In 2013, at 17 years old, Cody Hoseth decided he wanted to be a cattle rancher. Despite having no money, land, or family in agriculture, he knocked on the door of a rancher who lived a couple of miles from his parents' house and asked to work for him to learn the cattle business. He was warned it was a terrible idea but went for it anyway. He worked at a feed store, helped fix fences and sort cattle, and even sold his car until he had saved enough to buy his first set of five steers. From there, he continued to grow calves into yearlings, sell the yearlings, and buy more calves to build up his herd. After working at this for a couple of years, he was able to get an FSA Beginning Farmer Loan to grow his herd, then another FSA loan to buy his first ranch—just 40 acres in Deer Park.
When Cody met me (Jen) in early 2019, we began selling the meat we were raising, both in quarters, halves, and wholes, as well as in individual cuts at farmers' markets and at any store that would let us sell from their parking lot. We developed a website that allowed customers to select their custom cut sheet online and submit a deposit, which took a lot of the work out of the customers' responsibilities. When the coronavirus pandemic began, our demand for beef soared, and we decided this was our chance to sell our cattle for beef rather than selling at a loss to large packing corporations. We geared all our efforts toward selling beef and providing great customer service, and our customer base grew massively! We bought a shed, ran power to it, finished and decorated the interior ourselves, and this became our very first meat store at our Deer Park ranch. This same store was then moved to Chattaroy and finally to its permanent location in Loon Lake.
We were looking to acquire more land, so we split our 40 acres into four 10-acre lots, remodeled the old farmhouse, and sold those properties to purchase our Loon Lake property. In the middle of all this, we had our first son, Wyatt, in November 2021! Right after we purchased the Loon Lake property, we were contacted about a unique opportunity to buy a large piece of property in Eltopia, just north of the Tri-Cities. This is how we ended up with our largest property, where our cattle are finished.
After operating for about one year at our Eltopia ranch, we decided it was time to own our own meat processing facility. Without my knowledge (lol), Cody purchased an abandoned bank in the small town of Connell. In only six weeks, we tore it apart, outfitted the interior with washable walls and floors, installed drains, upgraded power, and installed meat processing equipment. We were approved by the WSDA for custom meat processing on November 15, 2023, our son’s second birthday! We learned a lot in those first several months of operating, and once we got our feet under us, we applied and were granted inspection for USDA Meat Processing in August 2024, which is also when our second son, Weston, was born.
In October, we began leasing our storefront located in The Parkway in Richland. This store is our second storefront and is conveniently located in the same strip where the Richland Farmers Market is held every year. Back in Loon Lake, where we are still selling quarters, halves, and wholes along with retail, we got a vending machine for the front porch so we can sell meat to locals 24/7. Being a small business with limited hours, this allowed folks a lot more flexibility in trying the beef we raise. In April, we launched our box program, where folks who don’t live close to our retail stores can order and get an insulated box of farm-fresh beef delivered to their door in Washington, Oregon, or Idaho.
In the spring of this year, Cody’s dad created Hoseth Farms, where he built a USDA-inspected kitchen in his home shop at Loon Lake to render the beef fat from our retail beef into tallow. Hoseth Farms has also planted strawberries and lavender for You-Pick, which opened at the end of June. We are passionate about sharing our journey and helping others any way we can, and we’re happy to share more details with anyone interested in learning more!
