Hannah Rice

Hannah Rice is a passionate producer, urban homesteader, eater, food sovereignty activist, and animal lover. She grew up along the Wasatch Front in Utah, where she discovered her love for the mountains and being in nature. Hannah loves to cook and can remember helping her family process tomatoes and other foods for canning, when she was eight years old.

Now, she loves to grow, preserve, and make good food. Her passion for food and nature inspired her to learn more about where our food comes from and how to get closer to the source. This past spring, Hannah found the perfect opportunity to do just that. She took a seasonal job tending a goat herd in Missoula, Montana at Oxbow Cattle Company, a conservation-minded company that raises and sells grass-finished beef, and that, for the first time, is raising pasture-raised, “weed-finished” goats. “I joke about the weeds,” Hannah says, “but really the goats have an excellent diet of leafy spurge, grass, and knapweed. They are some of the best weed warriors west of the Mississippi!” After her time at Oxbow, Hannah feels more inspired than ever to continue this work and share with her community the benefits of consuming Good Meat. She’s spending the winter in Tucson, Arizona.

How do you define your Good Meat® values?

To me, Good Meat is not just something you buy or produce with integrity, but also something you graciously share with others. It is extremely rewarding to produce your own meat and play a role in the process. However, not everyone has the opportunity to do so, nor does our industrial food system make it possible for everyone to purchase or have access to nonconventional meats. If you have food on your table you are fortunate. Food stability is a privilege. I think supporting producers and ranchers who are transparent about their animal practices, land management, and raising methods is great. More importantly, I love sharing Good Meat with others and inspiring them to really appreciate the work it takes to make it to our table.

How did you become a Good Meat® producer?

Well, like most good stories it all started with a dog. About three years ago I became interested in working dogs and stockmanship. At first, I worked with my Australian Shepherd, Odin. About a year later, I started taking herding lessons in Arizona at CP Ranch, with my mentor and friend, Craig Pottinger. One day he turned to me and said “if you want to get serious about this herding stuff you better get a border collie.” So, I took his advice and along came Jill. I began looking for a job where I could use my stockmanship and be with my dogs all day! I’m truly grateful for the opportunities that I have to be a Good Meat® producer and consumer, for the people who have made it possible, and the way it all came about.

I'm a Good Meat producer because I believe in what  it stands for. I think it represents communities that support each other, the efforts to improve the soil by using animals, and the desire to deepen our relationship with Mother Nature. I believe in the hard work and dedication of producers and I believe in consumers who want to support their farmers and ranchers. To keep it simple, meat that aligns with our shared Good Meat values is what I want to eat and what I want everyone to eat, so that’s why I raise it!

What is one thing you wish more consumers knew about raising livestock for food?

I wish more consumers knew the amount of work and time it takes to raise livestock. It takes patience to make Good Meat. From pasture to plate, there is so much care and time dedicated to every part of the process and that’s what you’re paying to support. Another insight I hope to pass along from my perspective, as both a producer and consumer, is the honor and respect we have for raising animals, and for the fact that their lifecycle ends in order to provide sustenance to humans. That is not something to take for granted. In order to better use more parts of the animal, I am learning more about how to prepare less popular cuts of meat. I think it’s a great thing for us all to be curious and have fun in the kitchen! Like Julia Child once said “The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking, you’ve got to have a what-the-hell attitude.”

What meat, or meat dish, do you eat most regularly and what do you eat for a special occasion?

I love to be creative in the kitchen so I’m trying new things all the time. Recently, I made caldo de res with oxtail and it was delicioso! My go-to dishes are beef stir-fry, with lots of vegetables, or rico tacos made with ground beef and el pato jalapeño salsa. For a special occasion I love smoking a nice ribeye on the Traeger and serving it with asparagus and smashed potatoes!