Niman Ranch rolls out new domestic Regenerative Organic Certified Beef

Effective Jan. 1, the U.S. Department of Agriculture implemented new requirements for the voluntary “Product of USA” label for meat, poultry and egg products.

Under this final rule, the label claim is strictly reserved for products derived from animals exclusively born, raised, harvested, and processed in the United States, providing greater transparency to consumers, the USDA said. On March 24, National Agriculture Day, the USDA announced a public awareness campaign about the Product of USA label.

This move aligns with the desire of consumers for better tracking and labeling of all their farm products, proponents say. Technology is making this goal a reality. Yet producers and marketers have to move carefully, ensuring that information on labels truly aligns with what consumers want, and consists of signals or meaningful information rather than noise or mere marketing. Pictured above is a courtesy photo from a ranch.

That is why Niman Ranch saw an opportunity. “USDA’s announcement on the ‘Product of USA’ campaign/label highlights a gap in the market,” Nick Tarpoff, vice president of beef procurement and supply chain for Niman Ranch, said in a recent conversation with High Plains Journal. 

“Politicians want to support American ranchers, consumers want American beef and, in particular, organic beef, which saw sales climb 44% last year. Yet around 95% of organic beef sold in America is currently imported. Why is that?” 

While the domestic beef industry struggles with a 75-year low in the domestic cattle herd, Niman Ranch says it is taking a different path.

“We are actively restoring the organic grass-fed supply chain through our new Regenerative Organic Certified Beef program just launched earlier this month,” Tarpoff said. “By partnering exclusively with a network of U.S. family ranchers across Nebraska, South Dakota and Montana, we have brought 105,000 U.S. acres into the regenerative organic fold, with a roadmap to 250,000 by 2028.”

So what does it take to earn the ROC label through Niman Ranch? Cattle producers must hold baseline USDA Organic certification, adhere to Niman’s strict 100% grass-fed and Angus-genetics protocols, and adopt stringent, third-party verified standards for soil health, pasture-based animal welfare, and social fairness. It involves active care for pastures—for instance, by feeding cattle in winter hay cut from the same meadows. If you’ve been growing row crops on the land, it may require a three-year transition to “organic” certification.

Tarpoff notes that Niman provides both technical and financial assistance, paying 100% of certification fees from third parties. A managed rotational grazing plan must be part of the certification. There are some costs to adopting the standards, Tarpoff said, but also savings from fewer inputs and higher product premiums. The final penciling out of costs versus savings will vary from operation to operation.  

“The USDA’s new ‘Product of USA’ campaign confirms what we have always known: consumers want to know their beef was born, raised and processed right here at home. Niman Ranch is investing now to help rebuild a resilient U.S. beef supply that will meet long-term consumer demand,” Tarpoff said. “We see interest in organic and regeneratively raised beef continuing to climb and it is critical that we provide a domestic solution.”

About 40 head of cattle a week are processed in accordance with this label, with the ability to grow quickly.

Tarpoff is confident the program will meet or exceed its acreage goals. “Consumer demand will sustain us. We are having to scale up more quickly than we anticipated. Ranchers want to transition to a program like this. The conversations we are having with producers would not have happened a generation ago.”

“There has been a lot of buzz behind this label” at ag events, he said. “Niman Ranch’s program is unique. We have built a framework for qualifying for it that is repeatable, scalable and sustainable.” 

David Murray can be reached at [email protected].