Pearson Ranch Jerky, Snack Sticks Summer Sausage

PEARSON RANCH JERKY, SNACK STICKS AND SUMMER SAUSAGE

YOU COULD NEVER TURN THEM DOWN!

By: Gail Veley

AThe next time you pack a backpack, tackle box or picnic basket, Marvin Cromwell/Pearson is certain there’s something you’ll want to include inside – Pearson Ranch jerky, snack sticks and summer sausage. Made from elk, venison, bison and even wild boar, Pearson Ranch products have a taste and texture unlike any other competitor’s products and are thoughtfully produced so as to not include MSG, gluten, soy, nitrites or nitrates. Sea salt and celery juice are used instead to help cure and preserve every product whose meat starts first at USDA inspected plants prior to being shipped to final USDA inspected comanufacturing locations.

Unlike other businesses, COVID-19 hasn’t slowed down Pearson Ranch Jerky sales at all. In fact, the opposite has happened. Sales increased 44% last year as people either spent more time outside, or more time at home snacking. The end result has meant hundreds of retailers from travel centers and truck stops to popular sporting goods stores carry their products, which evidently are too intriguing to pass by. “We’ve found our customers really enjoy the taste and the convenience of having something healthy and different to snack on,” said owner Marvin Cromwell/Pearson, who along with his wife Yvette, son Matt and brother Bret operate the business. Although they raise and use some of their own animals for their products, high demand for their products necessitates purchasing animals or meat from other ranches, farmers, co-ops and wholesalers. A family passion for raising livestock began with his great-grandfather’s immigration from Germany and settling and ranching in eastern Colorado. In 1959 Marvin’s great uncle, Ken Pearson, started Pearson Ranch in the mountains of southwest New Mexico. Forty years later, in 1999, Marvin’s whole world changed after his mother handed him a newspaper article about raising and owning elk. He met his wife the following year and together, they put up some high fence and started raising some elk in New Mexico on the Pearson Ranch, which he had taken over in 1994. After a fortuitous meeting of Scott Salonek at a NAEBA convention, the production of Pearson Ranch brand elk jerky, snack sticks and summer sausage began. Shortly thereafter in 2003, bison products became available followed by venison and wild boar in 2014. Today, after requests for more traditional beefbased products from their retailers, they have developed Cowboy Original and Hot ‘N Sweet beef jerky as well as green chile and autumn chile snack sticks made with New Mexico’s worldfamous chile’s. Twenty-one years of devotion and dedication to this business has enabled Marvin, his family, and employees to make a name and presence for themselves and provide some of the best products available anywhere. Marvin’s dedication run deeps and has made such an impressionable impact on Matt, that he is now their V.P. of sales and marketing and oversees six sales representatives in numerous states and their direct store delivery (DSD) routes. This makes one thing certain - business isn’t slowing down. As Marvin looks to the future, he hopes for this: An ever-growing business, teaching ranching and horsemanship to his oneyear-old grandson (a 5th generation Pearson), hunting vacations and the time to take Yvette out dancing, doing exactly what they were doing when the Pearson Jerky idea began 21 years ago.