About Us
BFR Ventures, Inc is a family farming operation based in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Our family migrated to Watauga County in the mid 1800's and started farming with the dream of creating a better life for them & their children. That same desire and the farm has persisted to this day.
Today's farm is owned and operated by my dad Blake (4th gen), my mom Ann (1st gen), my wife Alex (3rd gen) and myself (5th gen). The farm consists of a cattle operation on my family's homeplace in Boone, NC and a hog operation in Pinetown, NC. To keep our family's farm alive, we have diversified into retail, packing, and distribution. In addition to farming, we also have Corbett's Farm Markets, Shiners Stash Packing, Corbett's Country Fixin's, and Corbett's Distribution. Whether walking pastures with my dad, feeding cows with my daughter, running the Deep Gap store with my wife, or writing food safety plans with my mom, we are truly still a family farming operation. We believe that there is never a hurdle too high, "can't" is not a word, and Faith, Family & Farming should be the most important parts of our daily lives.
Our Goal: To Create a Satisfying Eating Experience from Our Family to Yours
Our Story
Our Namesake
A lot of people ask- where did the name Corbett come from? Corbett McNeil was the father of Eula Brown, grandfather of Blake Brown, and the great-grandfather of Daniel- a farmer and a pillar in his community and church. Corbett embodies the values we hold dear- faith, integrity, trustworthiness and hard work. Like so many mountain farmers during the first half of the 20th century, he and his wife, Mirtie, raised beef, pork, chicken and eggs and milk of which they sold to their neighbors. They also grew produce, mainly cabbage and potatoes, that he took “down the mountain” to sell in cities like Charlotte. We still own and farm the land that Corbett owned and farmed. He was one of the first in our lineage to move beyond "subsistence farming" and have products to sell to his community. It’s our goal to continue that tradition of providing our community with the variety of high-quality meat, fresh produce, and other farm products that would make Corbett proud.
Our Heritage
We want to continue the legacy of the long line of famers from whom we descended. We live and have the base of our farming operation on the farm that R.V. and Eula Brown, the parents of Blake and grandparents of Daniel, bought in 1955 for $85 per acre. RV and Eula were the son-in-law and daughter of Corbett. Just like Corbett and Mirtie, they embodied the values of faith, integrity, trustworthiness and hard work. R.V. and Eula raised sheep, cattle, hogs, cabbage, potatoes, tomatoes and burley tobacco. They were the product of generations of mountain farmers. RV was the first in our family to transition the family farm to truckload farming and production agriculture. We still own and farm land that R.V.’s great-great grandfather purchased in 1857.
The Next Generation
The continuation of the next generation is a key piece in the existence of the family farm. Blake grew up farming with his parents RV and Eula. Some of his earliest life memories are playing in the edge of the family's tomato fields with his cousins while his parents and their hired hands work the rows picking tomatoes for market. In the 1980's, Blake would help RV transition the farm from truck produce to a commercial cattle operation. Blake would go on to attend NC State obtaining his PhD in Agricultural Economics. In addition to running the family farm, Blake became one of the most influential agricultural economists in the country, working on national policies as member of the President's council of Economic Advisors in the West Wing of the White House. Today, Blake continues to farm with his son Daniel, and together they have expanded the farm from cattle to other value-added agricultural ventures that complement the livestock operation.
The Farm Today
The family farm has grown to accommodate the inclusion of multiple generations of the Brown family. Daniel and wife Alex are full time on the family farm with his parents Blake and Ann. Today, the farm consists of a vertically integrated livestock operation that encompasses cow/calf, yearling production, a feedlot, USDA/FDA inspected packing plant, distribution business, and a retail farm market. The diverse experiences of the family members have helped shape the farming business with each family member specializing in a different part of the business. We still honor and engage the values and work ethics of Corbett and RV. We are currently raising the 6th generation on the family farm. We are continually searching for new ways to improve and better our families farm in ensure that the next generation will have the opportunity to enjoy the farm the same way we do.
The Store: Corbett's
In May of 2022, Daniel and Alex opened up Corbett's Produce as the retail side of the farm. Corbett's Produce is more than just a place for the farm to market their meat and prepared goods, Corbett's offers products from all over NC and the southeast. Our goal is to buy every product we can direct from a farmer or artisan so we can have a relationship with them and so we can share their story with our customers. We make all of our prepared meals in our USDA/FDA manufacturing facility. Corbett's is a Got to be NC Certified Roadside Stand. As one customer said "they are beautifully disguised as a roadside stand, but are actually a gourmet grocery store."