LIGHT HILL MEATS

THE FARM-TO-TABLE BUTCHER

By Lauren Neale

When I met Ben Neale 13 years ago, there was only a small herd of cattle grazing on Ben’s rented farm. At the time, we had only dreamt of what those cows could become and never imagined how our dreams could impact the community. Fast forward, we married in 2014 and now have four beautiful children, and today have turned a hobby farm into a full-scale, farm-to-table meat business called Light Hill Meats.

Light Hill Meats consists of a cow-calf farm in Giles County, a USDA-inspected processing facility in Lynnville, and a butcher shop in Spring Hill. Ben’s career experience in livestock production and business management helped carefully construct each portion of what became the entire supply chain of LHM. “While we served our customers, there were new opportunities to grow as we learned their needs,” said Ben. “I had many years of hands-on experience raising cattle and studied what produced great beef. This, in turn, provides my family and our customers with a healthy, hearty meal.”

After spending several years in communications and marketing and having spent time promoting Montana’s ranchers, I brought my experience to the business. When I was out west, and having come from the city, I learned a great deal about where and how food gets on our plates. It was eye-opening, and decided I wanted to be a voice for those in agriculture and help consumers understand what it takes to make a steak.

Together, Ben and I run Light Hill Meats; Ben, a first-generation cattle producer, oversees all operations and I handle the day-to-day marketing. The initial first step to growing the business from only the cowherd was opening the processing plant in 2017. Ben realized the need from other local farmers for a processor and he needed a way to get his customers their shares faster. A mile from where he grew up was an already-established facility that was looking to sell. He purchased the business and renovated it to become USDA-inspected.

Today, that processing facility harvests cattle, pigs, goats, and sheep for hundreds of farmers during the year. A USDA inspector is on-site certain days to clear meat for resale, including for the butcher shop. Having this facility and the ability to process our cattle, we began selling our beef cuts in Columbia during the pandemic.

When meat was hard to come by in the grocery stores due to quantity restrictions caused by the pandemic, we hosted pop-up shops on the side of the road. On social media, over and over, I saw that people needed more meat than what the stores had to feed their families and I thought we could help with that problem. In 2021, we continued with the pop-ups every Saturday morning. They were very successful with lines waiting at opening time in the hot sun, pouring rain, or even snow. Ben saw the popularity as a means to grow and have the ability to offer more products to the community. The butcher shop in Spring Hill was opened in 2022.

“There’s a growing population in Maury County. A population that should be offered healthy products and meat that will bring them together around the dinner table,” said Ben. “My goals are to offer clean, minimally-processed foods and unique options for unforgettable dinners.”

The butcher shop team makes many of the meat items in-house including all-natural sausages, smoked bacon, beef snack sticks, and jerky. They dry-age beef loins with a top-of-the-line cooler to make tender and flavorful steaks. Customers can make special orders and order local beef in bulk. Many traditional proteins are sold there such as pork, chicken, seafood, and beef, as well as unique meats like camel, bison, duck, elk, and rabbit.

“We try to source products locally that fit our mission and have found some great ones like farm eggs, sourdough loaves, salsa, organic lettuce, and beans,” said Ben. “Beyond local, we select unique items and use simple, high-quality ingredients like Italian pasta, barbeque sauces, Spanish olive oil, and artisan pickles.”

In the summer of 2016, our son, Corban, was diagnosed with autism. Currently, there are many theories as to why the country is seeing a rise in autistic children and ways to work with those diagnosed. Ben’s bent toward research and article reviewing has led the family to choose a combination of bio-medical diet changes and therapy appointments that he would be happy to discuss with anyone who has questions or is facing the same situation.

Our family has seen first-hand how improving Corban’s digestive health has helped him with many of the symptoms of autism. After watching our son’s health change for the better when processed foods were pulled from his diet, we began to consider our diet and the changes that could be made to improve our family’s well-being by limiting preservatives and eating more natural products.

Ben did a lot of research on gut health and saw many benefits from healthy eating after watching Corban become a new kid with dietary changes. These same clean-ingredient principles are applied to the practices on our farm and the products we offer. This is something we want to share with the community and have them experience, too.

This past spring, Corban played baseball with Home Run Heroes, a league for all disabilities, free of charge, and entirely sponsored by the community. Light Hill Meats sponsored the Reds team and Ben was also a coach. It was a fantastic experience for families and a great way to connect with the community and enjoy a sport together. Check out Home-Run Heroes on Facebook for additional information or to become a sponsor.

While the business is still fine-tuning, we hope the shop can bring families and friends together to make memories over a great-tasting meal. Stop by the store located at 150 Stephen P Yokich Parkway in Spring Hill and say hi or shop online at lighthillmeats.com. You can also follow us on social media at @lighthillmeats. We would love the opportunity to share with you delicious-tasting local beef!