About Us
Walt and Carly Hoyt here! Walt (the cowboy) grew up raising a variety of animals, participating in 4H/FFA, has an Ag Business degree, ropes, rides, and does pretty much all things cowboy. Carly (the hippie) grew up in rural CA but had zero experience with animals (but lots of love for them), has degrees in Environmental Studies, Business, and Urban Planning, and has always desired to live a natural, sustainable lifestyle. We started dating in 2016, married in 2020, and over the years, have worked hard to create a way of life that allows us to be more in control of what we put in and on our bodies.
Our goal is to have more control of what we ingest by producing as much of our own food as possible and control what we absorb by creating our own natural skin care products. Every product we create is created for our own personal use.
Our main product is beef. Carly was a vegetarian for five years and when she started eating meat again, having high quality meat from trusted producers was incredibly important. We quickly realized, who better to trust than ourselves? We started finishing cows to fill our own freezer and began selling excess to family and friends. We quickly noticed a community desire for locally grown beef and officially created Hoyt Valley Farms in 2020.
We are constantly striving to learn, improve, and grow. We aim to annually produce at least one new product we typically purchase at the store ourselves. So far, we have successfully eliminated the need to buy beef, broth, eggs, seasonal fruits and vegetables, bread, body lotion, soap, and more. When we have the capacity to create extra of something we love, we happily offer it to you. We never sell anything we don't personally use or eat and since we created it for our own family, you can be assured that a lot of thought and energy went into making it the highest of quality.
All of our cows are born, raised, and finished here in Calaveras County. We prioritize:
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a humane environment
We strive to provide a natural, organically minded environment for our cattle by focusing on quality over quantity. We ensure we only have as many cows as our land can support, and never use growth hormones or antibiotics.
We finish our cows over 180 days, allowing them to grow slowly. This is not only healthier for the animal, but it produces higher quality meat.
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using locally sourced feed
The bulk of our feed is locally sourced byproduct feeds. While we contemplated purchasing organic feed, we personally feel using locally sourced byproduct feed results in a lower environmental impact (as the feed comes from our local community rather than being shipped hundreds, if not thousands, of miles) and is equally beneficial nutritionally.
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sustainability
We reduce our carbon footprint by eating and locally selling food produced right outside our door, as opposed to food grown and shipped from across the world.
We also utilize the entire animal and get as close to a zero waste household as possible. Bones are turned to broth, leaf fat is turned into tallow, and other parts of the animal that are typically deemed inedible become dog food or compost.
