What It Really Takes to Keep Grassfed Beef in Stock

One of the most common questions we get is simple: “Why is beef so hard to keep in stock?”

It’s a fair question. In a world where nearly everything is available on demand, running out of food—especially something as foundational as beef—feels frustrating and unnecessary.

But the truth is, keeping grassfed, regeneratively raised beef available year-round isn’t just a supply chain problem. It’s a values problem.

Because when you refuse to compromise on how animals are raised, how land is treated, and who you source from, the process looks very different from the industrial food system most people are used to.

So let’s pull back the curtain on what it actually takes to keep beef in our freezers—and why running out is sometimes the cost of doing things the right way.

How Do You Actually Find a Regenerative Beef Partner?

We don’t just pull out a phone book (remember those? 😅) and make a few calls.

These relationships are years in the making. In fact, many of our partner farms find us.

Before an animal ever lands in our freezers, there’s:

• Countless phone calls
• Farm visits
• Long conversations about values and practices
• Product testing
• Trust built over time

And then comes the logistical work:

• Coordinating slaughter dates (often booked a year or more out)
• Processing schedules
• Transportation
• Freezer space
• Cash flow timing

This is not fast food sourcing.
It’s slow, deliberate, and incredibly intentional.

Why Is Beef Always the Hardest Protein to Keep in Stock?

If you’ve been around Rebel for a while, you already know this: beef is our hardest protein to keep available.

And it’s not because demand is low.
It’s because our standards are high.

Here’s the reality:

• The U.S. beef supply is at its lowest level since the 1960s
• Less than 1% of beef raised in the U.S. is both grassfed and raised with regenerative practices
• Family farms are dropping off every year due to consolidation, costs, and burnout

That leaves a very small pool of farms that align with how we believe food should be raised.

Why Don’t You Just Buy Beef Like Everyone Else?

Because we refuse to.

Grocery stores and large meat-box companies don’t buy animals the way we do. They buy primals - large sections of beef - from massive packers who aggregate cattle from all over the place.

That system is fast.
It’s efficient.
And it’s completely disconnected from the land and the farmer.

We don’t source beef that way.

Our partner farm sourcing is slower, riskier, and much harder... but it’s also honest.

And yes… when we run out of stock, it hurts.

What Happens When We Run Out of Beef?

People get frustrated.
Some get upset.
Some buy elsewhere.

And I get it. Truly.

But here’s the hard part: when customers leave because we don’t have something right now, it directly impacts our ability to restock later.

Because unlike the bigs, we don’t have:

• Venture capital
• Massive lines of credit
• Inventory floating on speculation

Which leads us to the bigger issue at play.

Is On-Demand Culture Hurting Our Food System?

Yes. Deeply.

Consumers have been trained, by Big Food, Big Retail, Big Tech, to expect everything cheap and on demand.

Food.
Clothes.
Gadgets.

We’ve traded transparency, resilience, and values for convenience.

And the unintended consequences are piling up.

What Are the Real Costs of On-Demand Food?

• We don’t know who’s raising our food, or even what country it’s coming from
• We unintentionally support unhealthy, inhumane, and extractive practices
• Chronic disease continues to rise
• 62% of kids’ meals come from processed food in plastic bags

This isn’t accidental.
It’s the outcome of a system optimized for speed, scale, and profit... not health.

How Does On-Demand Culture Kill Competition?

Here’s something most people never see.

Small farms pay for everything up front:

• Feed
• Land
• Labor
• Processing
• Transportation
• Storage

All before a single dollar comes in from a customer.

Big corporations don’t operate this way. They float inventory, hedge risk, and lean on debt, subsidies, and scale to crush competition.

So when consumers are conditioned to expect instant availability at all times, it becomes almost impossible for small farms to compete - one on one - against the power of the bigs.

Why We Still Choose This Path

Even with all of this, we’re proud of how we source our beef.

Because every animal in our freezer represents:

• A real farmer
• A real piece of land
• A system that’s trying to get better, not bigger

Running out of stock isn’t a failure.
It’s a signal that we’re operating within real limits.

And those limits are exactly what keep this food honest.

What Can Consumers Do Instead?

Support farms that:

• Are transparent about sourcing
• Accept limitations instead of hiding them
• Build relationships instead of chasing volume

Patience isn’t passive.
It’s powerful.

Because when you choose to wait for food raised the right way, you’re not just buying beef... you’re helping rebuild a food system that can actually last.

Thanks for giving a damn.