Here’s the weekly roundup from Watson Farms and your direct connection to your farmer. Enjoy the latest edition of Pasture Posts!
It’s hard to believe we’ve done over 100 editions of Pasture Posts. That number is a testament to the interest that consumers have maintained in our farm over the last several years. This appetite for local pasture based food has not only allowed another generation to steward the land, but also has breathed life into the farm through the various enterprises that have been spun up. These enterprises have grown our team from basically a three-person operation to a team of 12-15 people employed directly and a great number more in collaboration through other local businesses that provide us with inputs or that we provide our products to.
A very important part of our story is the fact that our direct-to-consumer approach has allowed customers to have a direct impact on keeping a family on a local farm that could have easily succumbed to development pressures that exist in our area. Development appears to be an ever-increasing threat for thousands of farms across the country including ours, but we hope that between the appetite of consumers for local pasture based proteins and farmers that are willing to market to these consumers, that farmland can be preserved. As long as the customer base is strong enough, we look forward to seeing just how many animals can sustainably be produced on 300 acres of pasture!
Our farm has also moved from a sole focus on grass-fed beef to a full offering from 4 different classes of livestock. Our chickens share pastures with our cattle in a symbiotic relationship that mimics that of birds and herbivores in the wild. Although beef continues to be our leading category, chicken, pork and eggs continue to climb. These additional enterprises are critical to a stable farm business as they add more legs to the stool so to speak. What other species might we add in the future?
The last thing I want to mention in this edition is the dramatic growth we have seen in the number of people we are able to work with through the common mission of serving our customers. As I grew up on the farm, I saw the commercial turkey business first hand, and frankly there wasn’t a lot to get excited about and there definitely wasn’t much job creation happening. But in the past 3 years we’ve seen our team blossom, and it’s very exciting to think about what things might look like in another 3 years. We are very thankful for each one of our team members that help to make things happen here at Watson Farms.
Thank you for helping a family farm not only stay alive, but thrive in a time when many small farms are being bought up by the big guys. Consumers have more power than they often realize. We appreciate you voting for change with your food dollar!
Take a look at this blog post from May 2020 to see how we were just starting to gear up for an expansion that continues today!
Order Deadlines and Store Hours
Here’s a friendly reminder to get your orders in by the deadline. We have changed our workflow some to help reduce errors, so we have to begin the process of staging orders for the next day’s delivery very soon after the deadlines below. Help us serve you better by ensuring your order is placed in time!
Charleston Area: 12 noon Mondays
UPS Orders: 12 noon Mondays
Columbia Area deliveries now occur on Wednesdays.
Deadline for the Columbia Area: 12 noon on Tuesdays
GSP: 12 noon on Wednesdays
Charlotte/Fort Mill/Rock Hill Areas: 12 noon on Fridays
Farm Pickup: Please wait until you receive an email stating that your order is ready to be picked up (usually 1 business day from when you place your order). Farm pickup is done during store hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday: 10am to 6pm
Saturday: 10am to 2pm
Closed Sunday and Wednesday
Tell a Friend!
It’s now easier than ever to Give $15 and Get $15 through our Referral Program. We don’t spend a lot of money of advertising, but rather we focus on producing products that people love and are willing to tell others about. So we depend on word of mouth to find new customers and ultimately to heal more land.
So in an effort to streamline this process we have made it easier to tell others (via email, Facebook, or Twitter) about Watson Farms. And it’s all automated on the backend, so you don’t have to rely on us to issue the store credits manually. Just head over to our Referrals Page and start sharing!
Product Spotlight
Needing to stock your freezer with some chicken? Now is a great time. Our whole broilers are on sale for $4.99/lb this week only! That is $.50 off per lb! Stock up now!
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Whole Broiler$24.94 – $34.38
UPS Customers Can Save Too!
Our 4 Whole Broiler Bundle is the perfect size to stock your freezer and it ships to over 20 states in the Eastern U.S. Save 10% on top of the bundle savings already built in!
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4 Whole Broilers (UPS)$139.00
We re-use packaging!
We’ve seen a good response to our efforts in re-using packaging! Thanks and keep it up.
You can help us reduce our carbon footprint by returning your CLEAN egg cartons and meat boxes.
The main reason that we switched to plastic egg cartons a while back was because they are so much more durable than paper which could only be used once. They also protect the eggs much better!
So if you have some egg cartons or boxes to return, you can just place them on your porch on your home delivery day. Farm pickup customers can, of course, drop them off when you come to pick up your new order.
***We can only re-use OUR cartons or boxes. Please re-use or recycle other boxes or egg cartons elsewhere.***
We redact your personal information found on your meat boxes when we re-use them, but feel free to redact to redact it yourself without damaging the box if you would like.
Thanks for helping us re-use our packaging!
Did you know that we have a webpage that displays all the reviews we have received?
Check it out!
Check out this ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review:
“Ordered a pasture Box and was very impressed with the variety of meats/cuts. We were getting Butcher Box which we really enjoyed but really liked the idea of supporting a local farm but also it is clear the Watson Farms takes exceptional care of the animals and their customers. The delivery was on time and clearly communicated.”
We would greatly appreciate it if you would be kind enough to leave us a review. It helps first-time customers purchase with confidence.
Thanks again for being partners in this endeavor of local, pasture-raised proteins that has truly transformed our farm. We look forward to continuing this transition while serving you long into the future.
Sincerely,
The Watsons
Pasture Posts is written by Matt Watson.