A Start-up That Wants to Tip the Beef Industry, One Cow at a Time
*By Madison Alworth*
The butchery start-up Crowd Cow wants to revolutionize the way Americans buy meat. The company sells beef from "craft beef purveyors," also known as small farmers.
"They are doing it the right way and raising cattle with flavors that are unique to that particular farm," said Joe Heitzberg, co-founder and CEO of Crowd Cow. "The environment they're on, the soil, the many kinds of grasses, and of course, the over 300 breeds of cattle that exist," it all affects how the beef tastes.
Craft Cow offers a wide variety of natural beef for customers to choose from on its website, including 100 percent grass-fed, grass-finished, grain-finished, and A5 Wagyu from Japan.
Customers choose the cow and the cut they want. After an entire cow has been accounted for, Crowd Cow ships the beef directly from the ranch to customers. Packages of beef around 6 lbs. start at $89 and reach as high as $120.
Crowd Cow has raised $8 million in Series A funding, led by Madrona Ventures. Some of the Series A investment also came from the actor Ashton Kutcher. Heitzeberg said that Kutcher reached out in an email.
"He said something like 'I'm aware of you guys. I'm interested in what you're doing. I don't know if you know, but I'm an Iowa farm boy and I worked at a butcher shop at one point. And I just really dig it and we should talk," Heitzberg recalled.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/getting-a-crowd-together-to-buy-a-cow).
Walmart, which became the nation’s largest retailer by making low prices a priority, has found itself in a place it’s rarely been: Warning customers that prices will rise for goods ranging from bananas to car seats.
Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at IG International, joins J.D. Durkin to give analysis on the recent trade truce between the U.S. and China. Watch!
Shan Aggarwal, VP of Corporate and Business Development at Coinbase, discusses the company's acquisitio of Deribit as it heads into the S&P 500. Watch!
American businesses that rely on Chinese goods are reacting with muted relief after the U.S. and China agreed to pause their exorbitant tariffs on each other’s products for 90 days. Many companies delayed or canceled orders after President Donald Trump last month put a 145% tariff on items made in China. Importers still face relatively high tariffs, however, as well as uncertainty over what will happen in the coming weeks and months. The temporary truce was announced as retailers and their suppliers are looking to finalize their plans and orders for the holiday shopping season. They’re concerned a mad scramble to get goods onto ships will lead to bottlenecks and increased shipping costs.
Shopping expert Trae Bodge discusses how talks between the U.S. and China is good news for now, but uncertainty remains for back-to-school and the holidays.