Idaho Wagyu
The herd at Mission Ranch is North Idaho Wagyu, currently a mix of Wagyu genetics and Angus cross, with the operation working toward a full Wagyu herd over time. Wagyu is a Japanese cattle breed selected over generations for exceptional marbling and a distinct, rich flavor profile. It produces beef with a higher ratio of unsaturated fat than most conventional breeds, which is part of what makes the flavor so different from what most people are used to.
Eric chose this breed because he wanted to raise the best beef he could and then eat it himself. The Wagyu genetics, combined with three years on open Idaho pasture, produce marbling that most people associate only with grain-finished beef. Getting there on grass alone takes longer and costs more. That's the point. He's not trying to find a shortcut to a premium product. He's raising the real thing.
Every decision
reflects what's in the beef.
The Land
The cattle are outside year-round on 300 acres of open pasture in North Idaho. Clean water from the Coeur d'Alene River watershed, clean mountain air, and room to move and graze the way cattle are built to. No feedlots, no confinement, no seasons spent indoors.
The Science
Eric tests the soil, the grass, and the beef on a regular basis. He reads the research on pasture management, cattle nutrition, and grass-fed beef quality, and then goes outside and looks at his herd and makes his own call. The testing keeps him honest with himself and with his customers.
No Shortcuts
No antibiotics, no growth hormones, no grain, no feedlot time. If Eric wouldn't eat it, he doesn't feed it to them. These aren't marketing talking points. They're decisions he makes every day because the alternative produces beef he wouldn't be proud of.
The proof is in the eating.
"This is the best beef I've ever had. I don't know how else to say it. We bought a half share and it was gone faster than I expected."
"You can taste the difference from the first bite. It's richer and cleaner, and it doesn't sit heavy the way feedlot beef does. Once you've had it, grocery store beef just doesn't compare."
"We've been getting a share every year and we won't go back. Our kids ask for it by name, which tells you everything."
Mission Ranch beef. Raised right.