On Marin Sun Farms we raise our veal on pasture. Veal brought up with fresh air, sunshine, and fresh pasture under them, produce the highest quality, best tasting meats. Keep up to date on the latest news with our Production Blog.
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The Environment
Our veal calves are raised alongside their mother cow. The cow and calf (or calves) graze pastures in planned rotations that provide the pasture plants and soil, the disturbance, nutrients, and rest/recovery needed to build more soil, enhance biodiversity, harvest solar energy, and demonstrate a more sustainable food model.
The Diet
Our veal calves suckle their mother’s milk and, as they mature, selectively graze the pasture plants. In addition to milk and pasture plants, our veal have access to free choice minerals, stored hay and/or other allowed stored feeds when the pasture nutrient density is too low to support adequate maintenance of the mother cow.
Our Veal Calves
Our veal are either twin beef calves or dairy bull calves reared by a surrogate mother dairy cow. Beef cows usually only supply enough milk to support one calf, but occasionally birth twins. Naturally, one of these twins would perish so that the other could survive. We separate one twin calf and provide it a surrogate dairy cow mother. A dairy cow can produce enough milk to rear up to 4 calves simultaneously. We also purchase dairy bull calves from our dairy neighbors to be sure our surrogate mother cows have adequate demand for all of the milk they are producing. Dairy bull calves are a byproduct of most dairy farms and are generally sold within days of birth and live a very short life. By raising our veal, we are actually providing all of our calves an extended and most natural life.
Our Veal Meat
Our veal is very mild yet tangy, rosy in color, very tender, and delicious meat. We only produce fresh veal as available and consider it a rare, but very special meat. We occasionally hold an inventory of frozen cuts in our freezer.
Organic? Local? Grass Fed? Pasture Raised? Humane?
- We are not certified organic.
- We use no hormones or artificial growth stimulants.
- We administer no antibiotics subtherapeutically, and cattle that are injured or sick will be administered antibiotics only as needed. Our cattle are free of antibiotics when they are harvested.
- Our veal are milk and grass fed and pasture raised.
- Our veal are locally raised within the Bay Area Food-Shed.
- Supplemental feed specifics.
Supply Chain
MSF veal are raised on farms within the Bay Area Food-Shed. Veal are slaughtered at Rancho USDA facility in Petaluma. The carcasses are transported to the F. Uri Meat Company USDA facility in San Francisco, dry aged, and butchered by MSF staff butchers for wholesale sales. Primal cuts destine for retail sale are then transported to the MSF retail butcher shops in Point Reyes Station or Oakland, for further fabrication, cutting and packaging.
It is the connection and transparency from production to plate that is most critical in upholding the highest level of integrity. If you have any questions or would like clarification on anything, please contact us.
