RSF Announces Loan to Estancia Beef

(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) July 18, 2011 - To support alternatives to the conventional factory farming system, RSF Social Finance is proud to announce a new loan to Estancia Beef, a leading free range grass fed beef brand. Estancia’s mission is to make healthy, sustainably raised grass fed beef available to consumers across the country. RSF’s financing will help Estancia expand their operations and broaden the market for humanely treated grass fed beef. 

“RSF Social Finance is proud to support Estancia Beef,” said Scott Hackenberg, RSF Lending Manager. “We look forward to partnering with Estancia to help them supply more consumers with a sustainable, healthy and humane alternative, while bringing further awareness to the myriad of problems associated with our current feedlot system."   Estancia sources its beef from an exclusive cooperative of 40 sustainable family-owned ranches in Uruguay. All cattle are raised eating natural grasses and each has access to two acres of open pasture. These animals are never treated with growth promoting antibiotics or hormones. Furthermore, the cattle are slaughtered following welfare standards which ensure the least amount of stress to the animal.   Estancia’s livestock grazing methods improve the health of the animals, the consumer and the environment. Grass fed beef has half the fat and cholesterol of corn fed beef and is high in omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin A and vitamin E. The absence of antibiotics protects animals and consumers against dangerous strains of evolved antibiotic resistant bacteria. Grass fed beef has a much lower risk of E coli and Mad Cow disease. Furthermore, the company projects its carbon footprint to be 1-10% of the U.S. commodity feedlot steer equivalent.   San Francisco based, Estancia Beef was founded in 2005. Their meat is currently available in select Northern California butcher shops, grocery stores and restaurants. Estancia also offers its products wholesale and online. The company intends to increase its distribution with expansion into new markets and increased national account and web sales.   About RSF Social Finance Located in San Francisco, CA, RSF Social Finance (RSF) is a non-profit financial services organization dedicated to transforming the way the world works with money. Since 1984 the organization has made over $230 million in loans throughout the U.S. and Canada to non-profit and for-profit social enterprises.   RSF's capital comes primarily from one thousand individuals who have invested $1,000 or more in the organization's Social Investment Fund. Investors earn a competitive return on their money comparable to a certificate of deposit while their funds are deployed to social enterprises working in the areas of Food & Agriculture, Education & the Arts and Ecological Stewardship.   About Estancia Beef With ranches in the United States, Argentina, and Uruguay, Estancia Beef produces and provides the highest quality grass-fed beef available in the world. Estancia pledges to serve consumers the best tasting, healthiest, and most sustainable beef on the market; provide complete transparency from pasture to plate; and work closely with ranchers and every step of delivery.     RSF15330