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Quality-conscious consumers are increasingly aware of food fraud and food fencing issues, and we frequently receive questions about these topics. With that in mind, we welcome you to Part 1 of our multi-part series on food fraud and food fencing.

If you’ve been following us for a while or generally paying attention, much of this information may already be familiar or not surprising.

The U.S. food system is primarily controlled by a small number of large companies. Major players dominate various sectors, including:

• Agriculture: Companies like Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland, and Bayer
• Food Processing: Firms such as Nestlé, PepsiCo, and General Mills
• Retail: Leading grocery chains like Walmart, Kroger, and Costco

Overall, just a handful of corporations—about 4 to 6 in each major sector—exert significant control over the majority of the U.S. food system, influencing what products are available and how they are marketed.

Food Fraud and Food Fencing are related but distinct concepts within food crime:

• Food Fraud: This involves deliberate deception for economic gain in the production, processing, and distribution of food, including:
  • Adulteration: Adding inferior or harmful substances
  • Substitution: Replacing ingredients with cheaper alternatives
  • Mislabeling: Incorrectly labeling products to mislead consumers
  • Counterfeiting: Imitating branded products
  • False Claims: Misrepresenting the origin, quality, or health benefits
• Food Fencing: This refers to the distribution and sale of stolen or fraudulently obtained food products, including:
  • Selling stolen items through legitimate or illegitimate channels
  • Laundering illicitly obtained food by repackaging or relabeling
  • Distributing food products acquired through theft or fraud
  • Using a food business as a front for illegitimate or illegal actions

Key Differences:

Purpose: Food fraud focuses on making money through deceit in food composition or labeling, while food fencing is about selling and distributing stolen or illegally obtained food.

Occurrence: Food fraud can happen at any point in the food supply chain, while food fencing specifically involves handling and selling stolen or fraudulent products.

Both practices undermine consumer trust and pose significant risks to public health and the integrity of the food supply chain.

Thank you for joining us for this introduction to food fraud and food fencing! In this series, we aim to provide you with the information needed to break away from the corporate food system. While our primary focus will be on food fraud, food fencing is also relevant, interconnected, and worth discussing.

In the upcoming parts of our series, we’ll explore the three most commonly adulterated foods. As a side note, we offer uncompromised versions of all three! Can you guess which one we’ll discuss first?

Our market calendar is currently updated through the first weekend in September. We rely exclusively on word-of-mouth advertising! If you enjoy our content, please invite your like-minded friends, family and colleagues to join our email list.

Stay Vibrant,

Brenna & Kenny

Great news! Our grass-fed grass-finished beef is back in stock!

Our closed herd is raised and finished on native ancient prairie grasses near the Kiowa National Grasslands on the high plains of northeastern New Mexico. Our goal is to produce the finest beef in the world! We are setting a standard for fully finished grassFAT beef: our cattle are born and raised on the same ranch their entire lives, about 3 years, eating all grass all the time; truly grassfed to finish. We pride ourselves on the fat our cattle can pack on, even with an only grass diet. This resource is too precious to waste, so you’ll find a generous fat rind on our grass-finished steaks. If you need assistance with cooking or enjoying this delicious, nutritious fat, please let us know. Our ground beef also contains a higher percentage of fat than any other grass-fed producer we’ve encountered. The FAT holds all the fat soluable vitamins: A, D, E, & K, as well as essential omega-3 fatty acids.

Since 2020, we have diversified our processors and currently use two different small USDA plants which are each family owned and operated. Our beef is dry aged 14+ days and stores well in a 0°F freezer for one year and a -20°F freezer for at least two years.

The average American consumes 50 pounds of beef per year. Our own family of 5 consumes slightly more, mostly ground beef. We are currently offering a beef bundle special while supplies last. Join our mailing list for subscriber only specials.

Here are some details and information on beef tenderized round steak/cubed steak.

Here’s a recipe for beef round steak tacos.

We have several more beef and pork harvest dates scheduled for the remainder of this year. We are currently accepting orders for Whole, Side, Quarter or Eighth Beef or Hog. Please email us for details.

We rely on word-of-mouth advertising. If you like our content, please share it with your friends, colleagues, and family who care about quality local foods.

ALBUQUERQUE: We plan to attend the Los Ranchos Growers Market every Saturday through early October 2024. Our calendar page is currently updated through the first weekend in September. Our product list is also current, please review before ordering.

PHOENIX: We tentatively plan to be back at the Roadrunner Park and Ahwatukee Farmers Markets for our fall season beginning the weekend of October 19/20, 2024. We will send an email out to this list upon our return. Should you have pre-orders, questions or concerns, please reach out at any time.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

Stay Nourished,

Brenna & Kenny

Just a quick reminder that we’ll be available in Phoenix this Wednesday, July 17 for those who order in advance! We are accepting orders via phone, email or text message through 8:00am tomorrow, Monday, July 15.

This is our last scheduled event in Arizona until our return for the fall Phoenix farmer’s market season beginning in mid October 2024. In addition to our usual supply of both Alaska Sockeye & Coho Salmon, we also have Halibut Filet and Cod Filet. We’re resupplied with a nice variety of our delicious grassfed-grassfinished Ground Beef & Beef Steaks. Pork is also available: Chops, Ground Pork, Pork Belly and Green Chile Pork Sausage. Don’t forget the local Arizona Honey, Bariani Olive Oil and Kenny’s Spice Rub.

This is a much quicker trip than is typical and we’ll only be available one day in Phoenix. Although we may have a bit of extra salmon, we cannot guarantee any availability unless we receive your order in advance. Whether you need a bundle or case of something or just a portion, filet, jar or spice rub, please let us know! Our product list has been recently updated, please CHECK IT OUT prior to ordering.

New Mexico: We intend to be back at the Los Ranchos Growers Market next Saturday, July 20 and most Saturdays through early October 2024. We will have an excellent supply of Wild Salmon, a small variety of whitefish and a full spectrum of our local Grassfed-Grassfinished Beef & Pork and well as your favorite ancillary foods! NOW is the time to consider stocking up for winter.

Stay Nourished,

Brenna

602-576-1878 (call or text)

Pacific Cod and Halibut from Kodiak, Alaska available now!

Each fish is cleaned and iced as they are caught, then processed into filets and frozen to be enjoyed throughout the year. You will never taste this level of quality unless you caught it yourself with all the proper steps of a pro. Filets are all portioned, boneless and skinless, ready to serve up in your favorite dishes.

If high protein and low fat is your goal, white fish will make you smile and ask for more. My easy peasy no frills method is lightly poached in chicken or turkey broth for one minute and tossed on a microgreen salad.

As a reminder, we’ll be in Phoenix next Wednesday, July 17 for those who order in advance     
We are accepting orders via email, phone or text message through 8:00am on Monday, July 15. We offer many bundle and stock up options as well as one pound, portion, or jar at a time. Please check our current product list prior to ordering.

Cheers,

Kenny

We plan to be available in Phoenix next Wednesday, July 17 for those who order in advance. Pick up will be at our home near Thomas Rd & 44th St. Please order via email, phone or text by 8:00am on Monday, July 15.

Prior to ordering, please review our current product list

Should you have further questions or concerns, we’re happy to help.

Kenny & Brenna

Whoohoo! We’re happy to be back in the Rio Grande Valley for the summer and early fall! We look forward to seeing you tomorrow (and every Saturday) at the Los Ranchos Growers Market. 

We have an excellent supply of both Wild Alaska Sockeye and Coho Salmon available for the season as well as a good variety of New Mexico Pork. We also have a nice stockpile of Local Raw Honey. Additionally, be sure to try our Arizona Medjool Dates (while supplies last) and Kenny’s Original or New Mexico Spice Rub!

Currently, Bariani Olive Oil is in short supply, however, we anticipate being fully re-stocked by next Saturday, June 1. 

Due to an incredible increase in demand for quality local food, we are temporarily sold out of grassfed beef. To compensate, we have increased production for 2024 and have plans to further expand in 2025. Harvest dates for beef and pork are scheduled throughout the summer and early fall and we anticipate a variety of beef cuts to be available around mid to late July 2024. We welcome orders for a whole, side, or quarter beef or hog. Please order or further inquire via email. Before ordering, we also recommend reading this.

Miss us in PHOENIX? We plan to make a trip back around late July to early August for those who order in advance. Pick up will be at our home near Thomas Rd & 44th St. We’ll send out an email asking for orders a few weeks ahead of time. Beyond that, we intend to begin the fall farmers market season in Phoenix around mid to late October 2024. Alternatively, a few retailers are currently carrying our honey in town.

Hasta mañana,

Kenny & Brenna

We’re spending a few weeks longer in Phoenix this season! We have an excellent supply of both sockeye and coho salmon. Be sure to check out our salmon bundles if you need to stock your freezer for the summer.

Our grassfed beef offerings are currently low in stock, however, we have harvest dates scheduled for beef and pork throughout the summer. Pork is in excellent supply: Breakfast Sausage, Green Chile Pork Sausage, Ground Pork, Pork Chops, Pork Belly, Pork Bones & Pork Hocks.

While we currently have a nice stock of Arizona raw honey and Bariani Olive Oil on hand, we do anticipate variety and availability running low as these last few weeks progress.

PHOENIX: We’ll be attending both Roadrunner Park and Ahwatukee Farmers Markets the next 3 weekends through May 12, 2024 this season.

ALBUQUERQUE: We plan to attend the Los Ranchos Growers Market most Saturdays throughout the summer and early fall beginning May 25, 2024.

Our market calendar is currently updated through the end of May 2024.

Photo: Summer 2001, captain Kenny ran the F/V Sharon W, Kodiak, Alaska. 52 foot, steel hull, crabber-seiner combo, 6 foot draft, 50,000 pound fish hold. “Good boat, good crew and I broke even. All around best summer of my career.” -Kenny

Quick as the flick of a fish’s tail, March is here! Most of you know by now that we’re available seasonally in both Phoenix, AZ and Albuquerque, NM. With approximately 10 weekends remaining in our Arizona season, NOW is the perfect time to stock your freezer and pantry for the summer. You’re welcome to wait until April to stock up. However, it’s important to note that as our season winds down, the variety and availability of our products may diminish until the next harvest. Our bundle/case pricing has changed this year. In the past, we’ve offered discounts for full or half cases of salmon (15 – 30 pounds). This year, we’re using a different fish processor and the cases are 50 pounds! Wow! We know that’s a bit too much of a commitment for most, so we’re now extending the same “case discount” to smaller bundles starting at 10 pounds. We currently have both Wild Alaska Sockeye and Coho Salmon in stock.

For bundle options and our complete product list explore our website

We plan to be in Phoenix now through the end of April, 2024. The Ahwatukee Farmers Market will be closed 2 Sunday’s in March. Check our calendar for details.

We appreciate cash and also accept Venmo, Zelle, Apple Pay and debit/credit cards. EBT transactions are welcomed at our Phoenix markets.

We accept pre-orders for weekend market pick up until 6:00 pm on Fridays.

Stay Well Fed,

Brenna & Kenny

I worked with Kenny fishing on a purse seiner in Kodiak, Alaska for a couple of summers back in the late 1990’s. After proposing to him one February he said he’d wait to see how we did together on the boat that summer. I guess you all know how that turned out  

For greenhorns in Alaska, there is no training, everything is learned on the job, hands on. As you may know, there are 5 species of wild Pacific salmon and we had to learn the difference among all of them just by looking at the scales, tails and eyes. After fish are caught and stored in the iced or RSW (refrigerated sea water) fish hold, we’d typically deliver to an ocean tender and at that point we’d need to sort species as each one is a different pay rate. So we’d have to identify silver from red from humpy from dog and batch into the appropriate hold on the tender. This all happens very quickly and can be challeging for a greenhorn. Ocean run fish are bright and beautiful, it isn’t until they get into fresh water that you begin to see the iconic changes in color and facial shape. Silver salmon has more silver on the tailfin and a smaller eye relative to other species. Also in Alaska, they don’t really refer to each individual species by proper name, they use their own local names:

Sockeye = Red Salmon

Coho = Silver Salmon

Pink = Humpy Salmon

Keta = Dog Salmon

Chinook = King Salmon

We have just received a shipment of fresh coho/silver salmon! Coho is lighter and milder than sockeye with slightly less omega-3 oil and slightly more saturated fat, yielding a juicier, easier to cook salmon. Coho is quite similar to King salmon and slightly more abundant. The portions are 8-10oz each. Read more about Coho Salmon here!

Additionally, we still have plenty of fresh catch sockeye filets and our Fire Sale 2 for the price of 1 special on 2022 sockeye salmon harvest is still ongoing.

Here’s a great Coho Salmon recipe:

Salmon in Lime Ginger Sauce

¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
3 Tbs. fresh ginger, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and chopped
Juice from one lime, (about three Tbs.)
2 Tbs. Bariani Olive Oil
¼ tsp. turmeric
Four, 8oz salmon filets

Combine first four ingredients in a food processor or blender. Process until smooth, adding a little water if necessary. Add the next three ingredients and mix thoroughly. Transfer the mixture to a shallow dish and coat the fish filets well, then cover and marinate for 10 minutes in the refrigerator.

Spread enough marinade to cover the bottom of a large, heavy skillet, and add the filets. Spread the remaining marinade on the fish. Cover the skillet tightly and cook for 12-15 minutes over medium-low heat until fish is opaque throughout.

P.S. the 2024 wild Snow Crab harvest in Kodiak was a success! Almost all our case orders were picked up, yet we still have 2 x 25 pound cases of fresh harvest Snow Crab available now for $620 per case. Please Order in Advance

We’re loaded with silvers and reds! See you at the market!

Brenna

We will be selling wild salmon at a buy one get one special over the next few weeks. There is no fire involved, it’s just a good time to support your craving for good food at a good price.

We have been hitting the gym lately and doubling our protein intake to put on more muscle…and it’s working! For more information, see Dr. Gabrielle Lyon’s book on how muscle mass is crucial for longevity and aging well.

A body composition scale has really helped us to determine bone density, visceral fat and muscle mass. Losing weight is a detriment if it is skeletal muscle instead of body fat. A smart scale is a great way to document your health journey and attain real goals. According to my scale, my metabolic age is less than my chronological age by almost 5 years!

Too busy on the weekends to make it to market? Call or email and we will make time for you to shop privately, even for one jar of honey or a 2 for 1 salmon filet special.

Happy new year all! We appreciate each of you and look forward to seeing you soon.

Cheers,

Kenny