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Biz Buzz shares business tidbits from the tri-state area. In addition to this update from Cascade, Iowa, we will share other developments in Tuesday’s edition.
A Cascade farmer’s mail-order beef business is booming.
Lillie Beringer, owner of Beringer Family Farms, 28031 Goose Hill Road, launched the venture in January 2021. Since then, the business has grown, and Beringer is getting creative to fulfill demand.
“It spiraled like crazy,” she said of her business. “But it’s so exciting, and I’m so passionate about sharing the farm-to-plate story and initiating the local food movement. We’re really just trying to think outside the box on how to get beef out into the community.”
Beringer is part of the third generation in her family to work on the farm founded by her grandfather, William, in the 1950s.
She said the mail-order business originated “totally by accident” after friends suggested she expand the farm’s online presence. After that, she said people began asking how to purchase their beef.
Now through the mail-order beef service, Beringer said customers can order individual cuts of meat for either pickup or delivery. Deliveries are shipped Mondays and available in all 50 states.
That portion of the business has recently taken off; Beringer has more than doubled her output in the past handful of months.
“It’s been about me getting really scrappy figuring out how to move products in bulk,” she said.
In March, Beringer began providing beef to Monticello restaurant The Market at the Tap. She also began providing beef to Aquin Catholic School in Cascade, with plans to expand to additional schools next year. She also began sourcing beef to St. Matthias Food Pantry in Cascade and Rural Community Food Pantry in Dyersville.
Beringer also plans to host several events at the farm this year, starting with the first farm-to-table dinner on June 8.
“When I first got started, it was mostly just the beef,” she said. “In February I was working full-time at an off-farm career, but now I’ve switched to farming full time. I have a lot planned this year to be able to keep diversifying our income.”
More information on Beringer Family Farms can be found online at beringerfamilyfarms.com. The farm can also be found on Facebook and Instagram @beringerfamilyfarms.