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Rave Reviews for Maine's World-Class Beef
100% Grass-Fed Beef Now Available to All

For immediate release
Contact: Roger or Linda Fortin
207-933-3300 littleafarm@ctel.net

Leed's Junction, Maine - Who would guess it? World-class beef is now available from a mom-and-pop farm store in Maine.

Roger and Linda Fortin own and operate Little Alaska Farm in Leed's Junction, Maine. In November 2002, Little Alaska's filet mignon won a Wine Spectator taste contest, competing against such famous meat purveyors as Omaha Steaks, Niman Ranch, Allen Brothers and Lobel's. In the same year the Fortins' beef was also featured in House and Garden magazine. Since then Little Alaska beef has been a sell-out in New York, Boston, and the Berkshires. And now the Fortins are selling their meat right from the farm. The new butcher shop at Little Alaska Farm has a meat case full of their 100% grass-fed beef, as well as other farm products.

Taste isn't the only selling point for Little Alaska beef: another is health. The Fortins' cattle eat grass and hay only - no grain.

Health-conscious consumers are demanding 100% grass-fed beef, claiming that animals fed on grass are healthier than cattle that are "finished" on grain in a feedlot. According to Ridge Shinn, a proponent of the grass-only movement, speaking recently at the Vermont Grassfarmer Association conference, "Because cattle are ruminants, grain is not their natural food, and a lot of it causes them to become sick with acidosis. This is why feedlot cattle are routinely given antibiotics. Then when the meat is eaten, it causes health problems for humans." Shinn goes on to say that people who eat 100% grass-fed meat get the same health benefits as eating wild salmon and other fish, "but without the contamination of heavy metals like mercury." Shinn points to studies showing that meat raised entirely on grass and hay has high levels of Omega 3 fatty acids and Congugated Linoliec Acids (CLAs), providing a whole range of health benefits. In addition the meat has no added hormones or antibiotics.

Food safety is often in the news these days. Last winter, with the media focus on food-borne illness, Boston's Channel 7 News traveled to Leed's Junction to produce a feature on grass-fed cattle and Little Alaska as a source of meat that is safe from Mad Cow disease. Grass-feeding also minimizes the danger of e-coli contamination.

Increasingly, food shoppers are seeking out local farms that produce quality food. Little Alaska Farm Store's meat case is stocked with farm-raised 100% grass-fed beef and other farm-raised products and is ready for your visit. Roger and Linda Fortin are banking on their tasty, tender, healthy meat to keep the customers coming back for more.

Little Alaska Farm Store is located at 170 Leed's Junction Road in Wales, ME. The hours are Wednesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. (Tel. 207-933-3300)

Little Alaska meat is also available through Hardwick Beef: on the Web at http://www.hardwickbeef.com.

### Little Alaska Farm
170 Leed's Junction Road
Wales, ME 04280-3117

Owners: Roger & Linda Fortin
Little Alaska Farm
222 Leeds Junction Road
Wales, ME 04280
(207) 933-5277
littleafarm@ctel.net

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© Copyright, Hardwick Beef, Inc. 2004