The National Hot Dog and Sausage Council recognizes July as National Hot Dog Month and is observing National Hot Dog Day this year on Wednesday July 17. The Council celebrates it in July as they see the hot dog as a vibrant part of Americana and want it to occur the same month we celebrate our nation’s independence. National Hot Dog Day has been honored for decades in Washington D.C. Over 1,000 legislators, Administration employees, and political staffers gather in the Capitol Hill courtyard for a large hot dog picnic. July also makes sense for National Hot Dog Month as hot dogs are consumed everywhere in the summer from backyard barbecues to baseball games.
For me, hot dogs are one of the first types of meat I remember eating as a child. But like all foods, I now want to consume properly sourced franks. These are one of the hardest foods to find more natural versions of as they’re a rather processed product in general. When searching for better choices in hot dogs, it’s important to pick ones with just the basic ingredients needed.
As the Appropriate Omnivore, the first thing I look for in a frankfurter is that they’re 100% grass fed. It’s also best to go for hot dogs which are nitrate and nitrite free (also known as uncured) as well as not containing any MSG, high fructose corn syrup, preservatives, artificial flavors, or artificial color. All of the hot dogs listed below fit these criteria.
I’ve been covering grass fed hot dogs for many years and now and am greatly impressed with how many options there are on the market now. Even more so, there hot dogs which go a step further and sourced from regenerative farms. Regenerative agriculture not only involves grazing animals, but also means the farms have healthy soil, carbon sequestration, effective use of rain water, pollinator habitats, and biodiversity.
There are numerous regenerative certification labels. For meat products, many are certified by Land to Market. Land to Market’s roots can be traced back to biologist Allen Savory. Since the 1960s, Savory has been supporting regenerative agriculture and has introduced holistic planned grazing to ranchers throughout the world. In 2009, he founded the Savory Institute to further this mission. More recently Land to Market was spun off from the Savory Institute to certify products as regenerative. Land to Market uses a protocol known as Ecological Outcome Verification (EOV). EOV measures regeneration through the ecological indicators of ground covering, water infiltration, biodiversity, and soil & carbon health.
Another organization for regenerative certification is the Regenerative Organic Alliance (ROA). ROA is a joint venture between the Rodale Institute, Patagonia Provisions, and Dr. Bronner’s. They require products to be both organ certified and regenerative. ROA has three pillars to become Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC). The pillars are soil health, animal welfare, and social fairness.
The final certifier of regenerative agriculture for hot dogs on the list is Regenified. Reginified was co-founded by Gabe Brown, a North Dakota rancher and educator in regenerative agriculture. Reginified has a 6-3-4 Verification Standard which consists of 6 principles of soil health, 3 rules of adaptive stewardship, and 4 ecosystem processes.
In alphabetical order, here are 8 best regenerative hot dogs:
Applegate
Although Applegate‘s 100% grass fed hot dog wasn’t introduced until 2006, its mission was the same as mine in writing this article. In 1987, Stephen McDonnell and his friend Christopher Ely bought Chris’ family business Jugtown Smokehouse, which produced smoked meats without any synthetic nitrates. Stephen started the business with the purpose of asking “what if you weren’t afraid to read a hot dog ingredient label?” Next they made deli meat which was antibiotic free, followed by introducing the first widely distributed deli meat with an organic certification. In 2015, all of their beef products became 100% grass fed. In 2017, their hot dogs became verified by The Non-GMO Project. Applegate also has corn dogs, breakfast and dinner sausages, cheeses, bacon, breaded chicken, grilled chicken strips, and burgers patties. Their most recent launched was the regenerative Do Good Hot Dog.
Carman Ranch
A group of small family farms and ranches in the Pacific Northwest joined together to create a collective known as Carman Ranch. All of the farms combined make up 250,000 acres of grassland being restored through livestock. Carman Ranch is the first grass fed beef to be certified by Reginified. Their hot dogs are available for delivery through the Carman Ranch website. In Portland, the hot dogs are sold at the natural grocer New Seasons Market under the store label.
Charcutnuvo
For over 50 years, CharcutNuvo has been giving us sausages with the highest quality ingredients. They require any rancher who partners with them to raise animals ethically on a sustainable farm where no hormones and antibiotics are administered. CharcutNuvo only sources from farms in the United States, with the exception of some of its bison from Canada and its elk from New Zealand. All of their lines are free of nitrates and nitrites and they have an organic line. CharcutNuvo never uses artificial ingredients, chemicals, or unneeded fillers such as sugar. Their sausages and hot dogs are all made at their Denver plant, which they own so they can have 100% control of what goes into the meat. CharcutNuvo is currently run by Eric Gutknecht, a fourth generation sausage maker. Eric moved to the U.S. from Switzerland when he was 3 and purchased the company from his parents in 2003. Their products include hot dogs and many types of sausages, plus some European meats like liverwurst.
Force of Nature
The team behind Force of Nature spent six years studying regenerative agriculture and touring ranches around the world before deciding to start their own company. So Force of Nature was founded on the principle of being able to jumpstart a global regenerative supply network. Their main focus in terms of products is ground meat from all types of animals, including a number of wild game. They also sell various cuts of their different animals. And then there’s the Force of Nature regenerative hot dogs, which come in their varieties of beef and bison + beef.
Keller Crafted
Mark and Vicky Keller devised Keller Crafted in 2001 on the belief that they could make the world a better place through how we farm, eat, and support each other. Their mission was to create a farm-direct-food chain consisting of progressive farmers, regenerative agriculture, animal welfare, and nourishment. A major commitment of Mark and Kelly’s was also to create transparent and long-term relationships with their farms and their consumers. The animals they raise are grass fed beef and lamb, pasture raised chicken, heritage breed pork, and pasture grazed turkey. Their hot dogs specifically come from Richards Regenerative, which is the first Land to Market beef producer in the western states.
REP Provisions
REP Provisions is a network of verified regenerative farms and ranches. All of the farms they partner with go through thorough scientific testing to measure the soil health, sequestered carbon, water quality, and biodiversity. In addition to being regenerative, they’re certified by the Audobon Society to be bird friendly. And for every meat box, sold, REP plants 100 milkweed seeds on their ranches to restore monarchs migration corridors. Through the REP website, consumers can order regeneratively raised beef, chicken, pork, and lamb. Their beef products include their hot dogs.
Thousand Hills
Matt Meier worked for 20 years in conventional food marketing before he returned home to the farm he grew up on. In 2003, he founded Thousand Hills with the mission of nourishing the soil, the plants, cattle, and people by holistically grazing cattle for their entire lives. His home farm in Clearwater, MN is one of the 13 Savory Institute hubs in North America as the ranch is a leader in holistic and regenerative grazing practices. Thousand Hills now sources cattle from other family farms which they’ve hand picked for their similar deep commitment to regenerate land and having nutrient rich beef as a result. The farms range from the midwest, northeast, and west regions of the United States. Already 600,000 acres of land has seen positive benefits. Hot dogs are part of a diverse amount of products which can be found from Thousand Hills, such as bone broth, chili, ground beef, sausages, steaks, roasts, jerky, and sticks. All of their products are now Land to Market certified regenerative.
White Oaks Pastures
The origins of White Oak Pastures date back to the late 1800’s. The Harris family has been raising cattle on the same farm in Georgia for five generations now. The family farm was first founded by Captain James Edward Harris right after the Civil War. He and his sharecroppers would butcher cows, hogs, and chicken every Saturday. In the early 1900’s, James’ son Will Carter Harris ran the farm. He upped the butchering to six days a week, delivered the food to local stores and places to eat, and built a commissary on the farm. After World War II, Will Bell Harris took control and made the farm more industrialized, using new chemical tools and having the animals slaughtered off site. In 1995, Will Harris III made the decision to return the farm to a production system which was better for the environment, the animals, and the consumers. Will reintroduced the multi-species rotational grazing practices used by his grandfather and great grandfather as well as building abattoirs on the farm to slaughter our animals. White Oaks prides itself on being a zero waste farm. In addition to food, they produce leather, pet chew rawhides, and tallow products. Also, the viscera from the cattle is composted and spread as fertilizer on the farm land’s soil. White Oaks additionally serves as a Hub for the Savory Institute, creating awareness in the marketplace about products which come from true practices of regenerative agricultural systems. Their hot dogs are among their many products of the various animals on their grasslands. The options are a 100% beef or a beef and pork hot dog.