100% Grass Fed Beef Cook Off

PASA's 2nd Annual 100% Grass Fed Beef Cook Off
was a success!

From left:  2008 Cook-Off winner Rich DiFebo of Harvest Home Meats, Northampton; Marilyn Anthony, PASA Southeast Regional Director; Mike Smuckers, Smuckers Meats, Lancaster County, who accepted the 2009 Grand Champion Trophy on behalf of Larry Herr, Cressbrook Farm, Lancaster, Lancaster County; Todd & John Hopkins, 2009 Red Ribbon winners, Forks Farm, Orangeville; and Dianne & Kim Miller, Kananga Farm, Ligonier, Westmoreland County, who took both White Ribbon and Farmer's Choice honors.  Photo by Diana Morse.

Beef and Beef Cook Off Improve with Age

Grass farmers, skilled butchers, and thoughtful eaters all know that beef gets better with age. For the sell-out crowd who attended PASA’s  2nd Annual 100% Grass Fed Beef Cook Off on Sunday August 2nd, we know now that the “BCO”  (short for Beef Cook Off) can improve with age too.

Our 2nd BCO maintained many of its original features.  It was graciously hosted and sponsored by the Glasbern Inn in Fogelsville (www.glasbern.com).  Thirteen farmer contestants submitted Delmonico steaks for judging, ground beef and stew meat for a lunch buffet. A distinguished panel of chefs, food professionals and food writers worked hard through a 90 minute blind tasting to determine which beef was the best.  Master of Ceremonies Kim Miller kept us to a brisk pace and conducted a spirited live auction. In the end a Grand Champion Trophy and ribbons were awarded to the proud winners.

We’ll divulge those names in a minute (if the suspense is too great, you can see the winners listed in the box below) but first let’s describe what innovations shaped the 2nd BCO.

An important and dramatic difference this year was the addition of a Farmers’ Tasting Table.  All the farmer contestants gathered at their own table and took part in a blind tasting of each entry simultaneously with the panel of judges. The farmers followed the same rating system as the judges, and awarded their “Farmers Choice Blue Ribbon” to the top scoring steak. As farmer Marvin Moyer put it, “I have new respect for the work of these judges.  Tasting all that beef is hard work---they’re all so darn good.  I came into this event wanting to take first place, but after tasting all these great steaks I don’t even care about winning anymore.  I’m just glad I came.”

After the conclusion of the event, each contestant received the score they gave their own beef in the blind tasting, the scores and comments each judge gave their beef, and their overall ranking in the entire field of contestants. Second Place winner John Hopkins of Forks Farm wrote after the event, “I thought the farmer's tasting was a super idea - it put the whole thing in a very different perspective for me and I think for the other farmers as well.”

Spurred on by longtime PASA member and Glasbern owner Al Granger, This year’s event also added a full plate of educational pasture walks and talks in the afternoon, coordinated by veterinarian and PASA science advisor, Susan Beal. 

Key event sponsors included The Fertrell Company, Kings’ Agriseeds, Agri-dynamics, and Leona Meats generously contributed time, money and expertise to this year’s event. Behind the scenes, Mike and Chick Debach from Leona not only processed much of the contestants’ meat, but did an amazing job of making sure all the beef entries arrive at Glasbern safely and on time. Jeff Mattocks and Orin Moyer from The Fertrell Company presented a pasture talk on what multi-species grazing adds to the whole farm ecology. Dave Wilson from King’s Agriseeds led a “Looking at Pasture” walk, observing what was currently growing in the fields. Jerry Brunetti from Agri-Dynamics gave a lively talk on “Learning to Look for Healthy Soil”.  Ridge Shinn from The Rotokawa Cattle Company led the final pasture walk of the day.  Whimsically entitled, “A Field Study on Self Propelled Solar Harvesters”, Ridge used the animals at Glasbern as live illustrations, pointing out what to look for in stock to build your grass based herd and your meat supply. 

In addition, the gurus of composting, Patti Olenick and Carl Hursh from DEP, gave an entertaining presentation on successful tips for home composting and sent one lucky participant home with a free composter.

Special thanks to Patti and Carl who helped us make the BCO a “Nearly Zero Waste” event.  They set up easily understandable composting and recycling stations and at the end of the day carted off a surprisingly small number of bags headed for a nearby farm composting operation.

For those who attended the 2008 BCO you probably have fond memories of a perfect sunny summer day.  Not so for the 2009 Cook off when torrential downpours soaked the eastern part of the state, flooding fields and closing roads.  Nonetheless our hardy crew of farmers arrived on time and guests took us at our word that it was a rain or shine event.  Kudos to the Glasbern staff who kept us all comfortable and dry under spacious tents, to Rodale Chef Mike Van Pelt, PASA volunteer Kate Hunter who kept the steaks sizzling off the grill for the judging, and to the fabulous Britton Brothers who moved under the tent for an entertaining afternoon of music.  The sun broke through the clouds by early afternoon and pasture walks continued as planned.

And now for our winners, let’s hear from Grand Champion Larry Herr of Cressbrook Farm. “It’s an honor to be recognized among these responsible Pennsylvania farms which produce healthy and delicious food. PASA’s message of sustaining land and making farming more viable is vital to not only Pennsylvania’s farming, but to the state’s economy as a whole.”  Proudly accepting the award on behalf of Cressbrook Farm was Mike Smucker of Smucker’s Meats, where Larry has his beef processed.

Our heartiest congratulations to each of the BCO winning farms shown below and to our dedicated tasters, judges Edible Chesapeake publisher Renee Catacalos, Cookbook author Tara Desmond, Chef Shawn Doyle, Lancaster Farming editor Anne Harnish, Farmer and PASA board member John Jamison, meat buyer Larry McGreal,  Culinary Instructor Susan Roth, Chef Royer Smith, and Chef Sean Weinberg.

Chef Weinberg, owner of Restaurant Alba in Malvern PA, spoke for many of the judges when he remarked, “I’m so impressed by the quality of every one of these steaks.  It’s amazing to me how much better grass fed beef in Pennsylvania has gotten in the last five years.”

A round of thanks and grateful recognition to “Friends of the BCO” whose donations helped make this a successful fundraiser for PASA---Ian & Lauren Smith, Snyders of Hanover, Stoudts Brewery, The Lands at Hillside Farm, and Wegmans of Allentown.

Lest we forget, the BCO is not just about taking home a trophy or a ribbon.  First time farmer contestant Cathy Pomanti from Sugarhill Farm summed up her experience in a few choice words, “I really enjoyed the event!  That was a lot of fun and (it was) good to meet other farmers”.

Rumor has it that next year’s BCO will be held in the western part of  PA, and may include lamb as well as beef. Look for details for the 3rd Annual  BCO, coming in 2010!

Grand Champion Trophy Winner- Larry Herr; Cressbrook Farm Breed: Irish Blacks
Farmers’ Choice Blue Ribbon- Kim & Dianne Miller; Kananga Farm Breed: Devon
Second Place Red Ribbon- Todd & John Hopkins; Forks Farm Breed: Angus
Third Place White Ribbon- Kim & Dianne Miller; Kanaga Farm Breed: Devon

Special thanks to all of the 2009 Beef Cook Off Contestants
To read more details about our contestants, click here for the PDF of their farm posters

To learn more about the 2008 Beef Cook Off, click here
To read more about the farms participating in the 2008 Beef Cook Off