Red Oak Hereford Farms Profile
Red Oak Hereford Farms, Inc. (the Company), incorporated in 1989, was founded for the purpose of creating a vertically integrated business enterprise to market and sell Red Oak Farms' premium branded products and other quality synergistic products including procuring, producing, processing, marketing, and distributing. Red Oak Farms, Inc. (ROF), a wholly owned subsidiary, has initially been establishing market share and a customer base through the marketing, distribution, and promotion of Red Oak Farms' Certified Hereford Beef (CHB).
Red Oak Farms' Premium Hereford Beef, a premium, branded, beef-product, capitalizes on the consistent consuming qualities inherent in Hereford and Hereford British based cattle, bred for centuries specifically for the eating quality of their beef. In addition, the program was designed to ensure premium, quality of PHB through a combination of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Company monitoring of cattle genetics, feeding, harvest, and fabrication. The Company harvests and fabricates qualified cattle at its contract packing plant and then sells its fresh, frozen, and further processed beef through traditional retail, food service, and other channels. The Company also continues some residual CHB production for one key account, Hen House Stores of Kansas City.
Branded Beef Products: The Company, through ROF, slaughters, fabricates, and further processes Premium Hereford Beef. The Company also plans to acquire and process products, along with its beef, to produce convenience meals. Examples of these are: ROF Premium Beef precooked products, frozen ground chuck patties, additional precooked offerings, beef jerky and sticks and other items designed to reduce consumer shopping and preparation time.
The Company's branded PHB sales come primarily from the following categories: fresh boxed beef in traditional primals such as short loins, ribs, chucks, rounds, etc., frozen boxed primals, primarily for export, and portion controlled beef for food service and mail order.
Midland Cattle Company (Midland), a wholly owned subsidiary, is in the business of identifying, sourcing, purchasing and reselling feeder and fed cattle. Midland is primarily responsible for developing the supply of PHB and CHB for ROF and the Red Oak procurement program and serves as the agent for fed cattle destined for the Red Oak program.
Red Oak Feeders, LLC (Feeders), a wholly owned subsidiary, was formed to develop a supply of qualified cattle. The Company places cattle on feed through Feeders to provide an adequate inventory to supply PHB customers.
Customers of ROF consist primarily of quality and value-oriented up-scale retail supermarket stores, food-service outlets, high-end restaurants and export accounts.
Precooked Products: The Company plans to eventually offer ten or more precooked consumer packaged beef products, some of which may be packed with other microwave-ready products for combination meals.
Product development, which began in early 1999, is now complete and production underway for four microwaveable precooked products; Family Size 16 oz. Pot Roast, four individual servings (6 oz.) Pot Roast (24 oz. per package), Barbecued Beef Ribs (16 oz.), and a 16 oz. Tri-Tip (sirloin) roast.
Packaged Beef Products: The Company has continued to monitor development of case ready packaging and has evaluated two contract case-ready plants.
Further Processed Beef Products: Further processing means fresh or frozen boxed beef undergoes value enhancing processes like cutting, complete or partial cooking, convenient portion packaging, and combining with other food products.
European Division: During 1999, Red Oak Farms Europe, BV, was created as a wholly owned subsidiary. It is headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands. The Company has agreements with a meat packer, processor, distributors, investors and other synergistic individuals and entities.
