Our Story
Luke grew up on his family’s beef farm in Kirkwood, Pennsylvania and has always had a passion for animals and Bulk Beef In Lancaster farming. As a young boy he raised pigs, sheep, and beef cattle for local fairs and even had his own flock of sheep. After high school he joined his dad on the farm where he spent his days out working in the fields and feeding beef cattle along with custom cropping for other local farmers.
In 2015 Luke and Kelsey got married and in the fall of 2019 we purchased their first group of cattle. As it came time to sell them in the spring of 2020 the beef cattle markets crashed. The processing plants were closed and not purchasing cattle, yet the store shelves were empty. How could we get our beef to customers looking to feed their families? We began calling local butcher shops and selling beef directly to customers and that was the beginning of Rock Haven Family Farms. We would take steer up to the butcher not knowing who was going to purchase it, and after it was dry aged and ready to be butchered we always had someone interested in purchasing the beef from us. We will always remember those days as the whirlwind that it was, but we felt the Lord guiding us as we quickly transitioned from selling to a wholesale beef packer to directly to our local families.
Luke and Kelsey began selling their own beef in 2020, but Luke grew up helping his dad on the Bulk Beef In Lancaster farm, which has been selling beef for over 50 years. Luke is the 4th generation on the family farm and enjoys raising his boys, Cody, Nate and Carter, here on the farm with Kelsey. Luke runs the day-to-day operations on the farm, including feeding and caring for the cattle and growing the crops. A typical day starts before the sun comes up as he goes out to take care of the animals first, feeding the steers and looking over them to make sure they are all doing well. Spring, summer, and fall are always busy on the farm with raising cattle and working in the fields. Winter brings a slower pace as Luke focuses on equipment maintenance and preparing for spring planting.
Kelsey’s days are full of taking care of the family and managing the customer service side of the business. She answers emails and walks customers through the process of placing their custom orders. Kelsey also grew up on a farm and has always enjoyed the lifestyle of working together as a family.
Rock Haven Family Farms has had the opportunity to serve the local Lancaster, Pennsylvania community as well as the greater Northeast region. Our Bulk Beef In Lancastercustomers include people who are looking for local, healthy beef to feed their families with confidence. We specialize in black angus beef and we agree with the saying “you are what you eat” so we focus on raising healthy beef cattle to create healthy family meals.
Our beef is sold by the quarter, half, and whole steer which allows our customers to purchase beef at the best price. We sell custom orders so families can decide which cuts are best for their families. Do you eat mostly ground beef? Are roasts a family favorite? A custom order allows families to purchase what they enjoy and helps reduce any waste. We know ordering a custom quarter of beef is a new process for many people so we are happy to walk through it is with you and guide you to what will be the best Bulk Beef In Lancaster options for your family. There is no better feeling than having a freezer full of fresh, local beef!
We use a few local butchers including Noble Road Butcher Shop in Kirkwood and Rocky Ridge Butcher Shop in Strasburg. We have longstanding relationships with these butchers and are thankful to have local butchers that allow us to place custom orders. Noble Road Butcher Shop is open from September to May and they are our main butcher since they are located only a few minutes from the farm. Rocky Ridge Butcher Shop is open all year and we use them mainly during the summer months.
As a small, local beef farm we work to produce consistent Bulk Beef In Lancaster throughout the year with the goal of processing beef every three to four months. We purchase most of our cattle from Virginia, where they spend the first 2/3 of their life out on meadow. We choose to purchase our cattle from down there because they are known for their quality and consistency. We also have personal connections with some of the farmers down there and we trust them to raise the highest quality steers for us. Once they reach 700-900 pounds we bring them up here to our farm until they are ready for the butcher. They are fed a diet of hay, corn, soybeans, and minerals, most of which is grown right here on the farm. We have two cattle barns on our farm which allows the steers to live in a comfortable environment.
At the butcher we insist on dry aging our beef for 2 weeks for maximum tenderness. After this the butcher will cut your order according to your order form and freeze it in their commercial freezers for 3-4 days. Once the beef is ready we will meet you at the butcher shop to help you pick up your order and make sure everything is correct.
Running a beef farm consists of early mornings getting up to feed the steers and late nights harvesting crops, but we truly believe that the work we do helps improve our family’s life as well as our local families who trust us to feed their families. Healthy food is a critical part of our community and country as a whole and we love being able to connect personally with each of our Bulk Beef In Lancaster customers!
We would be honored to provide fresh, local black angus freezer beef for your family!
