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Grass Fed From Start to Finish By Sheila Harris
Harter Cattle Company started with a single cow in 2015 “We use the system learned from Greg Judy. Our goal was to Nick and Saleena Harter, of Harter Cattle Comraise grass-fed beef, from start to finish, then sell USDA-inpany, aren’t typical ranchers, primarily because it’s spected, packaged product directly from our freezer to the pubunusual to find a family with a beef herd living within the lic without going in debt.” confines of a small residential neighborhood, even in the The plan is working. small town of Billings, Mo. In the summer, he seeds pastures with sorghum-Sudangrass; “We’re not in debt, though,” Nick disclosed, a status worth in the winter, he broadcasts a mix of at least 50 percent red a lot in the present economy. and white clover directly onto pastures, allowing melting For Nick, getting into the cattle business without taking out frosts to help with the seeding. With reels of electrical fencing a loan had long been a personal goal. wire, posts and a portable charger, he creates fenced paddocks, Although he was raised in town, he became interested in and turns the cattle into one portion of the pasture at a time. farming while helping his older brother with an FFA project “I have my cattle on a 35-day grazing rotation,” Nick explained. when the two boys were young. “My main two pastures – one 35 acres, and the other, 25 acres – are “We brought home a couple of Holstein calves to bottle-feed in different locations, so for part of the year, I partition one pasture in our back yard, then later put them on my uncle’s dairy farm,” Submitted Photos into different paddocks, by moving my fencing over at 35-day inNick related. “Since dairy farming wouldn’t have been practitervals to follow the pattern of the un-grazed grass. It gives the cattle fresh grass to graze cal for me, I’ve been planning the best way to raise my own beef herd ever since.” Nick confessed he’s spent many hours watching the popular Youtube videos of on, and gives the grazed pasture time to rest and renew. About twice a year, I move all of the cattle from my 35-acre pasture to the 25 acres, and start the whole process over. Greg Judy, a central Missouri rancher who Nick has learned much from. “I have green grass for the cattle, year-round, something not everyone can claim. “Judy’s plan for rotational grazing really caught my attention,” Nick said. “It looked like a way to graze cattle through the winter without providing supple- I don’t have much investment either, other than my labor, grass seed and portable mental grain and hay. In other words, it looked inexpensive. Healthy, too, for fencing materials. And the cattle, too, of course.” The Harters recently purchased a South Poll bull, which they anticipate will be a both the cattle and the people who eat the beef.” Harter and his wife Saleena purchased their first cow, a Jersey heifer who they valuable asset for their herd. South Polls are bred to be heat-tolerant and to thrive named “Oatmeal,” in 2015, with cash earned through his day-job as a route sales without needing additional grain in their diet, according to Harter. The Harters will have about 2,000 pounds of USDA-inspected, wrapped, manager for a grocery distributor. Oatmeal grazed on land leased from grass-fed beef available for sale, beginning in May. Nick’s uncle, Pat Harter. They’ve since increased their herd and pas“With the increase in the size of our herd, we’ll have about twice that quanture size. tity available in the fall,” Nick Harter said. “Our prices are comparable to “We now have 30 head of cattle – a mix of Jersey, Angus, Hereford those of grocery retailers because our expenses are minimal.” and South Poll – that we graze on about 60 leased acres, minus the “We have plans, too, to begin making appearances at farmers markets,” few acres where we have a calf-weaning facility,” Nick explained. “And Billings, Mo. Nick continued. “We like being able to introduce ourselves as the prowe’ve managed to do all of it without going into debt.” ducers of the beef people are putting on their tables. That’s important Nick said part of the key is in rotational grazing. these days.” “We don’t let the cattle graze on all the land at one time,” he explained.
APRIL 27, 2020
The Ozarks’ Most Read Farm Newspaper
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