INDIANAPOLIS — Visitors at the Indianapolis Zoo are now being served beef from an Indiana ranch with cattle raised in a manner friendly to the environment.

Fischer Farms Natural Foods in southern Indiana supplies meat to the zoo, which has over one million annual visitors.

The partnership not only supports local agriculture but allows the farm to expand its reach into the market for sustainably raised meats while the zoo gets to exercise its commitment to offering quality foods raised and harvested in ways kinder to Mother Nature.

“The guests here at the zoo, whether it is through smash burgers and brisket at concession stands or fully dressed strip loins and roasts for catered events, really appreciate knowing our products come from a local, sustainable and eco-friendly farm,” said Anthony Stepp, Executive Sous Chef at the zoo.

“You can’t forget the flavor and marbling that comes from their stock. It’s second to none,” he said.

The farm in St. Anthony between Evansville and Louisville, Ky. is also a provider of meats to Indiana University and Butler University.

In addition, their products are offered in restaurants, small grocery stores and online.

Fischer Farms Natural Foods owner Dave Fischer called the partnership with the zoo a significant step toward a healthier and more sustainable food system in the state. 

“By expanding our network of partners, we can bring our high-quality products to more people in Indiana,” he said.

The partnership was struck after chefs and other representatives from the zoo’s food service provider, Sodexo Live, visited the farm and discussed their shared vision of sustainability.

The farm has been in the same family since the Civil War.

In 2004, Sales Manager Joseph Fischer said the farm began switching to raising natural beef to achieve more stability in pricing and capitalize on what was the beginning of the locally grown natural foods movement that since has swept the across the nation.

Fischer said the calves are born on pasture in the spring and fall then graze and nurse with their mothers for several months until they’re weaned.

For the next six to eight months, the calves are kept in the pasture and feed is included in their diets with the grasses they consume in the fields before moved into bedded barns for finishing.,

Fischer said the farm has about 600 cows who produce calves used for meat on 750 acres at the main location near Jasper and other acreage rented by the farm. 

The meat is processed without additives such as MSG, nitrates, preservatives, fillers and dyes.

Fischer said water for the cattle is drawn from a pond tied to several other ponds strategically placed across the land to capture runoff from nearby fields.

The ponds are connected to creeks running through the property. 

Grasses and duckweed growing in a manmade wetland filter the water. 

He said about half of the clean water runs through underground pipes by gravity to concrete water troughs built into the ground while the rest of the water is pumped over a hill before reaching the troughs.

Fischer said being a supplier of meat to the zoo should open the door for expansion of the farm and help increase demand in the summer when the need for meat is not as great at the universities when students are on break.

Since a vast majority of what comes from a cow is ground beef, Fischer said having customers at the zoo will assist in making sure none of their meat goes to waste.

“There’s a lot of people eating burgers when they go and visit the zoo.  That volume in that specific product category really helps us keep that balance so that we’re selling all of the parts of the cow,” he said.

The farm contributes to the environment in other ways like helping in the fight against climate change.

Rye grass was introduced to the pastures when the switch was made to raising all natural meat to increase the food supply since that species of plant grows fast and still grows during the winter when temperatures are least in the mid 40s. This helps with absorbing greenhouse gases, since plants dond’t absorb the gases when they are dormant. 

“By having something that’s growing that actively year round, you’re capturing more and more carbon out of the air,” he said.

Fischer said rye also has stronger roots that can penetrate deeper into compacted soils.

The greenhouses gases absorbed by the rye when released by the roots help create new soil further below the surface.

“We love rye grass on our farm just because it’s doing so much above ground for our cattle and also below ground for just capturing that CO2 out of the air and storing it as stable carbon in the ground,” he said.

Rye struggles to grow during the summer, so other grasses that withstand heat better are planted in the summer to maintain the food supply for grazing cattle and the rate of carbon absorption from the air.

Fischer said the cattle are rotated in the pastures to allow the grass where they’ve been grazing to recover from the trampling and grow back.

He said the cows are also given kelp as a small percentage of their diets to greatly reduce the amount of plant warming methane released into the air from their digestive systems.

“We’re super excited about our partnership with the zoo. Sustainability is part of their mission so that just aligns really well with what we do on the farm with our regenerative agriculture practices,” he said.