Newsletters: January - February 2007

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Local Spotlight-White Oak Pastures

By Cristin Burns

You may have thought that cowboys were a thing of the past, but you'd be wrong. Will Harris, president of White Oak Pastures in Bluffton, Georgia, is the real thing. His family has raised cattle for five generations on the same farm, and it's taken that long for cattle ranching to come full circle. "I'm raising cattle now the way my great-grandfather did," says Harris.

White Oak Pastures cattle roam freely on the 1,000 acre farm situated approximately 90 miles north of Tallahassee. They are hormone and antibiotic free. In fact, White Oak Pastures was the first farm east of the Mississippi to be certified American Grassfed in addition to being Certified Humane Raised and Handled. Harris no longer uses chemicals or fertilizers on his fields and is one year away from being eligible for organic certification. While he has not decided whether he will seek organic certification, Harris believes that raising his beef organically is the right thing to do.

Harris, 51, graduated with a degree in Animal Science in 1976. He learned how to use hormones and antibiotics and that's what he brought home to the farm. "I didn't like it much," says Harris, "Thin calves were loaded on a truck and taken 1,400 miles to a feed lot where they were turned into unnaturally obese animals." In 1995 Harris decided to switch his cattle from a conventional grain diet to a 100 percent forage diet.

Although he was troubled by the conventional cattle industry, it wasn't until Harris read about "sophisticated consumers" with an appreciation for grassfed beef and a willingness to pay more for a higher-quality product that he began to see an alternative.

White Oak Pastures' transition hasn't been easy. "The world is full of WalMart consumers," laments Harris. "Beef raised properly will never be as cheap as industry-raised beef. Science has developed artificial tools to drive down prices, and it has worked, at a great cost to the animals, consumers and farmers." Despite a much larger uphill climb than he had anticipated, Harris remains committed to his cows. He believes that his herd is healthier and happier since the transition. "These are food animals that deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Factory farming doesn't do that."

When it comes to White Oak Pastures, happy cows equal happy consumers. According to the University of Georgia, grassfed beef has better fatty-acid profiles than conventional beef. It has lower amounts of saturated fats and more good fats, and of course it contains no added hormones or antibiotics. Since the cattle are not fed animal-derived feed there is virtually no risk of E.coli or mad cow disease. White Oak Pastures is in the fore- front of the grassfed beef market, but Harris has plans for further improvements.

Harris's vision is "to never load a cow on a truck. My cattle will be born, raised and harvested right here on the farm." And he's well on the way to seeing that dream come true. White Oak Pastures has applied for a $500,000 loan from OneGeorgia, a program that uses one-third of the state's tobacco settlement to help rural communities. The loan would aid Harris in building a multi-species processing plant on the farm. The proposed processing plant would allow all White Oak Pastures cattle to be harvested on the farm and would be capable of harvesting beef, hogs, goats and sheep for neighboring farms.

Harris jokes that he reserves the right to brag about a few things in life and one is his farm, but it's no joking matter. White Oak Pastures beef is a delicious high-quality product that you can trust. By purchasing White Oak Pastures beef you are supporting the ethical treatment of animals, environmentally-friendly farming and your local community.

White Oak Pastures beef can be found at New Leaf Market, natural foods stores and local Publix Super Markets.

For more information visit: www.whiteoakpastures.com.