Not far from the bluffs of the Mississippi River in Elgin, Minnesota, lie the beautiful green pastures of Hidden Stream Farm. This 180-acre, second-generation family farm is proudly owned and operated Eric and Lisa Klein, who are well known in Minnesota for their quality, naturally-raised meat products as well as their long-standing attentiveness to sustainable land use.
Hidden Stream was started by Lisa's father in 1961 and has been chemical-free since 1971, when her father grew "tired of the toxicity" of chemical inputs. Following in his footsteps, Lisa and Eric now manage the farm with a meticulously-run rotational grazing system. Strongly against confinement and committed to the welfare of their animals, the Kleins believe that their animals need and deserve, as Eric puts it, "room to run." Eric and Lisa's happy, healthy animals are all grass-fed and are produced without added hormones and antibiotics, resulting in exceptionally delicious and nutritious meat products. Unsurprisingly, Lisa and Eric also have a deep-seated land use ethic, and their rotational grazing system is an integral part of their care for the land. By keeping it in pasture, the Kleins are able to prevent erosion, maintain water quality, and provide critical wildlife habitat.
Eric and Lisa love the work that they do, and, as Eric says, they especially enjoy "providing good, clean food to people that can't do it themselves." The Kleins direct market the majority of their Food Alliance certified meats to local area chefs through online orders, and to happy customers in the Rochester, Plainview, and Wabasha areas, who are lucky enough to receive door-to-door delivery. The Kleins also sell a portion of their beef through Thousand Hills Cattle Company.
