Farmer Del Organics is a family run farm located just north of St.Albert, Alberta. It started as a dream of Delton Jubinville (Farmer Del) to be able to bring world class beef to the table of his friends and neighbours while minimizing his environmental footprint. Now with our amazing North Devon/Galloway crosses we are able to do just that organically and without grain, hormones, or antibiotics. At Farmer Del, we believe the best beef eats only grass. It's better for the animal, our world and for you. Our heritage breed cows deliver top-end, marbled beef eating the way they were intended.
About Me - My name is Delton Jubinville, aka ‘FARMER DEL’. I have ranched/farmed my entire life and my goal has always been to operate with the least environmental footprint possible. It has been a lifelong passion of mine, to one day offer the healthiest, tastiest, premium quality beef to the local market produced with the health of both people and the planet in mind. In the past I have ranched many breeds of cattle, as well as bison and deer. I have always felt that done right, one should be able to raise beef with a superior taste that rivals the health benefits of bison and game meats.
While eating my own beef and some from local ranchers, I found that the animals raised for our conventional markets needed grain in order for the meat to marble properly. I was shocked to discover the health and environmental benefits of grass-finished beef as opposed to grain-finished. This information, along with the heavier environmental footprint that goes along with mono-cultural production, fortified my determination to raise the best beef the way nature intended, on 100% grass.
The more I researched the more I realized the majority of our cattle, in the last fifty years, were bred to excel in the feedlot environment, regardless of the health benefits of grass-finishing for the animal, the consumer, and the planet. This has led to the majority of our animals not being able to marble on grass alone. So I kept digging and going to different shows and conferences and found there was only a handful of breeds that can actually produce great tasting, high quality beef purely on grass. It is no surprise these are all Heritage breeds, some of which date back to the 1600’s. I found it interesting the only breeds offering the quality of meat I was after, were those humanity has basically ignored for centuries. Some of these breeds are Highland, Longhorn, North Devon (Red Ruby’s), Galloway, Welsh black, Aberdeen Angus and Herford.
Before choosing the breeds to form my herd, I researched other qualities that have a direct correlation to tender beef such as a smaller frame, high butterfat in the cow’s milk and docility. As I began putting together the recipe for the beef I wanted to raise, I found through carcass competitions and documented research the older breeds were able to bring better quality meat to the plate. Through past experience I have learned crossbred animals seemed to produce superior beef and offspring hence I chose to build my herd crossing Galloway and North Devon (Ruby Reds). It is the perfect combination to fulfill my dream of bringing the highest quality beef to my friends and neighbors; grass finished beef with a quality that I believe will be second to none.
Where It all Started -
In 2012 I moved back to my home place just north of St. Albert and started looking for organic land where I could physically build the herd of my choice. I approached John and Bill Bocock , a third generation dairy operation, with my plan of offering beef with all the characteristics that were needed to achieve this level of quality while maintaining the smallest environmental foot print. Bill and John’s response was that it was perfect timing since they had not used chemical on their land for over four years and they were no longer in the dairy business. These gentlemen are die-hard farmers and angels in disguise.
That same year I traveled to Saskatchewan to pick up some of my first Galloway seed stock. I was impressed with the docile herd they were coming from. Shortly after, I made another eight-hour trip to northeast Saskatchewan for a small herd of South Devon cattle, again of superior quality.
For centuries, Ruby Reds (North Devon) were the butchers’ choice in many different countries, since they produce an unrivaled quality of beef off grass alone. I was still set on getting some real North Devon genetics into my herd. This was not an easy task as there were none for sale in Canada. So we implanted embryos into surrogate cows in Montana and once they were past the first trimester, we brought them to the organic Bocock ranch where they would soon deliver us the highest quality North Devon’s in the World. I will be forever grateful to Bill Bocock for making this possible. Talk about exciting when our first five calves were born this summer, three of which will likely be our herd sires.
It has been a long process but I have now received my organic certification. Organic animals currently being processed are considered and sold as “Transitional”. These are all animals born before the completion of the organic certification process. Even though I started the certification process a couple years ago and have ranched following organic standards and practices all my life, it is regulatory that only the offspring of animals that have not entered the third trimester as of the date of actual certification can be labeled as (certified) organic.
You can rest assured that purchasing a farmer Del Organics beef package is not only the healthiest choice for your family, but it is also likely the healthiest local choice for the planet.
Thanks for considering our environment with your food purchases.
Eat Healthy, Stay Lean
Farmer Del
