Highland cattle rise in popularity, ‘more than just the horns and hair’

<![CDATA[

HAWLEY, Minn. — Highland cattle are known for their iconic hair and horns — a key part of their identity. People have deemed the breed adorable, with the fuzzy brownish red cattle appearing on many prints and products hanging in people’s homes. But at the end of the day, Highland cattle are just like any other breed of beef cattle, and the American Highland Cattle Association is on a mission to showcase that.

Josh Krenz is the past president of the American Highland Cattle Association. He started his Highland herd about 20 years ago, in Princeton, Minnesota. His operation, Windland Flats, sells Highland beef directly to consumers online as well as at local retailers. The American Highland Cattle Association currently has 2,200 members across the country, with 75,000 head in the association’s herd registry. Krenz has seen a drastic rise in popularity in the breed over the last five years.

“Really the beauty of the breed, meaning the horns and the hair, has really drawn the masses in the last five years, and that’s drawn a lot of positive attention to the breed,” Krenz said. “So people are starting to understand that there’s more behind Highland cattle &mldr; than just the horns and the hair. They’re starting to see that the meat is lean, yet still well marbled and has plenty of tenderness to it as well.”

Highland cattle produce extremely lean beef, in part thanks to their thick hair. According to Krenz, Highland cattle grow more hair than fat, so when looking at a steak from the breed, there is hardly any back fat. Yet, the steak still has plenty of marbling.

Kari Olson farms in Hawley, Minnesota. She raises corn, soybeans and wheat. The operation focuses heavily on soil health, something Olson’s dad started incorporating into the farm two decades ago. According to Olson, the missing link on their acres when it came to soil health was having cattle.

Highland cattle were an attractive option for Olson for a variety of reasons. The breed is known for its hardiness, meaning it can withstand the cold and cruel winters the region often experiences. Highland cattle are also excellent mothers and have a docile nature, making them easy to work with, especially during calving season. Lastly, the breed are good foragers as well.

“They’re able to survive in harsh climates. We all know Minnesota winters are harsh, and so I wanted a breed that could perform well without a lot of significant additional infrastructure and overhead, because we have a lot of land, but we don’t have facilities, you know, barns and stuff like that,” Olson said.

It’s an exciting time for the cattle industry, with prices hitting record highs. The great cattle and beef markets have helped make up for the lackluster markets for the crop commodities for farmers that have cattle as well as crops. While Olson doesn’t deny the breed’s cuteness, that isn’t why they have a place on her acres.

“I think a lot of people thought the same thing when I got into it, that, ‘Oh, they’re cute, and that’s why you have them here.’ But at the end of the day, this is a business, and I’m here to make money, and so it was more about finding a breed that fit our needs and how to integrate them into our system,” Olson said.

Krenz doesn’t anticipate the buzz around the breed to die down, especially with the popularity of the breed scouring social media platforms. While many Highland cattle that are highlighted through TikTok or Instagram won’t be sold and act as a permanent fixture in hobby farms, they are ultimately helping raise awareness of the breed.

“American Highland cattle are going to continue to grow. We’re doing things as a breed association in genomics and genetic testing to help position our members to be able to make better selections around their breed. We want to be that breed that competes with the other cattle breeds when it comes to genetics,” Krenz said.

]]>