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All Force of Nature animals are raised in environments that encourage the expression of their natural behaviors while consuming the diets that they were biologically engineered and evolved to eat. We believe that Mother Nature figured this one out a few hundred thousand years ago and it is our responsibility to allow these animals to behave like animals. The Force of Nature Land Steward Index takes into consideration the following:
Land management philosophy and soil health practices.
What is the land management philosophy the land steward abides by in ensuring their animal raising practices are benefiting the land? How does the land manager think about wildlife within his/her context? What soil health principles are they practicing?
Is the land manager practicing the 5 Principles of Soil Health* (as cited by Soil Health Pioneer Gabe Brown in his book “Dirt to Soil”)
1. LIMITED DISTURBANCE
Limit mechanical, chemical, and physical disturbance of the soil. Tillage destroys soil structure. It is constantly tearing apart the “house” that nature builds to protect the living organisms in the soil that create natural soil fertility. Soil structure includes aggregates and pore spaces (openings that allow water to infiltrate the soil). The result of tillage is soil erosion, the wasting of a precious natural resource. Synthetic fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides all have negative impacts on life in the soil as well.
2. ARMOR THE SOIL
Keep soil covered at all times. Keep soil covered at all times. This is a critical step toward rebuilding soil health. Bare soil is an anomaly— nature always works to cover soil. Providing a natural “coat of armor” protects soil from wind and water erosion while providing food and habitat for macro- and microorganisms. It will also prevent moisture evaporation and germination of weed seeds.
3. LIVING ROOTS
Maintain a living root in soil as long as possible throughout the year. Living roots are feeding soil biology by providing its basic food source: carbon. This biology, in turn, fuels the nutrient cycle that feeds plants.
4. DIVERSITY
Strive for diversity of both plant and animal species. Where in nature does one find monocultures? Only where humans have put them! Grasses, forbes, legumes, and shrubs all live and thrive in harmony with each other. Think of what each of these species has to offer. Some have shallow roots, some deep, some fibrous, some tap. Some are high-carbon, some are low-carbon, some are legumes. Each of them plays a role in maintaining soil health. Diversity enhances ecosystem function.
5. INTEGRATED ANIMALS
Nature does not function without animals. It is that simple. Integrating livestock onto an operation provides many benefits. The major benefit is that the grazing of plants stimulates the plants to pump more carbon into the soil. This drives nutrient cycling by feeding biology. Of course, it also has a major, positive impact on climate change by cycling more carbon out of the atmosphere and putting it into the soil. And if you want a healthy, functioning ecosystem on your farm or ranch, you must provide a home and habitat for not only farm animals but also pollinators, predator insects, earthworms, and all of the microbiology that drive ecosystem function.
Animal welfare philosophy and practices.
Does the land steward have any critical third party animal welfare certifications and audits? What type of livestock handling is practiced (low stress being ideal)? What are slaughter practices and how do you ensure low stress during end of life phase? Do the animals consume a diet they were biologically intended to? Is the animal raised on pasture, as biologically intended to?
Long term partnership potential.
We only work with land stewards we believe are philosophically aligned with our long term goal of providing the highest quality meat to end consumers. Our relationship with land stewards is not transactional, it is a partnership. We have a responsibility to to represent our ranchers with utmost dignity and respect. We believe that improvement to soil health is critical, and when appropriate, we work with our suppliers to provide them the tools and/or educational resources/opportunities to make improvements year over year
Quality.
The animals we source are of the highest quality in all respects – highest quality on the environment, the animal, and the consumer.
Cost.
As with all things in life – cost is a determining factor when evaluating purchasing from land stewards. Our company believes in paying fair prices for the distinguished quality we are sourcing. We do not believe in the commoditization of meat.
OUR ANIMALS
bison beef venison elk boar pork
BISON

Our bison are all sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 Principles of Soil Health* (limited disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). The majority of our ranchers are in the process of scientifically validating their soil health improvement (and carbon sequestration) through soil sample collection and tracking. We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples for the remainder of the ranches. All bison ranchers are currently practicing holistic land management.

Our bison are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. They are often supplemented with free choice minerals or mineral blocks. Our bison suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics. We do allow for the use of therapeutic antibiotics if there is threat to the overall well being of the herd, such as a life threatening illness. Treated animals are segregated from our supply chain.

Our bison are raised on several family owned ranches in Texas.

    BISON   

Our bison are all sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 Principles of Soil Health* (limited disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). The majority of our ranchers are in the process of scientifically validating their soil health improvement (and carbon sequestration) through soil sample collection and tracking. We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples for the remainder of the ranches. All bison ranchers are currently practicing holistic land management.

Our bison are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. They are often supplemented with free choice minerals or mineral blocks. Our bison suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics. We do allow for the use of therapeutic antibiotics if there is threat to the overall well being of the herd, such as a life threatening illness. Treated animals are segregated from our supply chain.

Our bison are raised on several family owned ranches in Texas.

BEEF
Our beef is all sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 Principles of Soil Health* (limited disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). All ranches have been scientifically validated that their soil health is improving year over year and are a carbon sequestration sink due to their management practices. All beef suppliers are practicing holistic land management.

Our beef are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. They are often supplemented with free choice minerals or mineral blocks. Our beef suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics. We do allow for the use of therapeutic antibiotics if there is threat to the overall well being of the herd, such as a life threatening illness.

Our beef is raised on many family owned ranches in Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, Alabama and Florida.
    BEEF   
Our beef is all sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 Principles of Soil Health* (limited disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). All ranches have been scientifically validated that their soil health is improving year over year and are a carbon sequestration sink due to their management practices. All beef suppliers are practicing holistic land management.

Our beef are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. They are often supplemented with free choice minerals or mineral blocks. Our beef suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics. We do allow for the use of therapeutic antibiotics if there is threat to the overall well being of the herd, such as a life threatening illness.

Our beef is raised on many family owned ranches in Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, Alabama and Florida.
Image of bison on a grassy plain
VENISON
We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples on all venison ranches to verify year over year improvement to soil health.

Our venison are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. The venison have never been treated with antibiotics or growth hormones, administered by any method (e.g., through feed or water, or by injection), from birth to slaughter. In the rare instance an animal happens to become sick or injured, it may be treated with antibiotics to ensure the health and well-being of the animal. In this case, the treatment of the animal is recorded the animal is withheld for a minimum of 91 days prior to slaughter.

The venison are farm-raised on multiple family farms in New Zealand or wild caught in the Texas Hill Country.
    VENISON   
We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples on all venison ranches to verify year over year improvement to soil health.

Our venison are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. The venison have never been treated with antibiotics or growth hormones, administered by any method (e.g., through feed or water, or by injection), from birth to slaughter. In the rare instance an animal happens to become sick or injured, it may be treated with antibiotics to ensure the health and well-being of the animal. In this case, the treatment of the animal is recorded the animal is withheld for a minimum of 91 days prior to slaughter.

The venison are farm-raised on multiple family farms in New Zealand or wild caught in the Texas Hill Country.
ELK
We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples on all venison ranches to verify year over year improvement to soil health.

Our elk are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. No elk are given sub-therapeutic antibiotics or growth hormones. In the rare instance an animal happens to become sick or injured, it may be treated with antibiotics to ensure the health and well-being of the animal. In this case, the treatment of the animal is recorded the animal is withheld for a minimum of 91 days prior to slaughter

The elk are farm-raised on multiple family farms in New Zealand.
    ELK   
We are working diligently to formalize a protocol to gather baseline soil samples on all venison ranches to verify year over year improvement to soil health.

Our elk are grass-fed, grass-finished and raised on pasture year-round. No elk are given sub-therapeutic antibiotics or growth hormones. In the rare instance an animal happens to become sick or injured, it may be treated with antibiotics to ensure the health and well-being of the animal. In this case, the treatment of the animal is recorded the animal is withheld for a minimum of 91 days prior to slaughter

The elk are farm-raised on multiple family farms in New Zealand.
WILD BOAR

Our wild boar supply does not currently qualify to meet the 5 principles of soil health standards* our other animal proteins do, simply because they are wild hogs – not managed by ranchers and farmers. Quite the opposite of positive animal impact, these wild boar have become an invasive species here in Texas causing massive destruction on privately owned and public lands. Thankfully, wild boar are quite delicious and we are able to source from local landowners, farmers and ranchers, who trap the pigs. They are then transported to a USDA slaughtering facility where they are inspected for good health prior to harvest.

The wild boar are free range – they are obtained from rural, non restricted environments that permit foraging, natural selection, and breeding and farrowing without confinement. At no time are they administered with antibiotics or added hormones, nor are they fed any ractopamine.

    WILD BOAR   

Our wild boar supply does not currently qualify to meet the 5 principles of soil health standards* our other animal proteins do, simply because they are wild hogs – not managed by ranchers and farmers. Quite the opposite of positive animal impact, these wild boar have become an invasive species here in Texas causing massive destruction on privately owned and public lands. Thankfully, wild boar are quite delicious and we are able to source from local landowners, farmers and ranchers, who trap the pigs. They are then transported to a USDA slaughtering facility where they are inspected for good health prior to harvest.

The wild boar are free range – they are obtained from rural, non restricted environments that permit foraging, natural selection, and breeding and farrowing without confinement. At no time are they administered with antibiotics or added hormones, nor are they fed any ractopamine.

PORK

Our pork is sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 principles of Soil Health* (limited soil disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). These ranches have scientifically validated that their soil health is improving year over year and as a result serves as an effective atmospheric carbon sink.

 

Our heritage breed slow growing pigs are pasture-raised year round and eat grasses, roots, bugs, and seeds they find. They are supplemented with a ration that includes barely, corn, soy, and sunflower seeds. Additionally, they are offered free choice peanut products due to their proximity to peanut production. They have been Certified Humane, Non GMO Project Verified, and Land to Market Verified. Our pork suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics.

 

Our pork is raised in Georgia.

 

    PORK   

Our pork is sourced from ranchers practicing the 5 principles of Soil Health* (limited soil disturbance, armor your soil, diversity, living roots, integrated animals). These ranches have scientifically validated that their soil health is improving year over year and as a result serves as an effective atmospheric carbon sink.

 

Our heritage breed slow growing pigs are pasture-raised year round and eat grasses, roots, bugs, and seeds they find. They are supplemented with a ration that includes barely, corn, soy, and sunflower seeds. Additionally, they are offered free choice peanut products due to their proximity to peanut production. They have been Certified Humane, Non GMO Project Verified, and Land to Market Verified. Our pork suppliers do not utilize growth hormones or the use of antibiotics.

 

Our pork is raised in Georgia.