Today we’d like to introduce you to Antonia (Toni) Gaines
Hi Antonia (Toni) , so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I didn’t grow up on a farm, but I did grow up riding and showing horses. I went to Berry College and rode on the Equestrian Team. I graduated with an Animal Science major and a Business minor. I worked at all the animal units at Berry including the Dairy, Beef Unit, and Sheep Barn. After graduating I worked as a farm manager and then got a job as a cattle feed and animal health sales rep. That’s where I met my husband who is a cattle rancher. Before we got married, I started a job with the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture). I spent 5 years working there, First as a Program Technician and then as a Farm Loan Officer. My father in law and husband raise cattle for a living, Clay (my husband) and I had toyed with the idea of selling beef direct to consumer, but with both of us working full time jobs there wasn’t really a way to make it work. Almost a year ago now, he and I both decided that it was best for me to part ways with the USDA and transition to full time at the farm in addition to starting up the retail beef side of the operation and that is how Gaines Beef came to fruition. I spent about 6 months researching, branding, acquiring the licensing, etc before we were up and running. In January we took the first group of steers to the processor and it has just kept growing since then. The quality of meat has improved greatly as time has passed. I attend between 5-6 famers market a week. We have an online store for folks to place pickup or local delivery orders. I was also able to get contract with a local School System through a grant they received to be able to put our ground beef and stew meat in the lunchroom. Chef Cam Floyd has graciously given us a chance, and they are serving our Ribeye in Gezzos Coastal Cantina as well.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Starting up a new business has steep learning curve for sure! My husband and in-laws have been such big supporters and helped me out in a huge way getting started. Selling our beef direct to consumer really goes in line with what we were already doing on the farm. In the beginning the biggest challenge was just getting people to try it. Of course, farm to table beef has a different price point that the grocery store. Thankfully, we have received so much positive feedback from folks. Word of mouth has been huge in our business thus far. The biggest challenge is knowing when to process more steers. We don’t have a walk in freezer, so timing it just right to never run out of meat can be tricky at times.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
This business is steadily growing. Down the road, I would love to have a store front of some kind. Right now we are a long ways from that. Everyone seems to love the ground beef once they try it. It has a great flavor to it and it’s not comparable to what you get at the store. It makes incredible burgers. Our cattle are fed corn silage. There are very few farms that are able to put up corn silage, and I think it sets the meat apart from other operations.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Gaines Beef is a post covid business. During covid I was working for the USDA, however, I did develop even more of an appreciation of farm living. Our lives didnt really change that much in the way of the farm. Everything kept going out here like normal for the most part.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.gainesbeef.com
- Instagram: @gainesbeef
- Facebook: @gainesbeef
