Nolan Ryan News

Understanding Country of Origin Labeling

Since October, meat products have been required by the U. S. government to carry country of origin labeling. We've gotten many e-mails from fans of Nolan Ryan's All-Natural Beef about the new labeling they've seen in stores. We want to set the record straight so you understand what you're buying when you purchase all-natural beef from Nolan Ryan.

What labels will Nolan Ryan’s beef products carry?
Our Premium Reserve Beef, found in Kroger Southwest stores, is “Product of the U.S.” Our guaranteed tender product, sold in Super S Stores, is labeled as “Product of the U.S. and Mexico.”

Does this mean Nolan Ryan buys imported beef?

Not by a long shot. All our beef is produced and processed in the United States. Almost 90% of our beef comes from cattle that are born in the United States with high percentage of that coming from southern states. However, we have to use that label on our guaranteed tender beef because U.S. cattlemen in southern states, for close to two centuries, have sold their genetics to Mexican cattlemen and bought back their calves in return. Some of these calves qualify for our program so, according to the regulations, we have to list both countries as sources on the label.

When do these cattle come to the U.S.?

Here’s a general situation: Southern cattlemen sell our beef genetics to Mexican cattlemen in the form of superior bulls. These bulls sire calves out of Mexican cows that meet the highest beef specifications. After these calves are old enough to eat grass (6 to 8 months of age), they are sold to Texas cattlemen who place them on pasture in the U.S. Once they reach about 750 pounds at about a year of age, they are put into a U.S. feedyard. From the feedyard they are harvested at a U.S. processing facility under USDA inspection. So in essence, although these calves are born in Mexico, they spend more than three-quarters of their life in the U.S.

Do Mexican cattlemen follow the same practices as U.S. cattlemen?

Yes. Quality control doesn’t stop at the border. Mexican cattlemen using U.S. genetics and selling calves to the U.S. adhere to strict production practices. We wouldn’t include these calves in our program if we had the slightest doubt about their quality. One of the foundations of the Nolan Ryan program is quality control. Therefore, we can assure our customers that control exists in every product that reaches the meat case. That includes the approximately 10% of our cattle that are born in Mexico but spend the majority of their productive life in the U.S.

We hope this answers any questions you may have. We appreciate hearing your thoughts about this issue so please don't hesitate to send us an email if you have more questions.