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Hunter Cattle Farm Heritage Day

Hunter Cattle FamilyIt’s not uncommon to see Del Ferguson running through town on his way to this meeting or that meeting, or even shaking hands at an event where he is promoting his family’s business. Always quick with a smile, always quick with help when he can, Del has become a fixture on the Savannah food scene. Hunter Cattle Company’s beef made its splash in Savannah via Green Truck Pub, and they have never looked back. You can find Hunter Cattle products at any number of restaurants in the region and all the way up to the Governor’s Mansion in Atlanta. When Whole Foods Market came to town, they asked Hunter Cattle to provide them with their beef. Del initially said no because he couldn’t maintain his standard for quality of production. Long story short, with a little help from Whole Foods, Hunter Cattle Company found a way to make it all work. The scores of people who came looking for that grass-fed beef were extremely happy they were able to do so.

The background of this family-run business has been told many times. What started out as a way to feed his family clean, healthy, “homegrown”, beef turned into a small retail outlet at their farm in Brooklet. Fast forward a handful of years later…hard work, long hours, and distribution is still a regular part of their day. But so is life on the farm.  Raising cattle, feeding pigs and goats, and embracing their own family lifestyle, no matter how many trucks full of steaks and burgers roll off of their property. Next week, they want to invite you to share a taste of life on the farm with them when they host their Farm Heritage Day on September 20th.

If you’ve seen our Eat It and Like It episode on “Steak”, you saw a sampling of what Farm Day is all about. Families, from all over the region, spending a day with the kids outdoors, having a great time. But this event has become so much more. The event is now called “Farm Heritage Day” and it is an all encompassing tribute to all of the people that make life on the farm possible. “We’ve decided to incorporate other farmers from our area”, says Kristan Fretwell.  Kristan is Del’s daughter and she is somewhat of a coordinator of this event, although on the farm everyone wears all of the hats. She was nominated to tell us all about it. “Chefs and restaurants which use our products, we’d like to feature them as well.” There will be something on the farm that day for everyone, attracting all walks of life, believe it or not.  “We have more city folk that come to us”, Kristan says.  “From Hilton Head, Savannah, Brunswick, Atlanta and Macon. They might have had a grandparent who had a farm and they have that memory.”  “City folk are farm removed. They come out because they don’t have these things”, she says.

SONY DSCThere will be cooking demos, recipe discussions, lessons on egg incubation, lessons on how to milk a goat, and all kinds of educational elements to the event, but that certainly won’t be all. Yes, of course, you get to eat ‘til your heart’s content.  Last year Kristan tells me they had people showing up as soon as they opened, looking to enjoy a nice lunch on the farm. This time around, they’ve addressed that. The Hunter Cattle Barn and Grill will be running all day long, serving up their now famous burgers as well as pulled pork and hot dogs. In addition to all of that, 22 Square at the Andaz hotel, Leoci’s Trattoria, Thrive Catering from Wilmington Island, Olde Pink House, NEO Hilton Head Island are among the names of restaurants that are going to be offering some of their tasty goodness.  There will be no shortage of great food.

All the food accounted for, there will also be all kinds of things you would expect when spending a day on the farm. Petting zoos, wagon rides, fishing in the pond, and of course, lots of space for the kids to run around. Not enough? Kristan just happened to mention “There will even be a Winnebago parked on the grounds so women with babies can have a place to cool off in the air conditioning.”  Toss in live music all day long from five local groups and you’ve got yourself a perfect afternoon.

As the family farm continues to grow, you can count on these Farm Day events to get bigger and better, as well. “It’s a way for us to preserve our heritage”, Kristan says.  “Encourage people to buy local, give back to the community. and learn a sustainable life.”

Sounds like a plan.

See you on TV.

Jesse

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