How Turkeys Go From Diestel Family Ranch to Your Thanksgiving Table
The Diestel Family Ranch in Sonora, California, has been in Heidi Diestel’s family for more than 70 years. “It all began with great uncle Ernest, who taught our grandpa Jack everything he knew,” says Diestel. “With great uncle Ernest’s time-tested techniques and honest philosophies, grandpa Jack founded our humble farm in 1949 and took his work with the turkeys very seriously. He walked the flock every day, obsessed over the health of his birds and the environments in which they lived, and always stood by the values he founded the ranch on in the first place.”
Diestel says he passed on these core values to her parents, who then passed them on to her and her siblings. “I grew up on the ranch helping my mom with customer service and odd jobs around the farm,” she says. “It’s been a big part of my life for as long as I’ve been alive.”
Today she, her husband, Jared, and her brother, Jason, run the company and strive to bring a modern edge to turkey so people have a better understanding of how delicious and versatile this type of meat can be. “We’re here to raise the leanest, cleanest, most delicious birds that money can buy,” Diestel says. “And we’ll keep looking for ways to make our ranch more sustainable, ethical and efficient along the way.”
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A Different Kind of Thanksgiving
2020 in particular has presented a slew of unique challenges to farmers and ranchers across the country. With unprecedented influxes in supply and demand, processing plant closures, and shopper hesitancies, it’s almost needless to say that those in the agricultural industry have been forced to make adjustments to their business operations to survive.
Turkey farms are generally in the same boat, but Diestel says their ranch was surprisingly well-prepared for the shift in the market this year – particularly in regard to the approaching Thanksgiving holiday. Between government mandates and a general sense of social distancing among shoppers, many predict this year’s family gatherings are going to be quieter affairs, which means smaller meals at the table.
“We offer a petite turkey, which has been part of our holiday lineup for years,” says Diestel. “We were in a good position to meet this year’s demand for smaller turkeys just by doing what we’ve always done.”
Diestel says these birds are between 6 and 9 pounds, making them the ideal size for a smaller holiday celebration. “They still feature a wonderful meat-to-bone ratio because they’re slow grown and allowed to fully mature,” she explains. “While conventional farmers typically grow one standard breed and harvest early or late for the size they’d like to achieve, we have a longer growing cycle and raise our breed-specific turkeys to their naturally intended weight, ensuring optimal yield, flavor and texture in turkeys of all sizes.”
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Heirloom Breeds, Modern Quality
The Broad Breasted White is the most common commercially bred turkey on the market in the United States. But Diestel Family Ranch produces a variety of breeds, including organic American heirloom turkeys. “They’re a unique-to-us mix of Auburn, Black and American Bronze turkeys, which produce exquisite meat with rich flavor that’s tender, juicy and exceptionally hard to come by,” says Diestel.
“These beautiful birds are slow grown in the Sierra Foothills, where our deep well water and fresh mountain air complement their certified organic, vegetarian diet that’s 100% free of GMOs, animal by-products, antibiotics, growth enhancers and hormones. Unlike many heritage birds that date back to the 1800s, which can be tricky to roast, Diestel’s classic heirloom turkeys cook up just like our more modern offerings.”
The Future of Food Production
As almost every consumer knows, meat shortages have made headlines around the country in 2020. Diestel says it is becoming more apparent that most of America’s meat supply is controlled by a few big companies and centralized in a small number of locations, which is neither good nor ideal.
“I think the pandemic has really shown us how important it is to know where your food comes from,” she says. “It’s generated a greater interest from consumers in transparency and limiting the middleman as much as possible.”
Fortunately, their farm is in a great position to take the public’s renewed interest in stride.
“We do everything here from A to Z,” says Diestel. “That’s proven to be a huge benefit in such uncertain times. In addition to raising our own birds, we also process, package and ship the finished products to retailers, as well as direct to consumers. Handling the entire process has allowed us to control quality and safety at every step.”