Welcome to Leafy Creek Farm!

INFLATION WARNING! We regret to announce that we have had to raise our prices after we next process at the end of September 2024. This was forced by an increase since 2021 of more than 35% in our processing costs and in market prices for cattle. (We harvest only cattle we raise, but we could sell them instead of harvesting them and we have to consider that opportunity cost when setting prices for our meat.) We did not raise prices that much, but we did have to do something. We appreciate your understanding of the current economic situation. For those who are interested, we identified four local producers of beef that is similar to ours, and set our prices to be slightly less than they were charging. We hope you will agree that that is a fair way to set prices. (September 19, 2024)

We are a small family-owned and operated farm in Central Texas that raises certified organic, certified grassfed, grass finished beef cattle for direct sale to consumers as well as certified organic hay for those who need it.
We have been Certified Organic by Natures International (our certificate) for crops since 2015 and for livestock born after mid-March 2018. This means that we do not use growth or other hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, GMO plants, and a wide range of other practices that are thought to diminish the wholesomeness of food. We were certified by the Real Organic Project (our certificate) in June 2020. This means that we are located in the United States, are not a large corporation gaming the National Organic Program, and are what you are probably looking for: a small family-run farm that does things the right way.
We are also Certified 100% Grass-fed by American Grassfed Association effective 2019. Please note that this certification standard includes rigorous animal welfare requirements, which we meet.
Please note also that the term "grassfed" properly implies "grass finished". However, it has been distorted by marketers who say to themselves, "Gosh, all cattle are grassfed for the first year or so of their lives so if we feed them grain for the last 6 months or so of their lives (which is the finishing phase), were they not grass fed early on? So we will call ours grass fed too!" Thus, unfortunately, we have to add that our cattle are "grass finished" too. They never receive grain or synthetic sources of nitrogen like urea. The certifiers like the American Grassfed Association look carefully at how we feed the cattle during our regular inspections, and of course they forbid feeding grain or synthetic sources of nitrogen. Several prospective customers have asked us about this so we added this paragraph to our home page. Thanks for reading!

Our Products for the 2024 production year:

Grass-fed Beef cattle (Certified Organic and Certified 100% Grassfed).

INFLATION WARNING! We regret to announce that we have had to raise our prices after we next process at the end of September 2024. This was forced by an increase since 2021 of more than 35% in our processing costs and in market prices for cattle. (We harvest only cattle we raise, but we could sell them instead of harvesting them and we have to consider that opportunity cost when setting prices for our meat.) We did not raise prices that much, but we did have to do something. We appreciate your understanding of the current economic situation. For those who are interested, we identified four local producers of beef that is similar to ours, and set our prices to be slightly less than they were charging. We hope you will agree that that is a fair way to set prices. (September 19, 2024)

Our grassfed steers have been processed since June 2020. The meat is USDA inspected or Texas State inspected (which by law is at least as rigorous) and is now available for purchase. The meat is dry-aged 14-30 days before packaging to improve flavor and tenderness. The reports from our customers are favorable: "delicious" and "tastes like real beef and requires minimal seasoning" are common. Please note that this meat is grass-fed, not grain-fed, and must be cooked properly to avoid excessive toughness. These animals are also certified organic although there is no certified Organic processing plant in Texas so the meat will not be certified Organic.
Please see here for shipping options.
Please see more information about pricing and our grassfed beef and/or Sign up for farm visits, occasional emails, and access to our online order forms.
 
Hay (Certified Organic).

We make 4×5 ft net-wrapped rolls from WW B-Dahl Old World Bluestem. Cattle find this hay quite tasty, and sometimes prefer it to Coastal. We also make some Coastal hay. Since the drought of 2022, we have not been selling our hay. Had we had enough on hand, we would not have had to sell 75% of our herd later that year. Our plan is to keep our hay until we have enough to maintain the then-current herd for 18 months, and then resume sales.
The good news is that (a) better rain conditions started in mid- to late-2023 (climate.gov/enso and noaa.gov) and (b) we are in the process of acquiring a square baler that will let us provide 40-60 lb square bales that are much more convenient to the small homesteader than the the current 800-1000 lb round bales. The bad news is that the drought conditions are thought likely to return in the fall and winter of 2024 for an unknown period (see ENSO links above).
 
Eggs (Certified organic chicken).
Not available at this time. Predators successfully penetrated the flock's protections during the winter of 2022. We plan to restock when we have improved the protections.

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