Show organizers who serve prime rib, filet mignon or even cheeseburgers at the Anaheim Convention Center can rest assured that their groups are eating sustainable, local beef, thanks to the center’s recent purchase of its own herd of 75 cattle.

Since 2004, the convention center’s Aramark-managed food-and-beverage department has purchased beef from nearby Hearst Ranch, the nation’s largest single-source supplier of free-range, all-natural, grassfed and grass-finished beef. “But we often had times when the ranch was unable to support our needs because we do such a large volume,” says Jim Tripp, Aramark General Manager at the Anaheim Convention Center. “In order to secure the supply, we needed to purchase our own cattle.”

By sourcing live cattle rather than purchasing specific cuts of beef, the convention center can provide its customers greater cost consistency and availability because Aramark wholly owns the herd. A mix of Hereford, Angus and Shorthorn breeds, the cattle are grass-fed, free-range and hormone- and antibiotic-free. They graze among a 1,000-head herd at Hearst Ranch.

Purchasing beef cattle “is a small part of a large sustainability program for us,” Tripp says. “In 2004, we became the first convention center in the world to become a full partner with the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program by committing to source seafood without compromising species survival or the health of surrounding ecosystems. When planners come here, they’re working with a site that has the same sustainability values as their organizations.”