Almena Meat Company Purchase: The First Step Toward Ranch Brand

Before there was a Ranch Brand Meat Company, there was a decision. In February 2024, Jeff and Charlotte Antczak and Jake Rooney bought Almena Meat Company, the USDA-inspected plant in Almena that had processed the Antczaks' beef for years. The Barron News-Shield and The Chetek Alert both covered it at the time.

The plant had been in the Rundhaug and Bohn families for 36 years before us. We were the first ownership change since 2013, and we took that seriously. Almena Meat Company kept its name, its team, and its custom processing for area farmers and hunters. It still does.

The reasoning for us was simple. Two ranches wanted to build one beef brand, and neither wanted to send cattle to a plant we didn't control. Owning the processor meant owning every step: handling, cutting, labeling, shipping. If anything goes wrong, it's on us.

Five months later the Chetek shop became Ranch Brand, and The Barn opened in Chippewa Falls a month after that. This was the first step.

Read the coverage: Barron News-Shield and The Chetek Alert.