Deschutes River Beef was founded in 2016 to begin direct marketing high quality grain finished beef to customers who want to know all there is to know about their food. Owner, Keith Nantz, has taken the opportunity to get in touch with the consumer side of the beef industry through his many activities with the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. MCEDD provided Diamond Lazy K Inc., DBA Deschutes River Beef, with an operating loan to continue growing sales and further the processing portion of the business.
Keith states “We want to build upon transparency and a customer service mentality that strengthens our relationships throughout the process. Starting on the production side, the utilization of Management Intensive Grazing to regenerate the soils and the use of multi-specie cover crops for winter grazing are vital parts of a system that we believe needs continual studying and improving. Along with strong grazing practices comes the need for challenging paradigms surrounding animal handling and husbandry practices. Studying animal behavior gives us insights on how to interact with our cattle in a way that minimizes stress on the cattle, the people, and the equipment, but with new ideas comes fear of change and with fear of change comes fear of loss. We want to be strong advocates for holding onto our culture; and knowing our success comes from many generations before us paving the way gives us passion to ensure we don’t lose our incredible way of life in cattle country. On the other hand, we also want to pave a new path ahead that can have a strong economic impact and create a regenerative influence ecologically.”
He notes that Timberline Lodge has been a great partner in Deschutes River Beef’s business and continues to be a strong supporter of their philosophies regarding a holistic approach. Take the time to travel up to the lodge and experience the connection between the grandeur of the mountain and the beef produced in its shadow.