Beef from the Ground Up

This is where our beef begins: from the ground up. With that in mind, let’s talk about Sasse Lake Farms beef from a soil health perspective.

Joel got his degree from University of Minnesota in crops and soils. Basically, he studied the science of soil health and fertility and how that affects plant growth.

In his own words, “I enjoy growing forage because it’s a puzzle. I’m trying to maximize tonnage per acre while maintaining overall soil health. That means replenishing the nutrients that are taken out while utilizing the usable nutrients. It’s a balancing act because while you are adding nutrients and utilizing what’s there, you’re also careful not to end up with an excess of any one nutrient.”

Within this circle of life, cattle add nutrients back to the land they graze on by simply digesting the forage and expelling it .Cattle manure (which contains nutrients like phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium) is a much more complex form of fertilizer than synthetic fertilizers because it adds more than one focused type of fertilizer. It is also adds organic matter and other trace nutrients.

The flavor of our beef begins here: healthy soil = nutritious forage = healthy cattle. We also work with our local cattle nutritionist through Ag Partners Coop to make sure our herd is receiving a balance of minerals and grains to round out their diet.

As farmers, we are pro-soil health. With healthy soil we can grow food for our cattle and we can grow food for you.