Our Story
My Story
My name is Delton Jubinville, aka ‘FARMER DEL’. I have ranched/farmed my entire life and my goal has always been to operate with the least environmental footprint possible. It has been a lifelong passion of mine, to one day offer the healthiest, tastiest, premium quality beef to the local market produced with the health of both people and the planet in mind. In the past I have ranched many breeds of cattle, as well as bison and deer. I have always felt that done right, one should be able to raise beef with a superior taste that rivals the health benefits of bison and game meats.
My Animals
While eating my own beef and some from local ranchers, I found that the animals raised for our conventional markets needed grain in order for the meat to marble properly. I was shocked to discover the health and environmental benefits of grass-finished beef as opposed to grain-finished. This information, along with the heavier environmental footprint that goes along with mono-cultural production, fortified my determination to raise the best beef the way nature intended, on 100% grass.
The more I researched the more I realized the majority of our cattle, in the last fifty years, were bred to excel in the feedlot environment, regardless of the health benefits of grass-finishing for the animal, the consumer, and the planet. This has led to the majority of our animals not being able to marble on grass alone. So I kept digging and going to different shows and conferences and found there was only a handful of breeds that can actually produce great tasting, high quality beef purely on grass. It is no surprise these are all Heritage breeds, some of which date back to the 1600’s. I found it interesting the only breeds offering the quality of meat I was after, were those humanity has basically ignored for centuries. Some of these breeds are Highland, Longhorn, North Devon (Red Ruby’s), Galloway, Welsh black, Aberdeen Angus and Herford.
Before choosing the breeds to form my herd, I researched other qualities that have a direct correlation to tender beef such as a smaller frame, high butterfat in the cow’s milk and docility. As I began putting together the recipe for the beef I wanted to raise, I found through carcass competitions and documented research the older breeds were able to bring better quality meat to the plate. Through past experience I have learned crossbred animals seemed to produce superior beef and offspring hence I chose to build my herd crossing Galloway and North Devon (Ruby Reds). It is the perfect combination to fulfill my dream of bringing the highest quality beef to my friends and neighbors; grass finished beef with a quality that I believe will be second to none.
My Farmer Del Beginning
In 2012 I moved back to my home place just north of St. Albert and started looking for organic land where I could physically build the herd of my choice. I approached John and Bill Bocock , a third generation dairy operation, with my plan of offering beef with all the characteristics that were needed to achieve this level of quality while maintaining the smallest environmental foot print. Bill and John’s response was that it was perfect timing since they had not used chemical on their land for over four years and they were no longer in the dairy business. These gentlemen are die-hard farmers and angels in disguise.
That same year I traveled to Saskatchewan to pick up some of my first Galloway seed stock. I was impressed with the docile herd they were coming from. Shortly after, I made another eight-hour trip to northeast Saskatchewan for a small herd of South Devon cattle, again of superior quality.
For centuries, Ruby Reds (North Devon) were the butchers’ choice in many different countries, since they produce an unrivaled quality of beef off grass alone. I was still set on getting some real North Devon genetics into my herd. This was not an easy task as there were none for sale in Canada. So we implanted embryos into surrogate cows in Montana and once they were past the first trimester, we brought them to the organic Bocock ranch where they would soon deliver us the highest quality North Devon’s in the World. I will be forever grateful to Bill Bocock for making this possible. Talk about exciting when our first five calves were born this summer, three of which will likely be our herd sires.
You can rest assured that purchasing a farmer Del beef package is not only the healthiest choice for your family, but it is also likely the healthiest local choice for the planet.
Thanks for considering our environment with your food purchases.
Eat Healthy, Stay Lean
Farmer Del
Pure and Natural All the Way
When we started building Farmer Del we wanted our customers to know the food on their plate was the best it could be with the smallest environmental impact. This is why we chose to become Farmer Del, producing top quality food for local markets.
Producing food without the use of hormones, antibiotics, or chemicals means a lot to us. That not only means no chemicals going directly into the body of the animal but also no chemicals being applied to the pasture or hay that animal is eating. Even after the animal has been processed into meat and other value added products, nothing that is not certified organic can come into contact with it for it to remain certified. Organic certification requires detailed record keeping, careful planning and organic auditing. It makes us more mindful of how we farm so you can just enjoy your dinner.
Farming aside, we believe it is our responisibility to live as lightly as possible on the Earth. We believe for the sake of future generations we need to make the right choices, even if they are not easy.
GOURMET GRASS FED, GRASS FINISHED
At Farmer Del we have made the choice to produce only beef from the leaf, grass fed from start to finish. Our cows rotationally graze on lush, organic pasture taking a veritable buffet in every bite.
Much of the commercially produced beef starts off on the pasture but is then moved to intensive feedlot operations where they are fed a high grain diet for quick weight gain, this is called finishing. There are some conventional farms that finish on farm but still feed grain in addition to hay. Feeding this way produces a higher fat content in the meat and allows the producer to have a marketable animal by 18 months. At Farmer Del our cows eat what the pasture provides, grass and hay. Without the unnaturally rich diet of grain, our animals grow more slowly, taking anywhere from 8 to 12 months longer than grain fed animals to fully mature. We have specially selected our breeding stock for performance on grass alone so the meat still becomes deliciously marbled but remains much leaner than conventional beef.
Health Benefits
Since the appearance of grass fed beef on supermarket shelves there have been studies done to determine if beef raised on grass alone truly does offer significant health benefits over grain finished beef.
The results show grassfed beef to be significantly leaner than than conventional beef. However, it is not only leaner over all but grass fed animals also tend to have higher levels of Omega 3 fats, which play a role in reducing risk of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and even depression. Meat from grass fed animals can have up to five times the alpha linolenic acid (one of the Omega 3’s) compared to grain fed.
Studies show grass fed beef can also have higher levels of antioxidant compounds, such as precursors to vitamin E and A, glutathione and superoxide dismutase. We encourage you to do some reading of your own on the benefits of grass finished beef.
Benefits for the Planet
Grass fed beef not only offers some potential health benefits but it is in line with stepping lightly as we cross our planet.
By not feeding grain we do not encourage the industrial production of single crops on large tracts of land just for cattle feed. By default that also removes the extra hours of running tractors and other machinery to work those fields. Such intense conventional production also often calls for the application of pesticides and other chemicals to produce high yields in monocrops. By eliminating the grain we not only keep our animals healthy, control our feed costs and reduce the use of harmful chemicals, we greatly reduce the carbon footprint of our beef.
We feel Mother Nature equipped our cows to be great at what they do without the need for grain.
Links:
Nutrition Journal
https://nutritionj.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1475-2891-9-10
Globe and Mail
Mayo Clinic