| Sounds of wind and wildlife break the prevailing silence at 2 Bar C Ranch. “It’s so peaceful,” guests say. The word comes up when visitors arrive here, just east of Luling, Texas. Clyde Sommerlatte knows why, because he spent two decades creating the environment. That’s how a commercial cattle ranch evolved into a registered Angus seedstock program built on practical genetics, disciplined selection and a commitment to making cattle that commercial producers can use to deliver a better eating experience. Clyde now works alongside daughter Kimberly, son-in-law Jason Booth, grandson Riley Somerlatte and a dedicated team of 11 employees who help run the ranch. About five miles away, he also owns Hometown Meat Market, a USDA-inspected processing facility that employs 26 full-time team members from the surrounding community. Through the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) brand’s Ranch to Table™ program, the family connects consumers with the beef they raise. That dedication to producing cattle with purpose, while helping others understand the work behind it, earned 2 Bar C Ranch the 2026 Certified Angus Beef Ambassador Award. |
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| Caption: (L to R) Jason Booth, Kimberley Booth, Karen Sommerlatte, Clyde Sommerlatte, Emma Booth, Riley Sommerlatte. |
| Building Something Worth Showing Clyde believes good genetics should create value long after sale day. Breeding decisions keep the entire beef chain in mind, producing functional, productive cattle while never losing sight of the ultimate beef target. Feed efficiency remains a priority, both for the ranch and the commercial cattlemen who buy their genetics. Clyde uses tools like GrowSafe® and Targeting the Brand™ to refine breeding decisions, balancing efficiency and maternal function with the carcass merit needed to meet CAB acceptance requirements and earn Prime premiums. “We do everything from conception to consumption,” Kimberly says. “We have a hand in every aspect of what happens to our cattle.” Owning Hometown Meat Market has given the family something few seedstock producers experience: the opportunity to see how those genetics carry through to the finished product. “The idea was to make the most of the vertical chain from start to finish,” Clyde says. “Some of these cattle stay in our seedstock program, and the rest we carry all the way through, so we understand exactly what ends up on someone’s plate.” |
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| Caption: 2 Bar C Ranch uses genetic tools and performance data to make breeding decisions focused on productivity, efficiency and carcass merit. |
| Each December, those breeding decisions shine during the ranch’s production sale. Buyers travel from across Texas and neighboring states to evaluate cattle, but many return because of the people. On evenings before the sale, the family prepares and serves dinner inside their commercial kitchen, welcoming longtime customers, neighbors and first-time visitors around the same table. “He loves to share this facility with others,” Kimberly says. “We want people to come in and just feel like they are welcome.” |
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| Caption: “We have a lot of folks who have no intention of buying at Bar C Ranch,” Jason Booth says. “We’re happy to have them here because we love sharing not only the facility, but the ranch with others.” |
| Opening the Gates But the invitation to see the ranch doesn’t end when the sale ring goes quiet. Year-round, the 2 Bar C welcomes industry partners, chefs, foodservice distributors and consumers – including families who first met Jason at a farmers’ market in nearby Austin. For many, it’s their first time on a working cattle ranch. The questions are often the same, Jason says. “What are they eating? How are these animals being treated? People are becoming more sophisticated in what they’re consuming,” he says. “They want a brand that can provide that level of quality.” |
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| Caption: Clyde Sommerlatte holds a Denver steak at Hometown Meat Market. |
| Instead of simply explaining how cattle are raised, he invites them to see it firsthand. The ranch team takes pride in their cattle, and equally committed to helping others understand cattle care. During a recent CAB ranch day aligned with Sysco’s Raised with Respect™ campaign, the food distributor’s employees toured the ranch before walking through Hometown Meat Market to better understand the path from genetics to finished product. “It gave them a better understanding of the product they’re selling,” Jason says. “They could see where it came from.” |
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| Caption: “The Certified Angus Beef ® brand is beef that is a consistent, high-quality product,” Clyde Sommerlatte says. “It will always be a protein product that the consumer can count on.” |
| Confidence Earned The quiet visitors notice isn’t by chance. It comes from cattle care, low-stress handling and management built around respect for animals and land. “We take care of them because they take care of us,” Clyde says. For many cattlemen and women, those practices are familiar. Visitors seeing their first working ranch learn a story no explanation can replace. “To see many folks experience that, in a way I was seeing the ranch through their eyes,” Jason says. “The calm, quiet, serene environment.” Conversations often go deeper from there, moving from cattle care to genetics, breeding decisions and the work required to consistently produce high-quality beef. “Transparency is proof of integrity,” Jason says. The Ambassador Award recognizes cattlemen and women who strengthen trust throughout the beef chain. At 2 Bar C Ranch, confidence is built the same way trust always has been—through sound cattle, good stewardship and a willingness to let others see the hard work behind the cattle they raise. And for visitors who step through the gates, that quiet is often where confidence begins. |
