Today we’d like to introduce you to Autumn Smith.
Autumn, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Beginning in my teens, I suffered from IBS that no doctor could treat. After graduating from college, I moved to Los Angeles where I danced professionally and became a celebrity fitness trainer with the Tracy Anderson Method. It was during this time my health issues began to deepen. I looked pregnant after meals, my skin was breaking out, and I often felt anxious. I looked fit, but I was not well.
Frustrated by our lack of options, my husband went online to find a dietary solution. We eliminated processed foods and shopped at farmer’s markets and after over a decade of suffering, my digestive issues disappeared within 30 days. I was absolutely amazed!
In 2012 I was sent on a world tour with Jennifer Lopez. During my travels, it was difficult to find “paleo-approved” snacks that could fuel my workouts and keep my tummy happy. When I returned to the US, my husband and I (along with Matt Smith & Matthew Sobotka) founded Paleovalley, a whole food and supplement company devoted to providing high quality, sugar/gluten/dairy/GMO-free snacks that always prioritize health over profit.
After the birth of our son Maverick, we were inspired to find a way to make a bigger impact. In the sourcing for Paleovalley’s flagship product, our 100% Grass-Fed & Finished Beef Stick, we learned certain farmers were using ruminants to build soil health and sequester carbon. We saw this as a massive opportunity because we knew according to the FAO we only have 60 years of topsoil left. This meant Maverick’s generation would be left with a nutrient deficient food supply unless the soil health could be restored. The only problem? The price of grass-fed and finished products is often a huge barrier for consumers.
We knew we had to find a way to connect consumers with highly principled family farmers using regenerative practices at or near wholesale prices, so they could opt out of supporting factory farms and join our mission to restore soil and environmental health.
Wild Pastures was founded in 2017 as our solution. We joined forces with my brother in law, John Etchart, and source 100% grass-fed and finished beef (free from antibiotics, hormones and GMOs), and pastured chicken and pork from family farmers using regenerative practices and wild Alaskan salmon and deliver it straight to your doorstep at near wholesale prices.
In fact, my other brother in law, Kalvin, makes many of our deliveries and the locals rave about him! We’ve been in business for over a year and our membership continues to grow.
We feel privileged to serve the Denver area and will be expanding to Phoenix in the new year!
Has it been a smooth road?
No, it has not been a smooth road! This is a very tricky business, but we knew it would be 🙂
Our biggest challenge was finding producers who adhere to our strict standards and can also handle the volume we need. Our goal is to put a huge dent in factory farming (which is where most meat comes from) which would be impossible solely with small scale producers.
Fortunately, we have found our people and hope as more and more research demonstrating the benefits of regenerative agriculture is published, our tribe will only continue to grow.
Our goal is to be nationwide as quickly as possible.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Wild Pastures and Paleovalley story. Tell us more about the business.
At Wild Pastures, our mission is to provide beef, chicken and pork from animals that are 100% pasture-raised using regenerative agricultural practices in the United States and deliver them to your doorstep at or near wholesale prices.
We are different than other meat delivery services because we refuse to compromise on the quality of our product. For example, many other companies source “cage-free” or “free-range” chicken, while we’ll only source pasture-raised because the difference is significant.
We are only satisfied when we know all of our animals were fed appropriately, lived the happiest lives possible and had a positive impact on the environment. Other companies also source internationally, whereas we solely source domestically to create American jobs and restore American soils.
As a mission-based business, we are equally and fully committed to the nutritional quality of the final product (no antibiotics, steroids or GMOs) animal welfare, environmental restoration and a fair price for both farmers and consumers. We operate on razor-thin margins in order to keep the cost as low as possible for consumers while also maintaining our usually high standards.
We are probably best known for our delicious bacon, unwavering commitment to quality and super friendly delivery man, Kalvin. 🙂
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Grass-fed beef is responsible for under 5% of all beef sales today but it is projected to be around 30% in the upcoming years. The market is growing rapidly which is wonderful most of the grass-fed beef sold in America is still sourced internationally,
Our goal is to help people opt out of factory farming by creating a domestic supply chain of regenerative farmers and educate consumers about the benefits of grass-fed beef nutritionally and environmentally.
Pricing:
- We offer an annual memberships for $59 and $79
- We also offer 10-11 lbs. boxes for $99, 20-21 lbs. for $178 and 30-31 lbs. for $267
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wildpastures.com/welcome
- Email: [email protected]
Image Credit:
Joe Hatasaki
Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
