Making the farm home

By Valorie Brecht,

Tribune Record Gleaner As consumers become increasingly disconnected from the sources of their food, the Frese family’s farm-to-table beef operation offers a refreshing taste of tradition in every bite.

“Our mission is offering premium beef to local families at a reasonable price,” said Crystal Frese, who owns and operates Frese Natural Angus Beef with her husband, Cole. In 2014, Cole Frese bought his parents’ farm in rural Clark County between Thorp and Greenwood. About three years ago, he married Crystal.

“While we were dating, he would cook us steaks, and they were exceptional,” said Crystal. “The flavor was great and we never really did anything to them; we just put them on the grill. And I thought, ‘Cole, the world needs to know about these steaks.’ And so after we got married, I got our license to sell frozen retail beef.”

Cole had already sold whole, half and quarter beefs to friends and neighbors over the years, but had not ventured into retail. The couple made their business debut at Thorp’s Pumpkin Fest in October 2022. They loaded up their trailer freezer with items such as ground beef, various cuts of steaks, brisket, ribs, rump roast, chuck roast, hamburger patties, beef and pork snack sticks and pretty much any other type of beef you can imagine. Crystal said the response was very positive and has continued to be.

Since then, they established a brand and logos, created an online store and began selling at retail locations in Withee and nearby farmer’s markets.

Crystal grew up on a farm in southeastern Minnesota and is an athletic trainer by degree. Although she was familiar with farm life, she had a lot to learn about running a business and producing high-quality beef.

Cole grew up on a dairy-turned-beef farm. In 1982, his dad branched out onto his own acreage down the road from the homestead and made the family’s beginnings in natural beef. This is where Frese Naturals is located today.

“In Thorp, the Freses are well-known. A lot of people have ordered beef from them,” said Crystal. “This community was a good place to start because people really want to support local.”

The Freses own about 210 acres and farm about 600 acres, between pasture and cropland. They have about 80 cow-calf pairs, and feed between 200-250 beef cows total as part of a cooperative with other local farmers.

See FRESE BEEF/ Page 7

FRESE FAMILY FARM - Cole and Crystal Frese pose for a photo with their son, Henry, 2. Not pictured are their daughters: Ansley, 17, and Carley, newborn. The family feeds around 200-250 beef cows in a farm cooperative.

STAFF PHOTO/VALORIE BRECHT Frese beef

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“One big thing for us is animal husbandry, raising the animal humanely,” said Crystal.

The Freses’ Angus cattle are kept in their own on-site pastures where they are allowed to roam freely. They are hormonefree and stress-free, meaning they are not chased by motorized vehicles but rather rounded up on horseback.

The cows live on the farm and every year they are bred. They give birth to their calves in the spring. In late fall, the calves go through the chute and are weighed, vaccinated and castrated. They are weaned by early December. At that point, the calves are considered feeders, no longer on their moms. They eat a total mixed ration, or TMR, consisting of corn silage, hay, distillers and minerals throughout the winter. In the spring and summer, they eat grass and hay, pastured on 300 acres of grass meadows.

By the time the calves are about a year old, they have been separated by weight to determine at what point they are ready to be fattened and finished. Once they have reached the proper weight, sometime around 18 months, they are put on a finishing diet. A mixture of corn, oats and molasses is given on a freechoice basis for the final 90 days.

“It is our goal to provide a balanced diet in healthy surroundings to our animals, which in turn yields the best tasting, most tender beef,” said Crystal.

She and her husband pride themselves in providing an unaltered product, unlike mass-marketed chain store meats that may contain fillers or additives.

“There’s no fillers. It’s pure Angus beef. Our ground beef is every bit as Angus as our steaks,” said Crystal.

River Valley Meats in Withee processes most of the Freses’ meat for retail sales. Martin’s Meats in Withee also processes some of the beef for half or quarter sales.

The Freses have also started DNA testing the bulls and cows as well as their offspring through Angus Genetics Inc. to determine which animals test the strongest for certain traits.

“Rather than year after year doing the same thing, we have added genetic testing in the last year to work on bringing out those favorable traits that you find in beef, for example marbling and docility,” said Crystal.

When they need to replace a bull, they look for favorable traits they wish to continue. Cole spent 10 years in Colorado working on ranches, which allowed him to develop an eye for favorable traits in cattle. His other life experiences have also helped him to expand a successful business.

“I think it’s a common thing around here to raise beef and have some people you sell them to, but Cole has really ‘beefed it up’ if you will. He’s really grown the herd and he’s grown his customer base a lot by his own experiences, because he’s also a welder, a steamfitter… and so he has worked all over the region and made a lot of customers by that,” said Crystal.

The Freses’ business ideals include offering beef at a reasonable price. Crystal said it’s definitely been a learning curve to figure out how to keep their product affordable while also maintaining a profitable business.

“It’s tough, because how do you keep prices really low and See FRESE BEEF/ Page 10

FARM FRESH BEEF - The Freses raise Black Angus cattle on their farm at W8857 Starks Road, Greenwood.

STAFF PHOTO/VALORIE BRECHT Frese beef

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also make what you need to survive? Because it’s not an inexpensive process, feeding the animals and keeping them here on the farm, and how do you come out on top? So it’s kind of a dance, or kind of a delicate balance of what do we need to charge versus what are people willing to pay.”

What keeps them going is the community support and the desire to provide a quality source of protein while keeping it local.

“Truly it’s that farm-to-table concept. Some people patronize us before they’re looking for that direct (connection); some people don’t have another local beef source. It may be different reasons why they seek us out, but we’re welcoming of all of those.”

In addition to providing meat by the piece, Frese Beef is happy to provide larger quantities for occasions such as graduation parties or family reunions.

Frese Beef has retail sales at Mobile Mart in Withee, Butcher Block Market and Sweet Memories in Thorp, the Loyal farmer’s market on Tuesdays from 2-6 p.m. and the Greenwood farmer’s market on Thursdays from 2-6 p.m. Frese Beef also offers delivery to the Greenwood and Loyal area and can be reached at 715-773-8624.

For more information, visit the online store at FreseNaturals. com or go to the “Frese Natural Angus Beef” Facebook page.

ON THEIR OWN TIME - The herd enjoys grazing on 300 acres of grass meadows at the Frese farm.

STAFF PHOTO/VALORIE BRECHT