Summer 2009

At what would be the end of the working day for many, Nathan and Cristy Beachy are loading cattle onto a trailer to take to Tennessee that evening. They’ve got a lot on their minds: the tailgate market they vend at the next day, rain damaged hay, buckeyes in the pasture, and an out of town construction job to supplement income from the farm. But Nathan is still eager to talk about the meat they grow at Nate’s Farm. “People say I sell the best hamburger you’ve ever eaten.”

He hands me a pack and guarantees I’ll say the same, explaining that his hamburger is unlike others. The Beachys raise two varieties of cattle. Black Angus, the breed preferred for steak, graze in the hilly pasture above us, one of several he rotates them between. Holstein calves, which Cristy bottles feeds,  lay in the shade of the yard. Most people consider Holsteins a dairy cow, but at Nate’s Farm, they’re raised for hamburger.  

The Beachys don’t take prime cuts and then grind up what’s left for hamburger; they include all the Holstein meat, even steaks.  The result is leaner hamburger. “If you do a drip test with it, my burger will only drip about two drops of fat. I’ve had others’ that drip 20,” Nathan says.  He’s also proud of his affordable pricing.

Nathan was raised on a dairy farm in Ohio.  He first drove a tractor when he was five years old. Starting when he was seven, it became his job to drive the tractor to the feed mill down the road every week.  Nathan’s father sold the farm when he was in high school.  Nathan says what you will hear many farmers say: “It was in my blood. I always wanted to get back to the farm.”  10 years ago he got to, when he bought his farm on East Fork Road in Marshall.

Nathan loved growing all of his own hay and caring for his land and animals the way his father had taught him. But when he took calves to auction, he never made much money.  So, he began to grass finish cattle and sell direct to customers.  Many customers come to the farm and pick up orders. If you’d like to make an order, call 828-273-9993.  The couple also vends at the Weaverville Tailgate Market by Lake Louise on Wednesdays, and Troyer’s Country Amish Blatz store in Fairview carries their meat.

Nathan’s become a supporter of buying and selling food locally. “Trucking everything back and forth across the country—it’s just foolish,” he says. As they get ready for their own shorter trip, Cristy makes provisions for continuing to eat the most local food possible. She packs a homemade Filipino Casserole—they’d rather take dinner with them so they can enjoy their own beef.