Exploring Life & Business with Shannon Kearney of Kearney Cattle

Today we’d like to introduce you to Shannon Kearney. 

Hi Shannon, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I grew up on a Dairy farm in Stewartsville, MO with my mother and my brother. We milked over 80 head of dairy cattle. Once I turned 18, I moved out and began working full-time as a Sales Representative for the St. Joseph AD-Venture. In 2004, I had a job opportunity in Lenexa, KS. So, I moved to the Kansas City area and began working as a graphic designer. I began helping my father, Chris, will his farm and his cattle herd. After several years of learning about how he managed his herd, I decided to purchase a herd of my own. In 2015, I purchased 18 Black Angus and Black Baldy Cows. Each year I sold the calves at the sale barn once they were weaned. In 2020, once the Covid pandemic started, I realized there was a need for locally raised beef that could be processed locally. So, I started with 5 steers that I raised on grass and finished them out for the last 90 days with grain. I then offered them as beef shares to the public. Beef Shares are a portion of the beef that you buy to put in your freezer. For instance, you can buy 1/8th of a steer or 1/2 of a steer or the whole thing. Just recently, I got my Beef License so I can sell Individual Cuts of Beef from a retail space out of my house and that is USDA processed Grass Fed and Grain Finished beef from my herd as well. 

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has been hard work and dedication. Cows take a lot of hard work, especially in the hot summers and frigid winters. You have to monitor their calving and check on them almost daily to make sure the herd is healthy. One aspect that really helped was utilizing the USDA FSA loans. It is a lot of paperwork to maintain but that has been the major source of funding. Learning about Sales Tax and what it takes to run a retail area has been challenging as well. However, it will all be worth it to provide the public great tasting, healthy beef that was locally grown. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Kearney Cattle LLC has a herd of Black Angus and Black Baldy Cows. We raise the calves and sell some as the sale barn and keep the best back to finish out. All of our cows are in the Gardner/Olathe area. We keep our steers for 15 months. They are grass-fed and grain-finished for 90 days. We utilize Bichelmeyer Meats to butcher our beef shares and we utilize two other USDA processes in Kansas. Our beef tastes wonderful and we have received several positive reviews and repeat customers. 

We are all locally grown and the cows are cared for by myself, my husband Kurt and my father Chris. We love our cows! 

What were you like growing up?
Growing up I spent all of my time outside helping with chores. I was very active in school and participated in Golf, Basketball, Cheerleading, Twirling, FFA, FHA, FBLA, Student Body Secretary, and 4-H. I showed our award-winning dairy cows in 4-H. I also showed horses in 4-H. I was very ambitious at a young age. 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.kearneycattle.com
• Instagram: kearneycattle
• Facebook: kearneycattle