Matt Pierson is a fifth-generation Montana rancher who owns and operates Highland Livestock Company alongside his wife and two sons. He’s also the founder and President of the Producer Partnership, a newly formed non-profit organization that brings together farmers and ranchers with the goal of ending hunger in Montana. Since its start in spring of 2020, the Producer Partnership has given away tens of thousands of pounds of beef to Montana food banks and is creating replicable, scalable solutions for fighting hunger throughout the West and beyond.
The idea for the Producer Partnership was born in early 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was roiling communities and economies across the globe. With many Montana residents out of work and food banks struggling to keep up with the unprecedented demand, Matt decided to donate the meat from a cow he was planning to cull to his local food bank. He quickly recognized the direct positive impact that his donation had on the community, so he reached out to friends to drum up more donations. Within a month, he had directed 10,000 pounds of ground beef to area food banks. He kept going, and by the end of 2020, that number had risen to more than 53,000 pounds of beef. Through creativity, hard work, and an unyielding commitment to G.S.D. (“Getting Stuff Done”), Matt and his team at the Producer Partnership have created a new model for solving food insecurity in Montana.
Matt and I connected virtually for a wide-ranging conversation that will be inspiring and educational for anyone interested in impactful, purpose-driven work. We started out discussing his family’s long history in Montana, and then we moved into details of how the Producer Partnership began. We talked about the challenges around processing meat both during the early stages of the pandemic and now, as well as the cutting-edge meat processing facility that the Producer Partnership is currently building. We discussed the scalability and replicability of the Producer Partnership model, and how he expects the organization to evolve in the coming years. Matt discussed the importance of community; why he chooses to volunteer for causes ranging from youth soccer to Trout Unlimited; the future of agriculture; how he defines success in his ranching operation; and much more.
This is an inspiring episode, and I know you’ll enjoy it. Go to producerpartnership.com to learn more about Matt and his work– and donate or buy some gear if you are so inclined. Enjoy!
Photos courtesy of the Producer Partnership
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This episode is brought to you by The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and its Montana-based AMB West Philanthropies, both of which embody the values-based approach to philanthropy and business of their Chairman Arthur M. Blank
EPISODE NOTES
Topics Discussed:
- 3:50 – Matt’s family history in Montana
- 4:50 – The beginnings of the Producer Partnership
- 8:20 – Logistics during the early days of the Producer Partnership
- 10:20 – Media begins to pick up the Producer Partnership story
- 12:00 – “GSD” – Getting Stuff Done
- 14:00 – First year success
- 15:50 – Managing the Producer Partnership and the family ranch
- 18:20 – Executing the idea of building a new processing facility
- 22:00 – Adding value to all steps of the process
- 26:20 – Realities of building a first-of-its-kind federally approved processing facility
- 30:00 – Role for the Producer Partnership post-COVID
- 32:00 – Potential for replicability
- 39:00 – The importance of community
- 43:00 – How Matt judges success in ranching
- 47:45 – How Matt thinks agriculture will evolve in the coming years
- 52:00 – The unexpected surprise of creating a non-profit
- 56:00 – Importance of being a problem solver, thinking independently
- 57:30 – Favorite books
- 1:00:30 – Words of wisdom
- 1:02:30 – Overcoming the labor challenges
Information Referenced:
- The Producer Partnership
- DONATE to the Producer Partnership
- Producer Partnership Merch
- Livingston, Montana
- Yellowstone River Beef Processing
- Livingston Food Resource Center
- Missoula Food Bank
- Montana Food Bank Network
- 501(c)(3)
- Matt Skoglund – Episodes 1 & 2
- John Deer film, featuring Matt
- Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry – Bookshop / Amazon
- Lonesome Dove movie
- Everything Your Coach Never Told You Because You’re a Girl by Dan Blank – Bookshop / Amazon
- Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation
- AMB West Philanthropies
Enjoy this episode? Then you might like these too:
- NEW WEST DISPATCH: Matt Skoglund – Ranching in the Age of COVID
- Lesli Allison & Tuda Libby Crews – Durable Conservation in the West… and Beyond
- Daniela Ibarra-Howell – Healing the Land Holistically
- Kate Kavanaugh – Regeneration & Restoration
- Duke Phillips III – A Vision for the New West
- Duke Phillips IV – Living with the Land
- Alexis Bonogofsky – Taking a Stand for the West
- Shane Doyle – Reverence for the Past, Hope for the Future
