gonsoulin

It’s rare to find a family who has owned the same land since the 18th century, even rarer to find a family who’s been working that same land since that year as well. With cattle as their industry, the Gonsoulin family has made their mark upon beef, both figuratively and literally.

“The family has been having the ranch since 1787,” Dr. Shannon Gonsoulin said. “Our brand is probably the tenth oldest (cattle) brand in the United States, so we got some pretty unique family history there.”

Gonsoulin, who is also a veterinarian, operates the farm with his family right here in Acadiana giving locals a fantastic place to purchase their locally sourced meat. Still, even though the land has been in his family for generations, starting in 2005, Gonsoulin decided to do something a little different with his cattle.

“We’ve always had some kind of cattle operation at the ranch. In 2005 we decided to develop a niche, or find a niche where we could. You know, have something a little different,” Gonsoulin laughed. “At that point the organics were coming out, grass-fed things were coming out and all these other types of beef were just starting.”

From that point on the Gonsoulin Land and Cattle would start carving out their niche within the grass-fed and organic market promising locals a product free of antibiotics, hormones or processed feed. Starting first with the anticipation with selling only a small amount of beef to friends and locally, not knowing they were about to embark upon a new adventure.

Soon enough they were certified by the American Grass Fed Association. Though Gounsoulin noted the process to certify his beef within his new niche was not completely an easy one.

“They sent a vet over to our ranch for two days to go over everything we were doing to make sure we were doing everything the way they wanted it to be done before you can even become certified,” Gonsoulin mentioned.

He said he prides himself in the fact that the American Grass Fed Association was a fully independent third party verification. “This wasn’t some paid person saying that the farm was now verified. This verification carries weight.”

The grassfed model has been a successful switch for Gonsoulin Land and Cattle and currently you can find their beef at many local Farmers Markets. You can also order straight from their meat market, which even allows you to custom order the cuts of beef you prefer.

As for what else has changed since they’ve made the switch – Gonsoulin pointed not to beef, but to the consumer for that change.

“Straight from the pasture to the plate,” Gonsoulin said. “From the producer to the consumer. We have a more educated consumer. The customers want to know where, how and when.”

For Gonsoulin it isn’t about a smarter consumer per say, but a consumer who asks those questions digging into the heart of how their food is produced. With constant streams of news alerts calling many different produce recalls, knowing exactly who makes your food is a huge comfort.

The Gonsoulin farm also raises their cattle in a humane way, working the cattle on horseback, which according to their website results in a low stress, low-pressure environment for the beef. Gonsoulin says they raise their cattle to around 1,000 – 1,100 pounds before they are ready. Which usually takes around two years as the Gonsoulin family relies on pure genetic potential of the beef rather than growth hormones.

The meat is processed in Eunice once it is ready to go, where they butcher and cut the animal to the style of their choosing. Soon after, the meat is delivered back to the ranch where it’s aged for 10 days to really get a concentrated flavor.

“We’re offering the same thing, but just a little bit different,” Gonsoulin laughed. “And we’re more taction every year with people wanting our product. A lot of people want to buy local, if it’s available and if people know it’s available.”

Approached by Rouse’s some years back, the grocer saw success stocking Gounsoulin’s locally sourced meat before deciding to go another direction and stopped all the local beef products they were selling. Thankfully, the clout produced by their product at the time allowed for a bit of freedom and footing to branch into their own market.

Though they hope to be back in Rouse’s sometime in the near future, for now you can find Gonsoulin Land and Cattle beef at grocery stores in Lafayette as well as featured in a few restaurants.

And as for their land? The history of the cattle ranching Gonsoulin’s lives on as vibrant as ever.