Upgrading Breakfast !
I think of breakfast as the most important meal of the day because it is usually guaranteed to happen unlike lunch and dinner that can quickly get shoved aside for “unplanned events” or “over optimistic timelines”. Needless to say, Bacon and Eggs and 1 large dark coffee is how I try to start each day and then I’m good to go for the day. Our eggs are as local as it gets; bred and hatched by our kids and the flock is various heritage breeds, colors and sizes and that get to live in a chickens paradise. On the flip side, I am ashamed to say that the bacon I eat is as far from that as it gets. It is store bought pork that I know comes from animals produced in the megabarns, from animals that have never felt sunlight on their back and vaxxed and pumped up on growth promoters and antibiotics. “Live by what you eat” is what I think, so I had to find a way to come clean! With some family & team brainstorming they have have hatched a 2 pronged approach to my breakfast dilemma:
Some will remember that in the past we made a bison breakfast sausage. That was outsourced work due efficiency of production and under our existing Interprovincial trade barriers that was illegal for us to do. So we had to quit making them. Due to exurban costs for the specialized equipment needed and the extra labor and space it makes no sense for us to make sausage products. Everyone loved the recipe, especially Pasco who is the family’s biggest fan. So with Spencer, our plant manager, they came up with the BisonGuy Breakfast patty. Locally raised and harvested meat, made in house, loaded with flavor, protein and all the fats needed to keep your body healthy and going. Trialed, tested and approved by our butcher team and carnivore aficionado Pasco… they are a big hit!: Check them out in our store and if you have already ordered and want to add them to your order shoot us a quick email and we will add them to your order.
The 2nd solution for my breakfast dilemma was to again raise our own pork. Since the start of our ranching adventures we have always had pigs. One year in particular it got a little out of control. What started with 2 bred sows, exploded into a herd of 75 animals due to dysfunctional and poor timed castration of the boars. An experiment turned into an adventure that emphasized a buisness lesson learned is to have a market before you produce it and also figure out the logistics of how you are going to do it. Needless to say it was an adventure and education that Erika was more than glad to see downsized. On the ranch, pigs are an amazing animal for upcycling waste from food and feed and so it’s a great fit for our ranching philosophy. We have always had a few pigs over the winter and that would get harvested in the spring, however it’s extra chores in a time of the year that days are short to begin with.
Our youngest 2 Luna and Oro have always had a passion for pigs and the spring sold pork that we have sold for the past 3 years has been their project. Many have been asking if we will have pork available again and the answer is YES. The kids are changing it up to summer fattening and now with no shortage of bison fencing on the ranch the pigs will have plenty of acres to roam and forage and really be the pig they are designed to be. Their cut and wrapped Pork will be ready for delivery on our November run. This is a great project for the 2 to learn and hone their entrepreneurial spirit. They know that repeating the same mistakes from lessons not learned is the definition of insanity. So knowing how much pork to produce is key for this project so that they don’t overproduce and also don’t oversell their Pork. We have set up the sale for sides of pork cut and wrapped in 70 lb side units on our website. To order your pork the kids are asking for a $200 deposit to be paid in advance so that they have required operating capital needed to buy the exact number of feeder pigs needed for the project. As a creditor to the pig project you will be an exclusive Pig Club member getting the latest info on the production of your pork chop from Luna and Oro’s perspective. The kids are super excited about the project and this business venture is going into their self financed and controlled Piggy Bank. Oro starts his heavy duty mechanic apprenticeship in Fort St John this fall, while Luna has dreams for a Volleyball Scholarship in Nebraska (apparently it is the best). Please order early as there is a limit to the number of animals they are fattening and will cut it off sales once they hit that number.
Breakfast to me isn’t just about the food that fuels your brain and body. It’s also the 1st chance in the day to sit and have a meal as a family. On a ranch it’s a place where as a team we can come up with the solutions for challenges and problems and more importantly set the goals of the day. Looks like the Team did a great job on finding a solution for raising the bar and upgrading my breakfast with in house made BisonGuy Breakfast patties and local pasture raised pork. The bacon is going to be great!
