Our Product

Cal Poly was donated some remarkable property in Santa Cruz County by alumni Al Smith. This property, known as the Swanton Pacific Ranch, is located along scenic Highway 1 about 12 miles north of Santa Cruz. Altogether the ranch is comprised of 3200 acres. On this land is where a small cow/calf herd is maintained year-round. The breeding program is focused on creating a herd of cows that will produce calves that are marketed as Natural Grass-fed or Natural Grain-fed Beef.

Natural Grass-fed Beef

Grass-fed beef is fed just that, grass! They are raised completely natural without the use of hormones or antibiotics. Grass-fed beef differs slightly in look, texture, smell, and taste; but to many, it tastes better than what is available at grocery stores. For further information on the benefits of Natural Grass-fed Beef please click on the “Benefits of Grass-fed Beef” button.
* Grass-fed Beef is only available during the spring due to the availability of forage.

Natural Grain-fed Beef

Grain-fed Beef has the familiar taste that Americans have come to love and expect. This tender, juicy beef has a feathering of fat within the meat called marbling. The cattle are raised on a grass for approximately two years and then finished on a corn-based diet and no growth hormones or antibiotics are used.
Swanton Pacific Ranch along with the Cal Poly Beef Marketing Enterprise offers a 30lb box of either Grass-fed or Grain-fed Beef. To ensure that you receive the highest quality product, we genetically test our herd for the presence of the TenderGENE (For further information on the TenderGENE, please click on the link). The boxes contain a variety of retail cuts (please see chart). During the spring and fall a 30lb box of beef can be purchased for $150.