Photo by Steve Rice Todd Churchill, owner/CEO of Thousand Hills Cattle Co., walked through the fields where his cattle graze. They will stay here for one more day before they are moved to a new grazing spot. The philosophy that drives Thousand Hills Cattle Co. has deep roots. We're talking Old Testament deep.

"The name comes from Psalm 50:10, and in that verse God is reminding King David that he may be the king of Israel, but God owns the cattle and a thousand hills and all the beasts of the field," says CEO and owner Todd Churchill. "To me, that's all about stewardship. It's God saying, 'You're entrusted to the care of my things, and I expect you to care for them.'"

Churchill heads a Cannon Falls-based collaboration of 40 nearby farms that raise entirely grass-fed cows in a way that's good for the environment.

Their fan base, which includes Kowalski's, St. Olaf College and many local restaurants, is growing, or more like exploding. Sales this year are up 45 percent over 2007, even though national beef sales are down 6 percent.

So why all the rage over grass-fed cattle from Thousand Hills? First, their grazing method means once the cows have eaten from a particular patch of pasture, they don't eat there again for up to 60 days. To make it simple, that does wonders for the grass, soil and environment.

Plus, because the cattle are eating high-quality plants instead of grains, their meat has more nutrients and healthy omega 3 fat. Traditional grain-fed cows have more omega 6 fat, a type of fat the average American overdoses on and in excess is thought to cause chronic inflammation, resulting in health problems such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease.

"Food is supposed to inherently make you healthy, not make you sick," Churchill says. "But that has a lot to do with how it's raised and processed."