By Helen OlssonBy Helen Olsson|July 5, 2022|Food & Drink, Lifestyle,
CORRIDA’S BRYAN DAYTON IS ON A MISSION TO SUPPORT REGENERATIVE RANCHING.
Executive chef Samuel McCandless features sustainably raised beef throughout Corrida’s menu. PHOTO BY ALEXIS AHRLING
OVER A SPLURGEWORTHY DINNER AT CORRIDA (corridaboulder.com), perched on a rooftop in downtown Boulder, you may notice a glass aging case stocked with cuts of meat. What you won’t see is the effort that’s gone into sourcing that 60-day-dry-aged American steak on your plate.
In winter 2022, Corrida became the first-ever restaurant to partner with the Savory Institute’s Land to Market program to source verified regenerative beef for the restaurant’s menu. “I’ve been on a mission to support slow food, sustainable ranching and have been in the pursuit of vaca vieja (mature cattle),” says Corrida’s owner, Bryan Dayton. Beef production is notoriously bad for the environment due to greenhouse gas emissions. Regenerative ranchers use grazing practices that mimic the natural movement of herd animals. It allows for more regrowth of grasses, which is better for the livestock and promotes healthy soil.
For years, Dayton had been trying to connect with regenerative ranches to source Corrida’s beef, but finding a consistent supply proved difficult. During a conversation with Boulder locals and activists Christiana and Kimbal Musk about farming and sustainable ranching, the Savory Institute came up. The nonprofit’s Land to Market program has partnered with fashion brands like Gucci and Balenciaga, as well as food brands like Applegate Farms, but it had never partnered with a restaurant. Christiana made an introduction the next day. “Savory has helped connect us to great ranching partners,” Dayton says. Although he sometimes finds himself hauling beef from the processor to the restaurant himself to make it happen. “It’s definitely a labor of love.”
“We live in a world where food is so convoluted and vast that we have gotten away from the basics of what Mother Earth can supply,” Dayton says. “I think regenerative farming is the only way to move forward with our food supply.”