Food Business News:
What do you get when you throw two good ol’ boys and lifelong best buds into a business together? Success! Just ask Pederson’s Natural Farms based out of Hamilton, Texas.
Pederson’s hired small town Texas boy Cody Lane for Quality Assurance straight out of college in 2001. With a degree in Ag Business Food and Fiber Marketing from Texas A&M University, Cody quickly gained respect from the owner of the all natural meats producer. Within a year, Cody was promoted to President of Pederson’s Natural Farms. And, it didn’t take long for him to realize that this company could grow and grow steadily. With that in mind, he called upon his lifelong best friend Neil Dudley to come work alongside him as Vice President.
Growing up, the pair were respectable and hard working young men. Their personal integrity and work ethic pulses through the company which they’ve successfully grown since coming on board 15 years ago. Since these two homegrown boys took the reins, the pair have nearly doubled the gross annual sales.
As Cody is celebrating his 15th year with Pederson’s, the company celebrates it’s 25th year as a premier producer of all natural fresh and smoked meat products. Started in 1992 with just two employees and the sale of the famous Applewood Smoked Bacon, Pederson’s faced all the obstacles that any small business faces and then some.
Despite two fires leaving the company’s production plant in ashes, Pederson’s has steadily grown from two employees to 76 employees, a 2000 square foot plant to a 34,000 square foot plant, and $75,000 in gross sales the first year to $29 million in 2016. Pederson’s credits its success to its unwavering integrity, and the company is sure to back up their words with actions. With top priorities being safety and quality, Pederson’s has taken every rigorous step to become Safe Quality Food (SQF) 2000 Level 3 Certified.
“Striving to be SQF 2000 Level 3 Certified was a no brainer. That certification aligns with everything we value: safety and the highest quality standards. We’re of the belief that actions speak louder than words. We can make claims all day long, but this certification brings the highest level of validation.” – Cody Lane, President
The company’s down home, honest to goodness food business model has been rewarded with loyal employees, a loyal community, and loyal customers – not to mention steady growth. And, Pederson’s gladly offers a steadfast loyalty in return. After a devastating fire in June of 2001, the small Texas community of Hamilton rallied around Pederson’s in an effort to get the company up and running again. With only one production day lost, Pederson’s chose to honor their roots and rebuild in Hamilton county with the aid of the Hamilton EDC.
The support of countless folks from the very beginning combined with Pederson’s principles has culminated in the successful production of superior quality all natural meats. Specifically famous for “makin’ bacon”, here are some interesting statistics from Pederson’s Natural Farms about just how much bacon they make annually:
- 3 million pounds of bacon each year
- 50.1 million slices
- End to end, that’s 8,100 miles of bacon
- It’s enough bacon to stretch across the United States 3 times
That’s a lot of bacon!
Whether asked to reflect on Pederson’s first 25 years in business or to look toward the future, Vice President Neil Dudley’s assessment remains the same.
“We run our business as a marathon not a sprint. Our goal is to build our business on well founded relationships! We believe in honesty, safety, quality, and efficiency… in that order. Pederson’s Natural Farms isn’t the biggest; it’s just the best!”