When we moved to the ranch in 2020, we recognized the need to heal our pastures from years of overgrazing, and row crop abuse. So we removed all the 3rd party cattle, moved the land to wildlife exemption, and reviewed what works in healing the land. A proven technique if one has the time, is to introduce cattle through an intense rotational grazing method, with the side potential of raising tasty cows. Those tasty cows would need to be hormone and antibiotic free, and raised solely on pasture. Apparently external additions like hormones and antibiotics pass through the cow, through urine and manure, and into the soil. That tainted fertilizer then negatively impacts the microbes responsible to turning cow byproducts into healthy soil. The healthier the soil, the more cows the ranch will support. Then there are the potential effects from eating beef with antibiotics and hormones… It’s a whole movement. The deeper one digs, the more one feels the need to distance oneself from commercially produced beef.
So to begin our quest, we required infrastructure. Cross fencing big pastures into little pastures, adding water to those pastures, adding a working corral, and finally some cows. Ok, so we got all that work done, and we got some cows. We had to start out small in cow numbers, due to limited grass. We also needed to be selective in cattle, as certain breeds do better than other breeds solely on pasture in this Texas heat.
The thought out in the “pasture raised space” community is a steer has the best marbling beginning around 30 months. So if we do the math…we buy cows, and rent a bull in year 1. Year 2 we have baby boys. Year 5 if all goes well, we process the first steer. That’s a long time.
To get us by in the meantime, We have purchased some of the neighbor’s steers who are further along in the rotational grazing process, and finishing them out on our place.
Steers in 2025 will be processed May and October. That’s all the steer we have this year.
Family health is driving the JBoys beef marketing model. Beef is first offered to family. We want our siblings, children, and grandchildren to eat healthy.
So hopefully 2026 will produce more quality steers as grass quality and quantity improves. Stay tuned and check again in Spring 2026!!
JBoys SMALL BATCH Beef 