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Carl Stevenson: The Arizona Feeder Who Cooked the Grain

A UC Davis graduate and Army veteran who helped develop a grain cooking and rolling method and built Red Rock Feeding Co. in Arizona.

Who is Carl Stevenson?

Carl Stevenson founded Red Rock Feeding Co. in Red Rock, Arizona, in 1964, and the feedyard is still running today. His Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame biography calls him a California native whose path ran through the University of California, Davis, the Army and the Arizona desert before he started his own yard.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020. A story from JBS USA, which calls him a long-time cattle partner, described him at the time as a 102-year-old World War II veteran, which gives a sense of how long his career spanned.

Early life, college and the Army

Stevenson was born and raised in California. He studied animal husbandry at UC Davis and graduated in 1940. The following year he was drafted into the Army, and he served the full four and a half years of World War II.

His unit was a Veterinary Corps detachment at Fort Bliss, Texas. There he was responsible for the care of the mules that pulled and packed artillery. The Hall of Fame page adds that he was the only non-veterinarian to head the Army School of Farrier, the school that trained soldiers in shoeing and hoof care for the animals.

From a California ranch to an Arizona feedyard

After the war, Stevenson spent four years on the Giffen Cantua Ranch in California's Central Valley. According to the Hall of Fame, that is where his interest in cattle feeding took hold.

In 1951 he moved to Continental, Arizona, to start a cattle feeding operation for Farmers Investment Company.

Cooking and rolling grain with the University of Arizona

In the early 1960s Stevenson worked closely with the University of Arizona. With Dr. Bill Hale and Dr. Bart Cardon, he developed a method of cooking and rolling grain, which he went on to use in his own feeding operations.

The Hall of Fame page does not give feed conversion figures or describe the equipment, so this profile does not either. What it shows is a feeder teaming up with university researchers and then putting their work to practical use in a commercial yard.

The Key to Stevenson's Success

In 1964, Stevenson founded Red Rock Feeding Co. in Red Rock, Arizona. The yard has been in operation since, and the Hall of Fame page reports that it has grown to a 30,000-head feedyard with 1,200 additional acres of farmland.

The sources do not detail how he financed the yard or managed risk, so the lessons below come only from what they document.

  • Learn the animals first: years with Army mules, then a Central Valley ranch, came before his own yard.
  • Work with scientists: the grain cooking and rolling method came from a partnership with University of Arizona researchers.
  • Test it at home: he used the method in his own feeding operations rather than only recommending it.
  • Build for the long run: the yard he started in 1964 is still operating.
  • Add land: the yard now includes 1,200 acres of farmland beyond the pens.

Honors and recognition

Stevenson's 2020 induction is recorded on his Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame page, which lists no other awards. JBS USA's sustainability report carries a story about the induction, published by a company that calls him a long-time cattle partner.

The Hall of Fame itself keeps its list of members on the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame site, where readers can compare his entry with other Western feeders.

Why the Arizona feeding story matters

Stevenson's career links three things: a California ranching education, a wartime stint working with animals, and the growth of commercial feeding in Arizona. His record shows how a man trained in animal husbandry became an independent feeder.

Readers who want more on the region and its cattle can start with the ranching section of farm.FM or a farm.FM story about cattle feeding in Arizona.

Timeline

  1. 1940Graduates from UC Davis with a degree in animal husbandry
  2. 1941Drafted into the Army; joins a Veterinary Corps unit at Fort Bliss, Texas
  3. After the warSpends four years on the Giffen Cantua Ranch in California's Central Valley
  4. 1951Moves to Continental, Arizona, to start a feeding operation for Farmers Investment Company
  5. Early 1960sWorks with University of Arizona scientists on cooking and rolling grain
  6. 1964Founds Red Rock Feeding Co. in Red Rock, Arizona
  7. 2020Inducted into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame

Frequently asked questions

Who is Carl Stevenson of Red Rock Feeding?

Carl Stevenson founded Red Rock Feeding Co. in Red Rock, Arizona, in 1964. A UC Davis graduate and World War II Army veteran, he was inducted into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame in 2020.

What did Carl Stevenson develop with the University of Arizona?

With Dr. Bill Hale and Dr. Bart Cardon, he developed a method of cooking and rolling grain in the early 1960s, and he used it in his own feeding operations at Red Rock Feeding Co.

How big is Red Rock Feeding Co.?

The Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame page says the yard has grown to a 30,000-head feedyard with 1,200 additional acres of farmland, and that it is still operating.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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