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I’ve been hearing unflattering rumors about Blue Ridge Beef for a few months and when someone posted their thoughts in a raw feeding group on Facebook, I decided to do my own digging.
Rumors about Blue Ridge Beef
- The meat allegedly comes from inferior or questionable sources
- They allegedly won’t share the names of farms where they source their meat
- They are allegedly in business with a company that collects dead/diseased animals
- They’re allegedly unprofessional in their correspondence with customers
- They allegedly won’t share what’s in their food
It's important to know that I was never able to find anything that confirmed that Blue Ridge Beef was doing anything untoward or producing unsafe pet food. Everything I found was alleged statements by pet owners in online forums.
Forum Discussions about Blue Ridge Beef
When I began my research into the topic of Blue Ridge Beef, I was only able to find online forum discussions. These discussions typically begin with someone asking about the brand (apparently, their prices are affordable, which is attractive to raw feeders) and the discussion devolves into a lot of allegations that attack the brand’s integrity.
- Dog Food Reviews Forum Discussion
- Doberman Talk Discussion
- Chihuahua People Forum Discussion
- Dog Food Advisor
This list represents the forum discussions I found on the first 2 pages of my Google Search for “Blue Ridge Beef.”
When I added “complaints” to my search, I didn’t find anything. Given the rumors, I was surprised that someone hadn't created a Blue Ridge Beef Sucks website to raise awareness, reported the company to the Better Business Bureau, or a website that tracks scams.
There are also individuals in the pet space who report on pet food companies, shedding light on any shady practices, yet none of them has written about Blue Ridge Beef.
I’m not saying the rumors are false; I’m saying that I couldn't find proof that they're true.
Why I Want to Know the Source of Proteins
I can understand why Blue Ridge Beef wouldn’t share the name and address of their sources. My immediate thought was that either it’s in their contract or it’s simply not done in this industry.
I can also understand why this would raise a red flag for dog owners.
Pet owners have trust issues thanks to the chicken jerky treat fiasco and the various videos online warning us about what’s really in our pet’s food. Being stonewalled doesn’t help build trust. Questioning a brand’s integrity without cause doesn’t help either.
Protein sources are important to me because I want to make sure that the meat is coming from local, humane farmers. That the animals aren’t subjected or exposed to unnecessary chemicals (antibiotics, hormones, weed killer).
Why I Want to Know the Ingredients
Being able to review an ingredients panel helps me…
- better identify food that will or won't be a good fit for my dogs
- assess what I may need to add to the meals that is missing in the food
When people complain that Blue Ridge Beef won't share their recipe, I wonder if they are looking for a detailed list of what (and how much) goes into their chubs or if the brand doesn't provide an ingredients panel. It's not unusual for brands not to share their recipe, legitimatley claiming proprietary reasons.
According to the FDA, “Pet food labeling is regulated at two levels. The current FDA regulations require proper identification of the product, net quantity statement, name, and place of business of the manufacturer or distributor, and proper listing of all the ingredients in the product from most to least, based on weight.”
However, there are brands that don't have an issue sharing more details about what goes into their food, where they source their ingredients and more. This is not an industry standard and if this level of transparency is important to a pet owner, then Blue Ridge Beef, at the time of this article, may not be the appropriate choice.
My Thoughts on Blue Ridge Beef
I’m reserving judgment because I have found no proof that the rumors are true. Is this all just fear-mongering and, as Blue Ridge Beef stated below, the work of “internet bullies?”
If Blue Ridge Beef was sourcing its protein from diseased animals, wouldn’t we have heard about it beyond forum discussions?
I wrote this post because I think it’s important to step back from emotionally charged online discussions and examine the facts that are available. This is my take on what I learned this week.
- Blue Ridge Beef’s choice not to disclose the names of the farms where they source their proteins doesn’t equate to them processing diseased animals.
- Blue Ridge Beef’s choice not to disclose the details of their recipes simply means that if you’re raising a dog with a high level of food allergies, Blue Ridge Beef may not be the brand for you.
My Correspondence with Blue Ridge Beef
I did reach out to the three representatives listed on the Blue Ridge Beef contact page (on their website) hoping to gain clarification of why they don’t share their sources or ingredients. I thought that maybe this was due to privacy agreements and copyright/trademark laws. I received one response and I did let them know that I would be publishing their response in this blog post.
This response has not been edited or changed in any way.
“Kimberly
We have been defending ourselves from these internet bullies and ridicules posts for years.
We will no longer address this stupidity with a response
We stand behind all our products 100% and will let the quality of our products speak for itself.
Fortunately there are enough common sense customers that realize these bullies attacks for what they really are, and business is going well.
Have looked at your site and wish you all the best in your business
Thank you” ~ Steven Lea, Blue Ridge Beef
Although I was taken aback by the email, because I really thought that they would be more forthcoming; I can’t say that I blame them for shutting the door on this topic.
I’m sorry that I don’t have a definite conclusion for you about Blue Ridge Beef. Discussions with fellow dog owners can be invaluable, especially when it comes to raw feeding because we’re all learning on our own.
While we should look to our fellow dog owners as a resource, it’s important to weigh what we learn against the facts available. It’s okay to be wary, but remain open-minded until your questions are answered. And what if you never get an answer? Well, that lack of an answer may be the answer you need.
Updates on Blue Ridge Beef
- 2020: The Truth About Pet Food, a website maintained by pet food advocate Susan Thixton, reported that Blue Ridge Beef received a warning letter from the FDA.
- 2020: FDA Warning Letter to Lea-Way Farms Inc. dba Blue Ridge Beef
The following details were included in the warning letter (the following are direct quotes from the letter linked above):
- Your firm utilizes tissues from animals that have died otherwise than by slaughter in the manufacturing of pet food without first determining whether the animals suffered any type of illness, injury, and/or whether any medications may have been administered to the animals prior to your pick up from the supplier and subsequent use in manufacturing, such that tissues from the animals would be unsuitable for manufacturing and processing into your pet food.
- In your grinder/mixing room we observed thawing beef parts used to manufacture your pet food coming into contact with the concrete floor. As noted in violation 2, the condition of your floors creates a possible niche for undesirable microorganisms that could contaminate the thawing ingredients.
- In the cooler, employees were observed performing sanitation procedures. Over-spray from the pressure washer was observed falling into open tubs of exposed meat held for use as pet food.
- On the kill floor, while employees removed hides from three cow carcasses, stomach contents and fecal matter were observed spilling over onto exposed carcasses. We did not observe these carcasses being rinsed before being rolled into the cooler area where the carcasses are further separated for pet food use.
- On the kill floor, deteriorating, exposed insulation was observed in the ceiling directly over where exposed beef carcasses are trimmed and separated for pet food.
Read more here: FDA Warning Letter to Lea-Way Farms Inc. dba Blue Ridge Beef
Thanks for sharing your experience, Lilly.
We have been using BRB for over 20 years and never a problem. We breed champion dobermans and they are super healthy with no gum or tooth issues. We are now a BRB dealer in California and have many happy customers. We visited the BRB facilities last month and can attest it is food grade! Here is a helpful link – You can see what is in each BRB product here – http://blueridgebeef.com/ingredients. The family does protect the formulation ratios as it is a trade secret.
The comment ” you can’t trust anyone” in regards to pet food seems rampant today. I have an 8 year old German Shepherd who has eaten BRB food since she was 12 weeks old and she has never been to a vet for anything except the shots required by law. I just got a Pomeranian and he too eats BRB products. I switched him off of the junk puppy food the breeder weaned him on. He’s now 17 weeks old and looks great and growing like a weed. I must say that BRB is very hard to find at times in my area and I use a grinder and buy my meats at the grocery store and make my own raw food. But I have never had a problem with BRB
Found out from Rodney Habib that dog food companies are allowed to put any false advertising they want on package: it is called freedom of speech!! So who can you trust? Blue Ridge says it is processed in human grade facilities and meat contains no hormones or antibiotics. Is this true or just false advertising? I feed Blue Ridge but doing research. I find it hard to believe it is free of hormones and antibiotics. The beef would have to be organic and for $2.50/lb I doubt it!
https://therawfeedingcommunity.com/2017/12/17/the-blue-ridge-beef-controversy/
this is a controversy article regarding Blue Ridge which I currently feed. Just wondering how much rendering stuff is in it. It’s hard to trust anyone now a days
Who is your vet? I need one who supports raw!
Just had a recall and kitten deaths, yet nothing about it on their website
https://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm599261.htm
Kimberly, after reading your original post and all the subsequent replies I began some more research into BRB. Like you, I am suspicious at their refusal to identify their meat sources and even more suspicious because they won’t even identify the attributes of the meats from those sources… ie: GMO-free, grass-fed, etc. Then after further research I discovered an article that helped me decide. That article is dated 17 December 2017, much more recent than anything else I’ve found and I’m linking it here so others who read your post will have the added benefit of something recent to consider. Here’s the link….
https://therawfeedingcommunity.com/2017/12/17/the-blue-ridge-beef-controversy/
I have been using BRB (Breeders choice) for a few months now with no problems. I mix this with NDF2 from Volhard Nutrition. One of my dogs has started to have some allergy issues but because I fed them BRB in the past and didn’t have this issue I am assumming it’s something in the Volhard that is disagreeing with him. I want to try the BRB complete and wonder if anyone has tried this product. I question whether feeding something that has more than one protein combined is not good.
My alternative is Darwin but the price goes up quite a bit with delivery.
Thanks
Vin
in the last year BRB has jacked their prices up 3 times in a row. Recently, I’ve received batches that often times smell rotten as soon as it’s been defrosted. The repeated price increases have priced me out of this brand. I’ve been paying $300-$400 a month for 1 dog.
I have been feeding my 6 cats raw for over 2 years. I purchase it from a family owned company in PA. It is expensive but lists the percentage of meat, bone, organs on each chub (so I am able to adjust proportions of these). BRB only lists min. protein, fat, etc. In spite if this, I decided to try BRB due to the incredibly low price. None of my cats would touch it. I am sure dog folks would be quick to chalk this up to cats being notorious for being picky eaters. However, my one cat has the well earned nickname “garbage can”. BRB is the only food ever offered to him that he has refused to eat in the 2+ years I have had him. My cats made the decision to not purchase BRB products in the future.
I have recently begun feeding my dog the Blue Ridge venison and rabbit. I began to cook for her because she has food allergies. A few weeks into Blue Ridge and her allergies are back. Draw your own conclusions, but I will be keeping human-grade meats.
I have been feeding BRB for 9.5 years to 4 giant breed dogs. My girls grew up on BRB and have are growing old with it. The still have amazing teeth for their age; something my vet comments on each year.
We have never had a problem with any of their meats and have tried a variety of them depending on the stage of their life.
Great comments on all sides about BRB. I’ve been selling this product for years and feel comfortable with the information that I get from the Leas. The food is not sourced from dead animal carcass removal. The product is not anything more raw meat, inclding ground organ and bones (unless it’s the bonesless one). Its not organic, not sustainably sourced, not fancy – just meat. As far as feeding human quality meat is concerned – please reconsider. Raw food for dogs and cats must test to a higher standard when it comes to traces of E Coli and other bacteria. And also remember that dogs and cats stomachs are designed to digest raw meat efficiencly. The one caviat about BRB is that is isn’t complete (unless you buy the Complete), so if you feed it to your pets, please remember to add a raw food fortified.
What about the reviews for BRB on Dog Food Advisor? I tend to believe that over anything else
Hey, Pam…
I think you have me confused with someone else…lol…I never said anything about the proprietary business of BRB.
I have simply made the choice not to feed 3D meat, you have made the decision that it’s ok to feed that type of food to your dog and that’s your choice. I’m glad your Cocker Spaniel is doing well on that diet.
Thank you for responding and blessings to you…
PS I also don’t drink Coke (or any other sodas) as I do know what they contain, and I don’t know one of those sugary drinks that are good for your body. Cheers.
The fact that BRB will not disclose proprietary information on its product (neither does Coca Cola) does not mean they are engaging in any of the practices you describe. I have researched them and made my own decision.
Thank you for your comment.
Hi, Pam…
I know many pet stores who carry BRB products, however it’s not the choice they would make for their own dogs…to each their own. You have to make choices based on how you want to feed your own animals.
Personally, I choose to feed meats that are meant for human consumption. I make the effort to source human-grade foods so I can avoid the chance of passing on unnecessary and potentially deadly disease(s) to my dogs. The food manufacturers who use 3D meats aren’t always selective when it comes to choosing meat for their products…Evangers is a perfect example. A consumer never knows if the 3D meat came from a cow with a broken leg or who died giving birth…or if it came from a cow filled with cancer or who was put down with a dose of Pentobarbital. 🙁
I follow the better-safe-than-sorry theory…
Blue Ridge Beef brand was recommended to me one year ago by my vet and by a pet store owner with whom I have done business. It was the best decision I ever made. I am sorry I didn’t start feeding this years ago when my dog was young. There is a tremendous amount of misinformation on the internet. Don’t believe it.
Did I tell you my dog loves it? She is a cocker spaniel – lhasa apso mix who will be 15 in the Fall. And one day a week, I give her a raw turkey leg from the supermarket (as recommended by my vet). She devours it – bone and all.
I just stumbled across this page when, in my Facebook On This Day, I found my posts about my two dogs and our expensive vet visits because of this dog food. I decided to “Google” the company to see if they were still in business, because I wrote to them last year as soon as the vet determined that our dogs were violently ill as a result of Blue Ridge Beef Raw Diet food. Both our our dogs became quite ill, but our Yorkie came close to dying. We never heard a word in response to our letter to BRB, but the vendor who sold it to us closed up shop shortly after I showed them our vet bills with diagnosis. The bloody diarrhea and their pitiful shaking was more than I could bare to see.
https://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-recall/blue-ridge-beef-pet-food-recall-january-2017/
Stina,
I also did a little research and found same results. It turns out that Blue Ridge Beef’s owner, Steven Lea, owns a collection facility that picks up dead, diseased, and dying animals. The mailing address is the same for both companies which I find very disturbing. I’ve been feeding my dogs BRB for over 4 years But will no longer purchase their meat.
Good grief.
Read the document.
It does NOT say they “use diseased meat.”
Maybe growing up in farm country makes it easier for me to understand the linked document.
In processing healthy animals (and parts there of) for food, there is always a percentage of the total weight that is not useful for pet food. This volume must be legally disposed of by proper handling and transport to rendering plants. Highly regulated.
BRB processes a LOT of meat & bone monthly, so there are thousands of pounds per month of non-useable fractions of animals processed for fresh pet food.
If you actually READ the Zoning document, you’ll see disposal of parts unnecessary for BRB products is a part of the process.
Setting up superior containment, handling, and transport out is just good business. Then, again-READ the document, they are helping their local farmers as needed, to handle their disposals too.
This is farm country, and farming is both fundamental and complex. In addition to breeding, raising, and selling their produced animals, proper “waste” disposal is a part of animal farming, not a nefarious plot to poison pets.
I find it impossible to fault BRB for being good business managers, entrepreneurs, and supportive farm-community members and problem-solvers.
This document actually served to increase my respect for BRB, rather than to “condemn” them.
No “smoking gun” here folks, just common sense responsible business management.
That’s my 2-cents…
PS, I feed raw to my animals (I’m Vegan too), and have a degree in public and environmental health. I’m VERY concerned about health, ethics, morality, environment, community, etc. and am a small business consultant.
So, I’m a thinker & investigator. I dig…
Time to quit conjuring ways to defame a good solid ethical business.
Especially making spurious
and ignorant assumptions, and by making false accusations. This guy linked a document that merely highlighted his own ignorance.
Gosh…
-Victoria Ozers Rose
Just a question, why is BRB exempt from:
Labeling. Pet food labeling is regulated at two levels. The current FDA regulations require proper identification of the product, net quantity statement, name and place of business of the manufacturer or distributor, and proper listing of all the ingredients in the product in order from most to least, based on weight.
Is it not a ‘pet food’? we have pet food labeling regulations. So I donot understand why their product is not labeled with ingredients.PLEASE someone tell me why. ‘TRUST me’, or I have been using it for ‘x’ amount of years and my animals are healthy……..good for you, the fact remains the entire pet food industry is required to lable their food starting with the largest ingredient, down.BUT NOT this brand. WHY??? SOMEONE, give some solid proof or valid explanation on this food not being labeled……..otherwise all the comments made here mean nothing.
I did see the link, but before I publish it in the blog post, I needed to confirm the authenticity. I will update the post if I receive confirmation that it’s authentic. I don’t want to risk being sued for libel.
Thanks for reminding everyone.
Did ANY of the commentators actually read the link provided by Doyle, above?
There is no drama here, no confusion, no question. “Doyle” produced the Iredell County Planning Board meeting minutes as an online document, which, if not completely fabricated by a hacker, pretty much lays the issue to complete rest.
I am doubtful about anyone’s intentions here if that evidence is just being ignored. Very strange. I just wanted to give a shout out to suggest that anyone who actually wants to know what is in this pet food has the information right in front of them.
Thank you for sharing your experience; it’s nice to have positive comments. When I was researching the rumors, I found it difficult to find a nice balance of experiences.
I am a nutrition response testing practitioner in Atlanta and I actually test the Blue Ridge meats on any pet I’m working on, mainly to test for allergies to different meats. It does test well and I have had nine pets of my own on it for years without problems. It’s good for those who need a more reasonably priced option for raw. And I understand how they’re fed up with all the rumors that have been floating around for years, with no basis in fact. At some point you just have to say “enough is enough.”
I’m sorry that you’re having that experience. It’s great of you to try and work it out with them; not everyone in the corporate office knows what happens in the plants and working with customers helps. I hope things improve soon.
I have been having issue with Rabbit with bones.
It started with finding BLUE COLORED Plastic or Metal pieces in rabbit with bone about 6 month ago. I have filed complaints to FDA and exchanged email with blueridge beef regional rep Dean hoping hat they will address the issues. I have also saved the material, took it to local retailer where I bought it, so he can see it. He did not know where the materials were came from. So I got a replacement from different retailer but the replacement I have received also had a couple of small pieces of the same materials. So I stopped buying Rabbit with bone for a while and feeding my cats Turkey with bone. But after a while, my cat did not want to eat Turkey any more, so I decided to try rabbit again. It has been ok until last week, I found blue colored material in food AGAIN. Obviously, they did not address the issues and this time, I also found a LARGE INSECT in the food. I was so disguised, upset and disappointed. Obviously they have no quality control. I will file another complaint to FDA and will contact rep again.
I have been with a new supplier of Blue Ridge beef for a year . I had good meat and then I got an order of three cases and it was bad
, no blood in it. I can’t order it and have bad meat. I have to get my cats on something that I know is going to be good always
I have Heard that the dead and disease cattle are on the same farm that they do their slaughtering at an iPad a lot of issues with food from them and I feed kitties who are a lot pickier than most,
To me no matter how good reviews are a company that won’t share it’s source information I wouldn’t buy from. I wouldn’t for humane food or animal food. Too many unknown ingredients from questionable sources can be mixed in and you’d never know. Thank you for bringing this awareness to people!
I’m having that experience with veterinarians too. Many are very open to the diet when they realize that we put a lot of research into creating a balanced diet. It’s wonderful and gives me hope that we’ll continue to move forward. At SuperZoo this year, there were so many raw brands, it blew my mind!
Kimberly, the AMA is also strongly pushing anti raw because of the major dog food companies are insisting it’s bad. Vets that bother to do the research will embrace raw food, even if they don’t personally want to feed it.
I feed my cats BRB and have been for a few years off and on. It can be hard to get depending on the distributor. All I know that across the board for even my picky cats, they LOVE it. Cats are pretty in tune with food that is bad. They won’t eat store bought beef a day after the package has been open. It always smells fresh and looks fresh. I don’t know about what was said but I can not be happier with the stuff except when I can’t get it do to the infrequency and distance of my distributor. That is the ONLY issue I find.
You’re 100% correct. I was trying to explain why this hasn’t been done. Maintaining a website is a lot of work and if you don’t have someone on staff to take care of it, it’s easy to let it slide while you’re focused on customers.
All they have to do is let people know that the animals that they use for meat have not been fed gmo grain.
I’m not sure if they’re GMO free, but I have learned from other brands that it’s very expensive to re-label all of your products. If they plan to add GMO Free, they may wait until they need to make other changes, because this can cost them thousands of dollars. Not only do they need to get the wording right, but it has to be approved by a government agency. Lots of red tape.
I think they’re a small company; they may not currently have someone who can make a website change. But I agree that this would be a great selling point for many people. I hate that the government is stepping in and messing with our food.
I am trying to find out if Blue Ridge Beef pet food is GMO free. I was told it is GMO-free but I have looked through their entire site and there is nothing about GMO’s. I have also read their product labels and nothing there either about GMO-free. If they are GMO-free, I find it very suspicious that they don’t mention it anywhere. It would be a huge selling point. At this point, if a company won’t say on their website that they are GMO-free, I don’t believe it.
Thank you Sue for this… I have been researching this as well and just want the best for my dogs…. The question about the 4d meats was my fear and you have answered that..
They used diseased meat:
http://152.31.128.164/Departments/Planning/minutes/April2006pbminutes.pdf
Kimberly,
Thank you for your fair and unbiased approach to this topic. We have used Blue Ridge Beef for a long time. We have always been very happy with the quality and consistency. This spring, we decided to become a Blue Ridge Beef distributor and created our company Wiggles and Wagmore, LLC. I can tell you we have numerous customers from all over the Midwest that have used Blue Ridge Beef for their cats and dogs for years with zero complaints about the product. We tell our new customers that we would never sell anything that we do not feed to our own dogs and cats. Our dogs and cats are thriving on Blue Ridge Beef.
It has been an interesting and sad study in human nature to read all the comments that are based in zero facts and tons of supposition. I honestly do not blame Steve for being a bit put out over all of the terrible things that people have said about the company.
Is it all rainbows and unicorns in the land of Blue Ridge Beef? No. It is not. Many of our customers want to know the exact amount of each ingredient in the BRB mixes. Steve is not willing to provide this information and states it is proprietary info. They do provide a nutritional analysis. I encourage folks that try to balance EVERY SINGLE MEAL to use a single source protein and balance it with organs that are also separate. We have lightened up about balancing as we became to research, understand and become more comfortable with raw feeding. We now think of balance over a week or so. It makes raw feeding so much more doable and everyone is thriving, especially our Ernie.
Kimberly, again thank you for the way you hosted this discussion. I am not sure it could have been done better or more professionally. Kudos to you!
Stephanie Johnson, Owner
Wiggles and Wagmore, LLC
WigglesAndWagmore.com
Healthy Tails Wagmore!!
It’s nice to hear from so many people who are fans of BRB. I haven’t tried it, because it’s not available and my dogs can’t eat the proteins they offer, but the discussion here will be beneficial for people who hear the rumors – at least they can see so many people who have had a positive experience.
I am feeding blue ridge beef to several cats and my dogs. I switched from Vital Essentials because it was just getting too expensive. The vital essentials was like feeding “gold”, as opposed to “silver”. Honestly, if you think about it, which animals do wolves go after? The old and diseased–the ones that are easy to catch. And what kind of animals are used in commercial dog food…? I’m sure much worse are put into commercial dog food. The fact that the meat is raw is so much better for animals than a wet or dry commercial food. I do not want to feed bad meat to my animals, but regardless, raw is still so much better than commercial. Rotten meat is a different story because it could carry bacteria that could be harmful. So many people who feed raw just go to walmart and get the cheapest foods, with no concern for GMOs, type of feed, living conditions, etc. I think blue ridge beef is certainly a step above that–it’s at least comparable–and it’s affordable.
Hi Kimberly,
BRB poultry meats come from the same places the grocery store meats come originate from but they use necks (poultry) (quail is frames). So they would not be organic but would be USDA approved before they come in their doors. At that point they are not allowed by law to call them human grade being a pet food manufacturer.
The only organ meats BRB uses are beef. They use beef heart, beef liver and beef green tripe. Grass-fed beef so probably mostly dairy cows.
I am also a BRB dealer in NY and feed BRB to my cats and dogs every single day. I think I have been feeding BRB exclusively for over 6 years.
There are no salesmen, no sales manager, no regional supervisors, no ordering dept, no customer service employees, etc. You deal directly with the (very busy) owners if you call or email. Most of the employees are family members. That cuts out a LOT of costs !!!
They attend dog shows and trade shows and depend on word of mouth as their marketing and not TV or newspapers.
The poultry are all from frozen necks ground at the BRB facility that are sourced from the same companies as the meat in grocery stores originates from.
Their deliveries to us dealers come in freezer trucks not refridgerated trucks. All boxes are frozen solid and you can hear the chubs rattling as you take the boxes off the truck. They rattle because they are frozen hard as rocks.
Ground chicken necks are called chicken w bone, the turkey is from turkey necks, the duck is from duck necks, quail is from quail frames. Rabbit is farm raised in their area of the country. The venison is from deer farms of their area. Venison is seasonal based on when the farms cull the herds. The beef comes to them “on the hoof” which is why they have an onsite USDA inspector.
Since poultry necks are 30 to 40% bone you should also feed boneless beef or any boneless meats and some natural mix to create your balanced diet. A balanced diet is not supposed to be balanced daily but over the course of a week or so. Just like a human diet.
My dogs eat 1/2 of any bone grind and an equal amount of boneless beef daily. I prefer the higher fat one called breeders choice. 2-3x a week I give each dog a heaping tablespoon of natural mix (which is boneless beef, green tripe, beef heart and beef liver).
There are two formulas with meat/bone/organs called puppy mix and kitten mix. They now have a more complete formula that has added vitamins and veggies and some garlic.
Steve has answered me on this 4D meats question by email (which makes it a written statement) that BRB is not made from 4D meats, never has been made from 4D meats and never will be made from 4D meats.
Sue
Possibly with Vital Essentials it could be the fish oil. All Vital Essential raw has herring oil in it as the last ingredient.
This post was my response to the forum discussions about Blue Ridge Beef. In several of the discussions, people raised the question of the ingredients and shared that BRB wouldn’t share the details. If I had that experience with a brand, I wouldn’t feed our dogs the food. Due to Rodrigo’s allergies, I have to be aware of all ingredients and where the meat was sourced. He can’t eat grain fed beef, for instance.
Although the main Blue Ridge Beef site (which I could never find) may have detailed ingredients listed; several of the distributor sites that I visited didn’t have ingredients listed beyond “chicken, organ meat, and bone.” Because I’m raising a dog with allergies, I need more detail – what type of organ meat? where was the chicken sourced? is it organic? – this may seem nitpicky to some, but it’s important for my dog’s health. With so many brands who are willing to share this information, I won’t spend money with a brand won’t share the information.
Thanks for the question.
Kimberly
i have used it for years what do you mean you dont know what are in the ingredients its all listed on the site
PS – I’m not offended; just curious. If bloggers are involved in bashing brands, that’s not cool. I know that people have come down on me for sharing my thoughts on Purina and other dog food brands, but I try very hard not to attack the brand. Instead, I share my thoughts on their ingredients. Can’t really argue with the fact that dogs shouldn’t be eating corn; hell, some people believe humans shouldn’t eat it either.
Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts, because you’re right. We have to be careful about who we listen too in forums. We don’t know their agenda.
Why the hate against bloggers? I’m a paid blogger. I would never accept money to bash a brand in forums. I have better things to do with my time and I know that Karma is a mean bitch. When it comes to family businesses and small business, the thought of people purposefully attacking them tear them down is unfathomable. Please show me proof that bloggers are being paid to attack brand, because I want to go after them and the brands who are paying them – for free. I’m certain Blue Ridge Beef would love that list as well, because they’ll have a strong libel case.
My goal is posting about Blue Ridge Beef was to create a non-aggressive space that provides logical information instead of the rumors I found in Facebook groups and online forums.
In my research, I found nothing that proved that BRB was anything other than what they say they are – a producer of raw meals for pets. I personally wouldn’t feed my dogs their food, because they don’t reveal their ingredients list. I respect that choice; but I’m raising dogs with allergies and read the ingredients to make sure a food is okay for them. To me, that’s a logical reason not to feed BRB; what’s not logical is refusing to feed the food based on inflammatory rumors posted by strangers online.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I find all these posts amusing. I feed my puppy BRB because my vet endorses and recommends and that is good enough for me. He’s been on it since we brought him home and has had no issues. Of course, since the debacle I had with my last vet and my previous dogs issues, I now go to an osteopathic vet. Many debate that choice with me also… But I’ve had less issues other than annual check ups than I have had with past dogs and all the poisons my main stream vet lobbied for. Instead of reading rumors about BRB, why don’t look up what you’re giving your dogs every time you apply frontline or give him heartguard…. And next time you read a forum (on any topic) ask some of the posters if they’re actual pet owners or paid bloggers… 🙂 Just had to drop my two cents in… Thanks for listening, y’all. And the venison with bone and green tripe are big hits with my guy also, btw…
I respect that this comment was for Tracey, however, I wanted to clarify your comment that 3D has a bad sound to it and isn’t what people think. 3D is dead, downed, or diseased. Although this doesn’t mean that all 3D meat is diseased, the fact that it could be diseased is what is of greatest concern to pet owners who are wondering about Blue Ridge Beef.
When I think of pets eating diseased animals, I’m reminded of Mad Cow Disease, a brain disorder in adult cattle that may be spread to humans through diseased meat. This could be spread to our dogs too.
Based on my research into the Blue Ridge Beef I found that the only connection made between BRB and 3D or 4D meat is that a family member also owns a plant that allegedly processes 3D and 4D animals. Beyond that, there was no proof that this is the case.
As you stated, we need to be wary of internet bullies. BRB themselves have stopped responding to them and although I regret that they wouldn’t provide me with a statement about their meat, I don’t blame them either.
I have been feeding BRB for over 10 years! Have been to both places where they freeze and package it. NEVER had any problems with the meat. I have used the different beefs and also chicken. 3D has a bad sound to it, but it isn’t what you think. They are in cattle farm country and if a cow is in labor can’t deliver they get the call and take care of it themselves and bring it back immediately for butcher. Almost as quick as beef prepared for humans. They do NOT pick up dead or diseased animals. The proof is in the top grade fresh lean meat. Be wary of internet bullies. This is a family run company that cares very much about it’s product and customers
Hi, great blog – thank you! I switched my dogs to BRB last year after trying other raw brands. All 4 of my dogs love BRB and my 15 year old Pomeranian (who is in congestive heart failure) has never been so spritely! For the first time since we adopted him 6 years ago, he does a happy dance at dinner time. I’ve been involved in senior dog rescue for 11 years so we have taken in many dogs with chronic illnesses. After lots of research, raw definitely seems to be the best choice for everyone. My veterinarian of more than 11 years, also feeds raw. She is also a breeder of terriers and even weans her puppies straight into a raw diet.
I had always been led to believe that “holistic, grain free” dry food was healthy, but that really is not the case. I spoke to many vets, homeopaths and breeders while doing some digging online and was pretty surprised what I found. We pulled all of ours dogs off kibble last year until I was able to find the ONE brand that didn’t contain flavor enhancers and gmo’s. Even now, I use it sparingly.
I agree that the BRB price point seems “suspiciously” low at first, however, there are a couple things that are a little different about BR. The rolls are much less expensive to manufacture than all the chubbs and niblets in those fancy bags. I also very much like Tuckers frozen and , sure the 8oz portioning is fab, but it also sends the price point way up! BRB also doesn’t appear to spend money on fancy packaging or marketing. I’ve got loads of “freebies” from the Primal vendor (insulated bags, samples, etc.) but nothing from BRB. Maybe that’s a coincidence but it seems they’d rather let their product speak for itself. The store owner who carries the BRB I buy is very committed to selling only quality (and ethical) products and she has excellent relationships with her vendors.
So, for now, I feel pretty confident about my choice. As long as my dogs are doing well, I will wait for hard evidence, rather than unsubstantiated allegations.
Thanks for addressing the issue!!
🙂
I appreciate you bringing this topic up since I am currently researching affordable raw foods for a kitty with GI issues. I want to thank Doyle (below) for posting link to planning meeting minutes. Obviously one would hope Blue Ridge is keeping these business separate but without full disclosure who knows. After reading through meeting minutes, I can see why people would be hesitant to buy beef from this company.
That sounds absolutely amazing! And you are so right, a good diet IS better than the vet bills. Our dogs go in for annual wellness checks. This year, I’m having their blood work done. That’s it! And I’m thankful.
I follow the Volhard diet which gives the dogs beef and green tripe (about 85% beef, 15% tripe) five days a week, cottage cheese on day six and fasting on day seven. The diet is in Wendy Volhard’s book The Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog and on her web site. I feed the home made diet but she also offers a dry diet to which you add the meats ( I use this when traveling or when a dog sitter is in charge — easier on all concerned).
I have fed this diet exclusively for over 16 years and wouldn’t think of switching — a good diet is a lot cheaper than vet bills.
Same here….my 8 year old raw fed GSD just had his first round of senior tests. All his “levels” were excellent! I love raw!
Green ripe is rubbery and green. Have you ever seen it whole?
Carissa, thank you so much for the comment. I believe you’re the first distributor to weigh in on this topic. I really like that so many people are sharing their thoughts. Your comment about the lack of a marketing budget is valid. I only heard about Blue Ridge when I started joining raw food forums and groups.
I have been feeding Blue Ridge Beef to both our cats and dogs for over two years now. We are also a dealer – trust me, I would not sell anything I didn’t think was good enough to feed to my own animals! Previously we had them on a “greyhound” type meat that was seriously nasty and kept getting worse as the years went by. We made the switch to BR and have never looked back. We have definitely seen improvements in our cats (less sneezy, less watery eyes, better weight (muscle weight, not flabby), and better coats.) The dogs have also improved in muscle vs fat weight. Honestly, I think BR is cheaper than most other national raw brands because they do not spend a lot of money on marketing (I don’t think they really spend any.) They depend on independent dealers marketing the product for them (and word of mouth). In order to get into some of the big-box stores, a manufacturer has to provide a freezer for their produce in the store. That’s very costly! BR doesn’t do that, so they are able to keep their products at a lower cost. I would highly recommend BR products (and not just because I sell them – because I use them myself!)
I have used the BRB products for many years. Not exclusively, but my dogs really enjoy it. I particularly feed it to very young puppies (every litter I raise gets their products several times per week). The people ARE hard to get a hold of when I want to place an order, which is very annoying! I am considering becoming a dealer myself so I can buy in bulk and keep more of it on hand. Anyone in the north Florida or southern Georgia area who would be interested in helping me to meet the minimum order requirement, please let me know! Thanks!
hi susie. i’m not sure what area you are from, but i would imagine we’d be fairly close since BRB covers a limited area. I am in ohio i would be interested and grateful if you could share where you might be getting your raw food now if it’s no longer from BRB ??? i have been looking high and low and cannot seem to find a decent or reputable place to buy raw products for my dog. any information you can share would be most appreciated.
Hi Kimberly. Thank you for your comment. Like you say.
It is very expensive to have all the allergy testing done. I have spent thousands of dollars on vet bills this last year and I have had it with these vets. The allergy business is frustrating. To say the least. This is my third dog that has had really awful allergies. All of the bathing and other work involved is no longer making owning a dog rewarding anymore. And I am careful! If I can’t get it right no more animals after him. Finished. We just had to rehome our little kitty. I couldn’t tell if it was the dog or the cat. It must’ve been the cat because the dog is definitely more comfortable without her. Very sad. But kitty has a great new home.
His coat is still dry. I am thinking of trying salmon oil.the brb has no other ingredients. The vital essentials has mixed tocopherol and herring oil in it. It really is too much for me to deal with. I am just glad the BRB is agreeing with him.
Melissa
Melissa
So your dog doesn’t have an allergy to beef, but something else. Interesting. I wonder what was causing the problem when your dog was eating Vital Essentials. I have a dog that has protein allergies and narrowing it down became too much work so I switched to raw feeding.
Hi. My two cents. My Springer has been over vaccinated. He is now very allergic. Chicken being the worst. And I was careful to provide records, spoke with the vets before they did. I changed him cold turkey to vital essentials beef combo which has herring oil in it. He was still scratching. Then I found Blue Ridge beef and bone. His scratching has mostly disappeared. Works for me! He is happy and healthy at 8 years young.
That’s unfortunate, Susie. I wonder if it was from machinery. So glad that you found it before feeding your dogs.
after recently finding several green rubber parts in the tripe from BRB I emailed them only to first be ignored by them and after I sent a second email I finally got a response saying just they don’t know what it is and they are changing distributors . Very disappointing for me on their part for customer service. My $1000 month orders from them will now stop as I will never order their food again.
http://152.31.128.164/Departments/Planning/minutes/April2006pbminutes.pdf
Sorry I forgot to include the link
Here is a link to the minutes where Steven Lea asked for an expansion for his collection facility for dead animals. Steven Lea is also the owner of Blue Ridge Beef.
I find the lack of communication on their part to be very telling. I looked up business records in the state they are located and the addresses and names associated are the same for BRB and the rendering plant. That for me is all I needed to see. I would NEVER buy from this company – esp. with what I experienced when trying it with my pup. Glad I only bought 2 chubs.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Stina – because there isn’t any hard and fast information one way or another and the owners of Blue Ridge weren’t interested in speaking with me, I can only go by what people who use their products share. I’m hoping that everyone who shares their experiences (both positive and negative) will help others who are looking for more information.
Just found the brand to be extremely suspicious. I couldn’t believe the cost. Why was it so much less than other raw companies? I had tried a chub or two for my puppy and he was loving raw till I offered him some BRB — he just wouldn’t touch it. I had to throw it out. No matter how I served it.. he’d smell it and walk away. I fed him other blends and he’d inhale it — but would choose to starve than eat BRB. Just too weird, so no thanks, I’ll pass.
I looked into it and the brother of the owner owns and runs a rendering plant. They collect dead and diseased animals to render.. too darn close to home. I don’t even feel good about shopping at the store that sells it. Pass.. when something is too good to be true it often is.
Love keep the tail wagging. Thank you Kimberly!
I think when people found out that either a partner in BRB or a family member of an owner had a business dealing with or disposing of animal carcasses, a connection was made that BRB must be using those carcasses in their food and that’s why the meat is less expensive. Although there are a lot of theories, there is no proof that I could find.
I have been feeding my dogs Blue Ridge Puppy Mix for over two years and have been completely satisfied with their product. I’m not sure why or how the rumor that they use poor quality meat got started but I have 4 dogs and all are healthy. I have used the turkey with bone as well but my terrier is allergic to turkey so am going to switch him to rabbit or venison. I was under the impression that they raise their own animals. At least that’s what my pet store owner told me.
That’s such an amazing testimonial to raw. How often do you feed green tripe? I feed it once a week, I want to feed more often, but I need to come up with a schedule so that I can plan to for orders and storage.
Thanks!
I have fed green tripe from Blue Ridge Beef for over six years with excellent results and no problems. About a year ago they lost their source of green tripe and didn’t have any for sale for several months which sent me scrambling for another source — just checked and they are offering it again so I will go back to getting it from them.
I recently took a ten year old Pembroke Welsh Corgi in for a checkup by a new vet and requested a routine blood check. The vet came back with the results shaking his head and asking me if I was sure the dog was ten years old — he had never seen any ten year old dog with such excellent results. Since I whelped the dog (who has been on a natural home made diet all his life) I could assure him that the age was correct.
Great point, Debbie – it’s easy to say negative things about people online, because we have the protection of being behind a computer screen. We can do this anonymously and don’t have to see the reaction to our words. My favorite part of writing this post was the response from BRB who will no longer respond to these queries. I was surprised, but I couldn’t blame them. Eventually you have to focus on your business and stop giving power to people who are just trying to tear you down.
What people fail to realize they are slandering a family who are trying to make a living running a business. Not only do they hurt this family but every person who also is part of the chain in the industry plus the raw pet food in itself. Have heard people remark it cannot be good its too inexpensive but if its pricey then they complain its too costly. There are many logical reasons why it is economical but people would rather speculate then rely on fact finding as it is just easy to sit and condemn versus fact finding. Many folks are lucky they have not been met with a law suit for slander.
Very true, Debbie
I couldn’t track the source of the rumors; I could only find discussions that usually started with someone asking about the brand and then eventually moving to everyone saying negative things. But I couldn’t find any evidence of sick dogs or nefarious dealings by Blue Ridge.
I stated this in the post, but I keep going back to it. With the FDA and some of the traditional veterinarians being so anti raw, if Blue Ridge were so bad, wouldn’t we have heard about it eons ago?
Have been selling and personally feeding Blue Ridge Beef for a little over 2 years now. My cats have never been as healthy and they no longer get URI that is so common with cats. There is so much information out there that people should know like for instance: any pet food cannery only plant the FDA law is the meat must be denatured in front of the inspector. They use motor oil, burning alcohol and or charcoal to make it unfit for human consumption. Have personally opened a can of a well known expensive can food and found what looked and felt like motor oil on the top of it. None of my pets dog or cat would go near it. While all the bad rumors as they are rumors until proven other wise make it difficult to sell Blue Ridge Beef I will not stop until someone can prove something bad. As I do not form an opinion based on rumors just facts. Wouldn’t cats and dogs be extinct and have died off by now as a species if a raw diet was so harmful?
Thank you so much for saying that – I found the entire Blue Ridge Beef rumor mill fascinating. I saw so many discussions that dissolved into really strong accusations with no proof. Every person I spoke with who feed Blue Ridge has been happy with the product and their customer service.
Carrageenan is a big topic of conversation in our raw feeding group. I feed our dogs canned tripe by PetKind and it’s in some of their foods. I recently switched to their products that don’t contain the ingredient. Although our dogs have never suffered from the ingredient (that I know of), I’m just not willing to take the chance. Once you see, you can’t unsee.
I really struggle with the use of 3D meats and the clear definition of 3D meats, because everyone says something different. I just know I don’t want to be around it and I’m glad that we no longer feed kibble. The Truth About Pet Food has been a great resource for me and a few articles that Susan wrote a couple of years ago were paramount in helping me make the choice to change our dogs’ diet. Again, once you see, you can’t unsee. She’s really brave, because I know she’s taken some heat from being so outspoken, which I don’t understand. Big pet food brands make so much money, who cares that some of us aren’t buying their product anymore?
Thank you, Kimberly. I have been involved with food research groups and watch-dog groups regarding both wet, dry and raw for over a decade. Sadly, the pet food industry is about money, not health of our beloved animals. A food that was once good, sadly becomes a horrible food if you don’t keep an eye on the ingredients. This became apparent when good food companies were bought out by Proctor and Gamble or Mars. Often the company selling was made promises about not changing the ingredients, only to have their foods on the recall lists shortly after the acquisition. Many buyers are unaware of the dangers an ingredient in canned called carrageenan which is a known carcinogen. This poison can be found in many human dairy products as well as processed foods.
And don’t get me started about kibble. Most companies DO buy 3D meat for their products. Further, the U.S. is the only free world country allowing GMO products in human and animal foods. If you do feed kibble there is only one American food that is GMO free.
For those who want to be kept aware of what is or is not happening in the pet food industry, I suggest joining The Truth About Pet Food (http://truthaboutpetfood.com/). Susan Thixton is an amazing advocate for our animals. She asks the tough questions not only of the manufacturers, but the FDA and the powers that be that attend pet food conferences. You can join her newsletter to become aware of what is currently happening or beware of.
And just an aside to this, I have been feeding Blue Ridge Beef to my cats for over 8 years.I have been breeding for almost 2 decades and can tell you my pets have never been healthier.
Thanks for commenting. The statement does say “a portion.” I didn’t say all veterinarians speak regularly about the dangers of raw feeding. I have a Google Alert set up for “raw feeding” and daily see articles being published by veterinarians who are warning people against the dangers of the diet for dogs and humans. Since I can’t know how all veterinarians feel about raw feeding, I wanted to be sure not to use a paint brush to speak for people I don’t know.
I believe the lack of veterinarian support also has to do with lack of education and experience with raw feeding. I’ve met many who admit to the lack of education in school. They took their education further to explore holistic veterinarian medicine before opening their practices. I work with several vets with our dogs and I am noticing that some are coming around and are interested in why so many people are exploring raw feeding. It’s an exciting time for me.
Thanks again for stopping by.
Please go back and do some research with regarding to this sentence: Also, given that a portion of the veterinarian community speak regularly about the dangers of raw feeding,
That is old news and it was the big companies putting pressure on the AAFP. When confronted with the truthfullness of this subject, the statement and declarations were rescinded.http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/does-avma-aaha-support-this-in-pet-foods/
“Despite thousands and thousands of comments in favor or raw meat pet food, despite pleas from consumers, manufacturers, and veterinarians to open communication regarding the AVMA, AAHA, AAFP, and NASPHV policy…all of these organizations held firm. These national veterinary organizations must have clearly felt this policy was in the best interest of animal and human health to ignore so many. But here’s the puzzler…if they cared so much, were so worried about the health of animals and the health of humans, I wonder why none of these veterinary organizations have a policy against…”
The reason: Can you say lobbyists and big company bullies?
Love this post
Our dogs are crazy about venison. They’ll be trying elk soon too.
I have never heard of this company. All other dog food companies are so proud to share where their ingredients come from, so it seems odd that Blue Ridge Beef would be so closed about theirs. I have no plans to order from them, but if I did I’d probably go with the venison rather than beef.
When I got their response, I was tempted to argue that it would benefit them to get the truth out there and show them my traffic numbers, but somehow I didn’t think it would matter to them at this point. It’ll be interesting to see how the rumor mill impacts their business or if it just eventually dies away.
I have heard of this company before, but never purchased any of their product…my biggest concern was the allegations they did business with a “co-company” (my words) who acquires animals that fall into the 4D category.
I have no personal knowledge of the company.
I would be interested in purchasing from them, if I knew for sure what they were all about and the sources of their meat.
I am concerned about their response to your question. While I understand they’ve heard the same rumors we have, and want to shut the door on them, if they had read your blog/FB page…then they know your style and that you address both sides of the issue. I would think, if they had nothing to hide, they would have used your platform to speak the truth and to finally address the concerns you had asked about. All of your readers would have been able to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.
Their failure to even answer your questions and to put them in the “stupidity” category, have given me all the answers I need to know about Blue Ridge Beef.