About All-American Jerky
In addition to taking care of the kids, I decided I needed a hobby. Being a meat eater, I thought raising all natural, quality beef would be healthy and fun for me and my family. So after months of exhaustive research, I purchased some high quality Angus calves and cows from local farmers and raised the cattle with no added hormones or antibiotics. I have always used an inspected butcher for added degree of quality.
The beef turned out to be of exceptional quality and flavor! I had no problem selling sides of beef to past restaurant customers and colleagues. I added cattle to another pasture to keep up with demand.
With all the beef around our house, I started to experiment with making jerky and snack sticks. Using my restaurant/chef background, I formed some pretty good recipes and tested them on friends and family. The flavor of ‘quality beef’ with a good spice recipe was a big hit with everyone. The only issue anyone had wasn’t with the flavor, but with the texture or toughness of the jerky.
So I moved away from the jerky and focused on the snack sticks. I found that everyone loved the flavor and tenderness of the snack sticks. I got a booth at a local outdoor show (Truth and the Outdoors in St Clair, MO), and it was a big success. I had rave reviews and picked up many more customers.
Although my jerky snack sticks were in high demand, with two small children (a newborn and a two-year-old) I had no time to expand my business. Now that the kids are a little older, I have the time I need to expand.
However, I realized that I still needed some help on this project. A few years ago, I met Jack Buck of The Buck Syndicate. We discussed the idea and decided to partner on the project.
We thought this could be a great opportunity to produce an outstanding product and give back to the community.
I learned early in my restaurant career that if you start with the best ingredients, you will get an outstanding product, and will have very happy customers. That is why we are using the best pork and seasonings available for our All-American Jerky products.
Jack and I discussed giving back to the community and what is important to us. We both agreed to support our military troops and the USA. We wanted to say thanks to the people who sacrifice every day, so we can enjoy the freedom and comfort we have in this great country.
Although neither Jack nor I have served in the military, we have always supported our troops and their families. We have many family members who have served, and we understand the struggles they and their family members have every day. I have seen firsthand from my brother and cousin who served in the Gulf and Iraq wars. And I have heard countless stories from my father, father-in-law, grandfather and uncles who served in Vietnam and WW2.
Hopefully we can bring a little joy and financial help to our heroes.
Our product is 100% made in the USA. From our pork to our processors, from our printers to our packaging & shipping, everything is produced in the USA!
We are dedicated to supporting H.E.R.O.E.S. Care, a non-profit supporting our troops and their families before, during and after deployment, based out of Fenton, MO through every sale. Hopefully this project and our ongoing sales will expand support and concern for all of our military, their families and our great country!
God Bless America, Our Military and Their Families!
Thank you for your support!
Richard Schmidt of Schmidt Family Farms and All-American Jerky