Joe Finegan has been with Certified Piedmontese for six years. Joe is from Lincoln and graduated from Pius X. He went to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and graduated in 2014 with a degree in Business.
The Peed Corporation was started in 1978 in Western Iowa. The "Certified Piedmontese" was started in 2011 by the Peed Corporation (now known as Sandhills Global). Sandhills Global owns Sandhills Publishing and is a parent company to "Certified Piedmontese" Beef. This is a part of the Great Plains Beef Company.
The Piedmontese cattle originated in the rolling hills and lush river valleys of the renowned Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. In the mid 1970's a group of progressive ranchers imported the first Piedmontese cattle to North America over a five-year process. By mid 1980's additional imports increased the original five-herd of cattle to 15. Today, the breed remains rare, representing less than 1% of all cattle in North America.Rare and Exceptional Genetics:
In traditional breeds of cattle you will find the myostain gene which works to inhibit the overall muscle mass of the animal by reducing the frequency of fibers within each muscle. The Piedmontese breed is unique in having an "inactive" myostain gene that produces a double muscled beef that's rich in protein and nutrients. This breed's unique propensity for developing extra muscle mass but very little fat.
This gives it efficient source of lean meat that remains tender and juicy. This genetic variation in Piedmontese cattle is entirely natural.
Raising Certified Piedmontese Cattle:
Raising cattle humanely and responsibly requires a sustained verified commitment from producers. For Certified Piedmontese cattle are raised on family ranches across the Great Plains. There are three ranches in Nebraska that raise the Piedmontese cattle which are located in Cherry County, Broken Bow and Oshkosh. These cattle enjoy all natural feeds, fresh water, comfortable surroundings and or free to roam. They spend the majority of their lives gazing native pastures. Their diets are supplemented with hay and grains grown from forage crops tended by the farmers who care for them
DNA Testing:
The Piedmontese cattle have their DNA tested to confirm the presence of the inactive myostain gene, analyzed by an independent lab. This analysis confirms the genetic composition of each animal and ensures that the unique traits of the original Piedmontee cattle.
Ranches belonging to the Certified Piedmontese program employ integrated tracking software that measures, catalogs, and analyses the gender, growth, health and nutrition information. These cattle are grass fed and finished with grass.
Locally Certified Piedmontese is currently located in south Lincoln but purchased land on North 84th Street between Havelock Avenue and Hwy. 6. By the middle of August they hope to move their entire staff to the new Corporation Headquarters on North 84th Street. There are several new buildings on this site, as well as, the original building. The original building will be the new Corp. Headquarters (offices), and on the second floor of the this building will be a restaurant. The other buildings will be used as a lab for testing, processing, packing and shipping, cold storage and a retail store. This way the Company will have everything under one roof or same location. Currently the processing is done in Colorado and stored in Omaha, NE. The restaurant will start out probably serving via invitation or reservation only. The Retail store hopefully will be open by middle of August or near Labor Day Weekend when the Certified Piedmontese will have an Open House.
Joe said that they are currently in the process of hiring people to work in the Retail store and in a few other areas. If you are interested in purchasing any of the Piedmontese products Open Harvest here in Lincoln carries some of the products. The current offerings in restaurants in Lincoln are T-Beery's, MoMo's and Firethorn.