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RanchHER Kendra Olson Grows Direct-to-Consumer Beef Business

Lyon Ranch Beef launched in 2025 as the family looked for a new way to grow its operation.

NEW ORLEANS, La. (RFD News) — Hundreds of women from around the world gathered in New Orleans last week for the Women in Agribusiness Conference.

RFD-TV’s Kirbe Schnoor caught up with Kendra Olson of Lyon Ranch Beef, who shared how she and her husband expanded their South Dakota cattle operation into direct-to-consumer beef.

The sixth-generation operation launched Lyon Ranch Beef in 2025 as a way to diversify the business. As demand grew, Olson left her 13-year career as a kindergarten teacher to return to the operation full time, where the family now handles nearly every step of production.

Olson said the direct-to-consumer model also gives customers a closer connection to where their beef comes from and who produces it.

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Knoxville native Neal Burnette-Irwin is a graduate from MTSU where he majored in Journalism and Entertainment Studies. He works as a digital content producer with RFD News and is represented by multiple talent agencies in Nashville and Chicago.


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