The Amador County Fairgrounds now offers a collection point for local beef.  Foothill ranchers can drop one to eight cows from Tuesday to Thursday at the fairgrounds in Plymouth for pre-arranged transport to the newly opened Marin Sun Farms slaughterhouse in Petaluma for slaughter and cutting if desired.  Overnight care is provided for a fee.

As Troy Bowers, CEO of the Amador County fair puts it, “The Amador County Fair was founded in 1938 to put together markets and bring people together for the purpose of promoting agriculture.”  This program does exactly that.  The USDA regulations for slaughter of grass fed cows have long kept small producers from being able to bring their product to market.  Instead cattle are often sold at auction and moved to feedlots where they are held for 90 days and grain finished.

Marin Sun Farms in Marin County has become a key player on the artisan meat scene.  Recently they acquired a slaughterhouse in Petaluma and have upgraded the plant to process 100 beef and 100 hogs per week.  Their goal is to “integrate processing and distribution channels to connect the best ranches and ranchers in California to consumers.”  It is a sustainable food model that inspires an agrarian culture that conserves our landscapes, supports the health of its inhabitants, and restores the vitality of a region.   Marin Sun Farms’ focus is the production of local pasture based food to nourish our community and families and to return farming to its roots.

There are a variety of options once the animal reaches the plant.  It can become a part of the Marin Sun Farms label or can be cut and packaged under a rancher’s private label.  Farmers can choose to sell their beef on their own or it can be sold by Marin Sun Farms.  They can have the meat cut and packed by Marin Sun butchers or cut elsewhere.    There are three different labels available at Marin Sun: Green for 100% grass fed, Yellow for pasture raised, and Black for “Foodshed”, locally sourced livestock.

Marin Sun Farms founder David Evans’ commitment is contagious.  He states, “We will continue our dedication to bringing locally sourced, humanely raised and healthy meat to our customers. Our livestock will remain foodshed sourced, synthetic growth hormone and antibiotic free, and raised with care by our greater foodshed community livestock producers.”  

Amador County’s cattle ranchers should contact Troy Bowers at the Amador County fairgrounds for more information.  The next time you are in San Francisco you might find meat labeled Amador County.