100% North Carolina Black Angus Pasture Raised Beef in Clayton, North Carolina

• Online Beef Booking Coming Soon!
• Pre-Book and Purchase 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 & Whole Beef
• Exclusively Sold at Bright Leaf Country Store - 2999 S Brightleaf Blvd. Smithfield, North Carolina 27577

Where does Carolina Ranch Beef come from? What's our story?

Carolina Ranch Beef is from Double J Ranch in Clayton, North Carolina, a 600-acre farm with rolling hills and beautiful scenery roaming with Black Angus cattle. It was founded 75 years ago by Carolina Packers founder John Jones Sr. to help supplement the cattle and hogs used to produce Bright Leaf Hot Dogs.

At the time, Double J Ranch was one of the largest, self-sustaining, and most notable farms in North Carolina. The farm had five hog houses, more than 500 heads of cattle, and 125 horses. Top hogs, Black Angus cattle, and even bulls were raised here and brought to Carolina Packers to make fresh hot dogs daily. There was also a mill on the land where feed was made for the cattle and hogs. As well as storage houses for hay.

The 1960s to the 1990s was a busy time at Double J Ranch. On top of providing hogs and cattle for Carolina Packers, Buck Jones and Jean Jones, had a passion for horses. They were members of the American Quarter Horses Association. After spending the week making Bright Leaf products, the Jones' traveled the country on the weekend showing their king horse, Cabin Bar, and other award-winning horses. As the Jones' aged and eventually passed, some horses were sold away, and the rest were donated to the Boys and Girls Club.

Also, in the 1990s, Buck purchased Turner Farm from May Turner, which is four miles up the road. That added 250 acres to the farm and brought cattle heads to anywhere between 500 - 700.

The slaughter business no longer exists because U.S. 70 took part of the farm. The hog houses are also gone. These days, Double J Ranch primarily focuses on Black Angus cattle and continues to evolve with the land and the community.

To keep the legacy alive, renovations and improvements to the farm have been done to ensure it flourishes in the future. New fences have been added, buildings have been repaired, the fields are fertile and continually nurtured, and the Black Angus herd is growing!

The cattle on the farm are North Carolina Black Angus, and they're pastured raised. They eat the grass from the farm when it's growing and fresh grains and hay from the fields when it's not. The herd also only drinks water from wells to ensure they stay clean and pure.

Double J Farm hopes to be around another 75 years to continue a legacy of providing the highest quality local beef for the community.

What is local pasture raised beef?

Pasture raised beef is cattle that spend most of their life roaming and grazing the fields engaging in natural behaviors, and eating pasture plants. Cows are designed to eat plants. When most of the meals consist of fresh grains and hay, it results in healthier animals and more nutritional beef. You'll find that at Double J Farms in Clayton, North Carolina. You'll notice the difference in the flavor.

Where can you buy Carolina Ranch Beef?

Carolina Ranch Beef is exclusively sold at the Bright Leaf Country Store located at 2999 S Brightleaf Blvd. Smithfield, North Carolina 27577. The store is open Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM. If you have questions about the beef, contact Kurt Byrd at kbyrd@carolinapackers.com.

What cuts of meat do we offer?