Sausaged in: Regenerative agriculture proponent Applegate launches Do Good Dog

05 Nov 2021 --- US-based organic meat company Applegate proposes an alternative argument to the every-evolving plant-based movement – regenerative agriculture. The Do Good Dog is a culmination of the company’s efforts to produce conventional meat sustainably.

“Regeneratively sourced” meat used in the Do Good Dog is sourced from farms where cattle are reared humanely and farmers do not inject livestock with antibiotics, hormones or growth stimulators.

“It’s fashionable to argue that the only way to fight climate change is to eliminate meat. The opposite is true,” says John Ghingo, president of Applegate.

“Animals have a vital role to play in restoring soil health, sequestering carbon and safeguarding the land against drought, wildfires, erosion and other devastating results of climate change. Our mission is to scale regenerative practices beyond small farms and niche markets. It’s the only way to make a big enough impact,” Ghingo debates.

In partnership with SunFed ranch, which manages 1.5 million acres of grassland, Applegate diverts cattle from the commodity feedlot system. The companies are committed to being carbon neutral by 2024 and fully carbon negative by 2027.Meat used in the Do Good Dog contains no antibiotics, hormones or growth stimulators.

Land to market seal
The Savory Institute measures Applegate’s contribution to regenerating US grasslands and healthy soil. Baseline measurements of soil health, biodiversity, water retention and other ecosystem services were taken in spring this year and assessed annually.

The initiative is part of the Land to Market seal, which does not set standards but measures outcomes to ensure a ranch makes continuous improvements to the land.

Chris Kerston, chief commercial officer of the Land to Market Program at the Savory Institute, explains: “We find that those that implement holistic management and planned grazing double their likelihood of improving land health. We are big believers in the adage that what gets measured gets managed and that measurement is a function of optimization.”

In Europe, strides have also been made in regenerative agriculture through, for example, the establishment of EIT Food, a food “innovation ecosystem” set up by the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) to decarbonize the European food system.

Grass-fed beef demand
Two in three US adults eat meat regularly, yet there is growing acknowledgment that cattle rearing harms the environment. Applegate is focused on meeting this market requirement by altering how meat is produced to meet environmental standards while supplying consumers with meat products.

According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Blue Horizon Corporation, consumption of animal-based produce in the US and Europe could be on its way down after hitting a “peak meat” apex in 2025. Research suggests that every tenth portion of all meat, eggs and dairy products eaten across the globe will be from an alternative protein source, by 2035. 

Ordinarily, regeneratively sourced beef is sold at farmer’s markets or high-end restaurants; however, Applegate has the capacity and supply chain experience to scale it up for all markets. 

The company has plans to grow its regeneratively-sourced product line to pork and poultry. 

Edited by Inga de Jong