Where Culver's Gets The Beef For Its Famous ButterBurgers

More than 1,000 Culver's locations stretch across 27 U.S. states. That's a lot of menu-staple ButterBurgers to be sold, which means a lot of beef. Ground beef comprises the largest volume of any menu item sold at Culver's locations nationwide, and yet the supply chain still uses ingredients produced in long-term partnership with farmers and suppliers that champion high quality and animal welfare. Culver's ButterBurgers are made from a blend of three cuts of meat: sirloin, chuck, and plate. Those individual cuts get inspected for rich marbling, ensuring a juicy texture without any fillers, and the beef supply is all raised and processed in the U.S.

Culver's is an outspoken advocate for best practices in agriculture, citing the farmers with whom it works as the secret to its burgers' quality and success. The company has also stated that the beef is raised on Midwest family farms, and only comes from suppliers who embrace ethical standards of raising cattle. 

At a Wisconsin Cattlemen's Association (WCA) conference back in 2017, Culver's Chief Operating Officer Jeff Bonner shared that the company requires roughly 6,000 heads of cattle every single week, going through about 20 million pounds of beef annually (as reported by The Country Today). Considering Culver's had 615 locations at the time — just over half the size of its current U.S. presence — that figure is likely far higher nowadays. The key to ensuring enough supply to sustain fast growth long-term, says Bonner, is developing committed, lasting relationships with reputable beef farmers. Some of the working partnerships developed by Culver's founder Craig Culver himself have spanned 20 years or more. Bonner also stated that most of the beef came from 3 suppliers at that point, without stating who they are.

That commitment to longevity doesn't just apply to relationships, either. Culver's has joined the Decade of Ag movement, a climate-focused initiative launched by U.S. Farmers and Ranchers in Action (USFRA) in the interest of regenerative agriculture. The group promotes sustainable industry practices such as using a holding pond to gather rainwater for manually irrigating crops, or seasonal crop rotation for soil nutrient enrichment. Culver's also supports the Future Farmers of America program for high school students across the U.S.

According to Vice President of Supply Chain Greg Schneider (in the same WCA interview), Culver's beef is packaged in cryovac wrap then delivered to eight distribution centers across the country 10 times a week. This process ensures that the burgers are never frozen, keeping the moisture locked in over a 14-day shelf life. To complete its burgers, Culver's uses real American cheese sourced from Wisconsin – a down-home nod to when this Wisconsin-based chain first opened in 1984, humble beginnings compared to the beefy national entity that stands today.