She moved back to the ranch. Now she delivers beef from the Flint Hills to your table

Growing up in Greenwood County, Sara Shivers usually knew where her next hamburger or steak was coming from: the Rafter S Ranch, owned by her family since the 1950s. After moving to the Dallas-Fort Worth area for college, she realized a lot of urban residents wanted to know the same thing.

“I met a lot of people trying to find farmers’ markets or CSAs (community-supported agriculture groups) and really just feel more comfortable about how their food is raised,” Shivers said.

Shivers put that demand and her own desire to return home to work by starting Salt Creek Meats this spring with her husband, Jay. The business offers home delivery of beef raised on the Rafter S.

“We knew we wanted to be part of the family ranch but also wanted to make it a little bit of our own,” Shivers said.

The Rafter S is close to Severy, in the southern Flint Hills about 45 miles southeast of El Dorado, where Jay Shivers is the city planner.

“I imported him from Texas,” Sara said of her husband. “Luckily he was on board with that.”

The couple met at at North Texas State University in Denton. Sara worked in fundraising for nonprofits for several years after college but always planned to return to Kansas. Her husband finding a job in El Dorado was a key since “there aren’t that many city planning jobs in rural Kansas.”

Most of the Rafter S’s cattle are Black Angus, with a few Red Angus in the herd, and have been pastured at the ranch since their birth. They eat the native grass, supplementing their winter diet with grain and hay baled on the property. Shivers said her family is constantly trying to grow more native grass by burning, clearing trees and eliminating non-native plants.

The cattle receive antibiotics only if sick, and cattle who receive antibiotics are not used for Salt Creek Meats. The ranch uses what Shivers calls “less stress cattle handling techniques to avoid undue pressure on the animals.” The cattle are butchered at Walnut Valley Packing in El Dorado as part of an effort to keep it local, Shivers said.

Beef packages range from a collection of higher-end cuts — ribeye, T-bone, Kansas City strip and tenderloin — to a “griller’s special” with sirloin and ground beef to a 25-pound bundle of roasts and ground beef. Salt Creek also sells quarters and halves of beef and can customize orders upon request.

Although not graded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture – only inspection is mandatory – Shivers said the beef “has great marbling, texture and color. There’s going to be a lot of flavor.”

Salt Creek’s steaks are dry-aged 14 days before packing, she said.

The Shivers are focusing on home delivery in Wichita and Emporia, although interest from potential customers in Kansas City and Dallas has them thinking about shipping via UPS. They’d love to see their beef sold in local stores or served in local restaurants but for now are not trying to sell at farmers markets, Shivers said. “Mostly it’s because I’m a little bit selfish with my time with daughters,” Stella, 3, and Margot, who’s 7 months old. “Farmers markets take a lot of time.” Potential customers are welcome to visit the ranch by appointment.

Salt Creek’s name, by the way, comes from a stream that starts on the side of a hill on the Rafter S before running through southern Greenwood County. Shivers hopes to offer pork, poultry, eggs, fruit and more in the future.

“It was always a plan of mine to move back to the ranch,” Shivers said. “It has always been a passion of mine and had a place in my heart.”

Phone: 316-323-7762

Owner: Sara and Jay Shivers

Website: Saltcreekmeats.com