Rancher Creates Skin Care Products From Beef Tallow

A passion for the beef industry and health care led Katie Biggins to add a new enterprise using a beef byproduct -- tallow -- to her family's already-growing ranch-to-retail beef business.

As a nurse, Biggins searches for healthy products for her family that are clean (made with all-natural ingredients) and truly work, especially when it comes to skin care. "I had heard a lot on social media about beef tallow and its benefits, so I decided it was time to really do some research," she says. "I realized I had beef tallow in my freezer, so trying it out would be fairly easy."

She started experimenting in the summer of 2024, transforming her Gregory, South Dakota ranch kitchen into a lab where she measured, rendered, mixed and blended until she found the right formula. "Beef tallow may be a trend used by many today, but it's actually something our ancestors used for centuries before us for its healing properties," Biggins explains.

"It's a biocompatible superfood for your skin. It contains restorative fatty acids and nutrients nearly identical to our skin's natural lipid barrier," she continues.

The key benefits of tallow are improved skin cell health, restoration of moisture, soothing of inflammation, protection against premature aging, strengthening of the skin barrier and easy absorption.

Initially, Biggins gave away the skin-care products to family and friends. Their praises and encouragement convinced her to sell the products starting in October 2024 under the brand Biggins Cattle Co. Tallow.

QUALITY COUNTS

The now called Biggins & Co. Tallow is made from suet, which is the highest quality fat from a beef carcass. It's rendered in small batches over three days for purity and stability. Rendering starts with multiple wet renders to remove any impurities. After the initial wet rendering and straining, the next phase involves dry rendering. This process requires strict temperature control of around 130°F to evaporate any remaining moisture to ensure a shelf-stable and smooth-textured product, while preserving the tallow's nutrients and vitamins. The tallow is odorless -- yet nutrient dense -- and whipped to a soft, spreadable texture. It's also free of fillers, preservatives or synthetic fragrances.

The products are made of tallow and jojoba oil, which helps with hydration into the skin. Jojoba oil comes from the jojoba nut and has been used for centuries by Native Americans for its nourishing properties. The oil is a staple in the cosmetic industry for its nutritional and beauty benefits. Biggins says it's not oily but is like the natural sebum that skin produces, making the tallow ideal for all skin types. Jojoba oil also helps brighten, tighten and smooth skin, which Biggins says can help balance your complexion.

Essential oils are purchased from an U.S. company that sources it from around the world. Those used in the scented products are sustainable, nontoxic, cruelty-free and vegan-produced for high quality. The vanilla is from grade A Madagascar vanilla beans with powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties. Other ingredients used include frankincense, manuka, blue tansy and tea tree oil. "I want everything to be high quality, tested and natural," she explains.

FAMILY LEGACY

Katie and her husband, Jessy, bought their current cattle herd in 2010 from her dad, but it was started by previous generations of the family. The couple's children -- David, 16; Gracie, 14; and Brooks, 6 -- are the fifth generation to carry on the ranching legacy. The family works together to care for the cattle. Gracie can also be found in the kitchen helping with tallow production.

Biggins says when she and Jessy decided to select cattle from their herd to feed and sell for the retail beef business, they wanted the very best they could raise. "We started looking more closely at genetics and making sure we are raising high-quality Angus beef for our beef business," she explains. "The quality extends into the tallow, as well."

Their beef business continues to grow. They handpick which animals are fed out and have a few cows calving in the fall to help provide product year-round. These same animals are the source for the tallow products. Their cattle are pasture-raised, grass- and grain-finished, hormone-free Angus cattle that are USDA inspected.

The Biggins' retail beef business started with inquiries from the hundreds of hunters who travel to their ranch each fall for pheasant hunting. They asked about buying whole, halves or quarters of beef after seeing the cattle on the ranch. Eventually, these hunters became their first customers, and the rising demand for their beef led to the retail beef business.

To learn more about retail, Biggins did a mentorship with a ranch-to-retail business in California to learn the logistics of e-commerce, social media strategy and shipping. The couple also received a USDA Value-Added Producer Grant to help with business growth.

For now, a freezer trailer is used to store meat for retail sales. Beef is shipped once per month, but tallow products are shipped soon after orders are received. The Bigginses hope to build a shop soon to house the growing beef and tallow business. "[I want] one that will include a commercial kitchen for rendering and whipping the tallow in a temperature-controlled space," she says with a laugh, since she's been using the family's kitchen. It will also include walk-in freezers for ease of storing the beef inventory. Biggins would also eventually like to be able to have seasonal customer events and on-site shopping.

"Our mission is to have intentional growth. We want to continue to provide an expanding line of products on the beef and tallow side, but not lose sight of the importance of raising high-quality beef with proper stewardship," she says.

BIGGINS & CO. TALLOW PRODUCTS

Here is a list of products available for the face, hands and skin, as well as lip balm. Prices range from $5 to $44.

-- Whipped Tallow Facial Cream: Neroli, Tansy, Radiance

-- Clarify No. 5: Formulated for acne-prone skin

-- Smoke: Earthy & masculine for hands that work hard

-- Whipped Tallow Balm: Infused Vanilla Bean, Santal

-- Bare Tallow Cream: Unscented

-- Tallow Lip Balm & ChapStick

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-- For more information, visit https://bigginscattleco.com/…

-- Jennifer Carrico can be reached at jennifer.carrico@dtn.com

-- Follow Jennifer on social platform X @JennCattleGal

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