FLORIDA CATTLE RANCHERS, LLC
CEDAR KEY, FLORIDA

Our story is about Florida Cattle Ranchers, and building a Sustainable Florida. In 2015 a group of Florida cattle ranchers met to discuss the possibility of working together. The goal – return Florida to its early ranching heritage by producing cattle born and raised in Florida, something that hadn’t been done in decades. During the meeting we discovered that as ranchers we also share a deep feeling of responsibility to help build a on multiple levels – the environment, open space, wildlife habitats, our natural resources, the economy, local businesses, family ranches and the cattle industry. Creating FCR is the natural continuation of the sustainable practices we have in place on our ranches. And, as the number of FCR member ranchers grows so will the quantity of ranchers committed to the same values and sustainable practices we share. So now, we aren’t just producing and selling beef, born and raised in Florida. We are also building a Sustainable Florida. Our goal is for Floridians to learn who we are, what we are about, and why we do what we do. We are convinced that this knowledge will spread our passions and help us achieve a Sustainable Florida more quickly. To help with this, we have included on this web site the of our founding ranchers. We hope you will read them because they tell you what our company is all about better than any marketing campaign we could ever come up with. When you buy our Homegrown Beef – Raised Right you aren’t just buying quality, wholesome beef, you are helping to build a Sustainable Florida. This is our heritage, the heritage of the Florida Cattle Ranchers. And, those strong, persevering and tenacious Seminoles and early settlers are our ancestors. We are proud to call them our forefathers and to carry on their legacy today for our families, the citizens of our magnificent state, and future generations to come. Adapt and persevere to improve our businesses and to safeguard the future of the family rancher. : We are committed to providing our consumers wholesome, healthy, great tasting beef, and sharing with them the value that comes with choosing homegrown Florida beef. : We are committed to raising healthy cattle that are properly handled and cared for from birth until processing. This includes, for example, giving them essential nutrients that keep them healthy all year, and providing them space to move around freely in a comfortable environment. : We are committed to operational transparency for our consumers. To that end, we’ll harness technology so that customers can track the origin and processing of any cut of our Florida born and raised beef. : We are committed to conscientiously managing our ranches and cattle in a manner that supports our members’ collective focus on conservation, freshwater recharge, green space, endangered species habitats, reduced carbon footprint, and a fresh, clean air supply. : We are committed to growing an economically viable company of which our members are proud, that is operated with integrity, and that supports its members with the knowledge necessary to produce the quality of beef required by FCR in a sustainable and conscientious manner. Our Mission: all done with transparency and integrity so we can always be proud of our work and never stop having fun doing it. Our diversity is our strength. Our collective knowledge is our tool. Our shared passion for ranching, wildlife, Florida, and the sanctity of the land we care for, is our motivation. The ranching heritage of hard work, integrity, family, tenacity, and doing one’s best in all things is the glue that binds us together to achieve our goals and to produce our great tasting Homegrown Beef – Raised Right. Our beef is “raised right” because we raise our cattle using time-honored, safe and humane practices to protect them – as well as Florida’s beautiful open spaces, environment, natural resources and animal habitats. And bringing all production back to our state contributes to a better, more sustainable Florida. We raise beef we’re proud to serve to our consumers…and to our own families. In a word, SUSTAINABILITY – By bringing back Florida beef, born and raised, we are helping make Florida sustainable on multiple levels – the environment, open space, wildlife habitats, our natural resources, the economy, local businesses, family ranches and the cattle industry. What most Floridians haven’t known until now is that the beef they buy in Florida is either from other states or is from cattle that were raised in Florida until weaned, then loaded on trucks and shipped to states out west to be fed until harvesting. What’s changed? — We’ve created a way to feed our cattle here in Florida, and our state farmers are now able to grow enough healthy food for them to eat. The bottom Line — Bringing cattle production from birth to fork back to Florida makes a difference to all Floridians. Together we are building a Sustainable Florida. Florida’s ranching heritage began with a homegrown beef. But as the state became more populated, farm land became more scarce. Our farmers could no longer produce enough food to feed the cattle. Food would have to be shipped in from out west, adding to both the cost of the feed and the price of the beef, making it non-competitive. In addition, Florida has not had finishing facilities to feed the cattle after weaning until recently. We chose the tag line “Rare Beef ◊ Well Done” for two reasons. First because we thought it captured what our beef is all about. Second because we thought it was rather catchy. Our beef is “Rare” because it’s the first homegrown beef born and raised in Florida in decades. It’s “Well Done” because of the wholesome humane manner in which we raise our beef. Also, it’s high quality, great tasting beef. And, we are doing it in a way that helps build a Sustainable Florida. That’s certainly Rare Beef ◊ Well done. Merriam-Webster defines sustainable as “able to last or continue for a long time.” Our goal is to help make Florida last a long time. We are doing this by raising our cattle in Florida from birth to fork. By extension this supports local farmers and businesses, which creates jobs and strengthens our state’s economy. We are also reducing our carbon footprint, using less fossil fuels and making the roads safer by not shipping our cattle out west. In addition, we are helping keep Florida ranching alive which allows our ranchers to hold onto their land and keep it from being developed. In turn this keeps our natural ecosystems thriving for wildlife and endangered species. In addition, the open space helps clean our air and filter our water. It also provides the needed recharge areas to replenish our water supply. All these things help ensure that a healthy Florida will be around for generations to enjoy after us.