Summer 2024 | Edible Notables

Chew On This

Horney Toad Meats turns Nevada beef into tender jerky.

Horney Toad Meats in Fallon is not producing your average gas station jerky. Made from Nevada-raised cows, the jerky is marinated, slow-cooked, and smoked using no artificial additives, preservatives, or fillers.

“The majority of the jerky that you can find in fueling stations is made from the bottom round of beef. There’s a lot more of it so it’s cheaper, but it can be very tough,” explains Cindy Johnson, managing director of Horney Toad Meats. “There are those people who really like that tough jerky that you gnaw on for an hour and finally get through it, but we didn’t want to go that route.”

A dozen of Horney Toad’s 18 flavors of jerky are made using brisket, three are made from top round, and three are made with meat from buffalo, shark, and alligator.

“It’s more expensive to produce it from brisket, but the result is a very tender and moist jerky. Our top round is a little drier and chewier, but there still is quite a bit of moisture to it, and it will melt in your mouth,” Johnson says.

Linking Two Businesses
The idea for Horney Toad Meats began back in 2021 when Johnson’s husband, Lance, and partner Rich McCartney purchased Fallon Livestock Processing facility.

“The people who had it before us ran it into the ground, lost their USDA certification, and had some real reputation issues within the community,” Johnson recalls.

In just nine months, the new owners brought the nearly 100-year-old plant up to code and regained its certification. By the end of the year, they hope to have a Horney Toad Meats storefront open on the same property as the plant. There, they plan to sell their jerky alongside frozen, vacuum-sealed meat from the cows they process and other made-in-Nevada products.

“Jerky was the jump-off point for this venture,” Johnson notes. “We partnered with a company in Round House that makes the jerky using beef we process and source from Nevada ranchers [about whom] we know how they’re raising and feeding the cows. We’ve got a really nice complement of flavors — hot, sweet, spicy, and salty.”

Honey habanero, black pepper and sea salt, mild jalapeño, and beer-infused IPA are some fan favorites. 

“It’s nutritious, low-sugar, and absolutely delicious,” Johnson says. “It’s a great snack for on the go, [so] you’re really infusing your body with good healthy protein. It’s for kids, athletes, and hikers. We donate to our first responders. Really, it’s for anybody who needs that real pick-me-up snack.”

Purchase Horney Toad Meats jerky at Horneytoadmeats.online or in store at Just Country Friends, Kent’s Supply Center, Qwik Stop Market, The Grid Market and Brewery, Big R, Golden Gate, 3-Dimension Shipping, and Big Mike’s Gun & Ammo in Fallon.