When it came time to consider another meat trial for Zac, I admit to being at a bit of a loss.
My awesome lamb guy only raises lambs.
We’re pretty confident chicken (so probably turkey and other poultry) is a trigger, so we didn’t want to go there.
Game meats are supposedly good, but as sensitive as Zac is we were unsure of animals who may have eaten anything – including corn – while they wandered the woods.
What’s left?
Then one of my friends shared how her son, another sensitive reactor like Zac, had been doing really well on pork.
So of course, I asked for the contact information to her pork source!
My friend shared with me, and now I’m sharing with you…because whether or not pork proves safe for Zac, this lady is awesome and deserves some pats on the back (and business) for her efforts!
Christina Traeger runs Rolling Hills Traeger Ranch in Minnesota. She raises chickens, beef, duck, turkey, goose, and pork; all free-ranged as much as possible, fed soy and corn free feeds when necessary, antibiotic and hormone free, and sustainably raised.
That’s what I’m talking about! Animals raised the most humane way possible, and the most healthy way possible! Gotta love this lady!
I’ve now chatted with Christina by phone several times and exchanged many messages online, and she is the real deal. She is concerned about the food supply the way it is these days, and wants to do her part to make eating healthy and safe for everyone – especially those who are sensitive to corn and soy.
She was happy to ship meat to us, and it arrived still frozen in a styrofoam insert.
This pork roast was beautiful and unique; I told Darrel I was glad I didn’t currently have a beef roast cooked up because I was likely to mix up the meats!
Shredded, beautiful pork roast!
As with heirloom vegetables, heritage breeds of animals that are not fed corn and soy have different qualities. Christina’s Berkshire hogs have meat that is red in color when raw, and cooks up more of a reddish-brown.
It certainly doesn’t look like the washed out, pale looking white meat of grocery store pork!
It smells heavenly when cooking, too. The aroma of the roast I cooked was on par for deliciousness to cooking up a pan full of bacon…and our roast was cooked with no seasonings or vegetables at all!
I wish we lived closer so we could go visit Rolling Hills and Christina. Maybe someday we can go for a visit to see her ranch in action.
Until then, though, we will order as much as we can in meats from this wonderful rancher with a conscience.
If you want to eat some delicious, humanely raised, GMO-free meat, I strongly urge you to order from Christina and Rolling Hills Traeger Ranch. You won’t be sorry!
Find her online at GrillinMeats, or at Love British Whites.
She’s on Facebook here and here.
And her contact info is directly below:
Christina Traeger
38468 210th Ave
Ogema, MN 56569
320-293-2995
Like I said, even if pork doesn’t prove to be safe for Zac, this lady is amazing and I wanted to share with everyone a fabulous source of Good Meat.
Frankly, her prices are so good that we will continue to buy as much as we can from her just for Darrel and Jed!
Happy grilling!
Thanks for the awesome info! My mouth is watering. Since having an FPIES kiddo our family eats only grass-fed beef and pasture raised Berkshire pork. I agree, the pork is amazing! We are luck to have access to quality meat here in Seattle. I’m SO hoping that pork is a pass for Zac and that the half eaten lady bug was the offender. Take Care!
Carrie, Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with your darling boys. My son is now 32 years old, but no one could diagnose what he went through from the time he was about nine months old until he was at least four. He had terrible stomach pains that would keep him up most nights. He would be very disagreeable during the day and nearly impossible if he was hungry.
Food challenges are real. Even for myself, I gave up eating meat because of the ill effects I had from eating it. Christina is my daughter, and once I tried the grass-fed beef and could digest it and still felt good, I again became a meat-eater.
I’d just like to share a bit about my daughter, who has had her own trials with trying to raise good quality meats, find the right processor and navigate the challenging weather (drought) as well as acquire quality feed at a reasonable price. The project she has undertaken, has been years in the making. From the time she was very small, she had a way with animals. The herd of cattle is so loving and gentle, I can honestly say that I have never seen this kind of respect between a herd of animals and their owner. I grew up on a dairy farm and we raised our children on a dairy farm. We never were able to build the rapport with our animals in the way that Christina has done with hers. She is truly an animal whisperer! And it’s not just with cattle, but with all animals.
To take this to the next step, Christina gave her daughters the opportunity to raise their own animals. Ashley has gone on to raise pigs and Hailey has taken on the business of raising the birds, chickens, ducks, geese and even turkeys. The oldest, Rebecca, has left the farm to get married and raise her own baby, who will only get the best quality meats.
We live in an era when it is imperative to demand quality. Not only with our food, but from our lifestyle and our humanity. Most of us have learned to simply tolerate so many parts of life. This limits our ability to thrive. Mostly because we always seem to be struggling to make enough money to survive.
We really appreciate Christina and her girls dedicating their lives to producing quality food that we can enjoy from the comfort of our home. I’ve been out there in the barn with her when the temperatures were well below zero and a cow was calving, or the skidloader wouldn’t start in the cold and it was time to feed the cows. I’ve also witnessed the wonder of a new litter of baby pigs or the humming of a cow as she licks her newborn calf.
Our love and prayers go out to you as you make this challenging journey with your boys! We definitely see the love in their eyes and the joy in their hearts and they look forward to some great life adventures, which will hopefully, include feeling healthy and vibrant in the days and years ahead!
Blessings!
Sandee
Wow, Sandee! I liked Christina enormously already, but now I have even more respect for her. What a great woman you raised!
Thank you for sharing this with me. I am so impressed by what I’ve learned about her ranch and how she runs things. I wish we could go visit and see it in action! I’d love to see an animal whisperer interact with her animals.
I know running a ranch takes a lot of work, but your description makes me appreciate Christina’s hard work even more.
Thank you for your love and prayers; feeling healthy and vibrant is my dearest wish for the boys, too.
Blessings to you and your entire family, Sandee! Thank you so much for writing to me. I’m starting to understand what people mean when they say “Know your Farmer” (or rancher!). It’s great to get to know you all. 🙂
Carrie
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