Stemple Creek Ranch in California: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Stemple Creek Ranch is a multi-generation family ranch near Tomales in Marin County that raises organic, grass-finished beef and lamb plus pastured pork. It was named the 2025 California Leopold Conservation Award recipient, a $10,000 honor presented at the California Farm Bureau Federation Annual Meeting on December 8, 2025. Its beef sales grew from 10 head to more than 1,500 head a year over roughly a decade, which makes it one of the clearest direct-to-market success stories in California ranching.
| Location | Tomales, Marin County, California |
|---|---|
| Family roots | Poncia family; Angelo Poncia immigrated from Italy over a century ago and established a dairy that lasted three generations |
| Sectors | grass-finished beef; lamb; pastured pork; ranch stays; events |
| Scale | 650 acres owned plus leased land; thousands of acres managed for grazing; 20 employees (Sand County Foundation, 2025) |
| Why it is elite | 2025 California Leopold Conservation Award; Audubon bird-friendly certification (2021); early Marin Carbon Project site |
| Ownership | Loren and Lisa Poncia; daughters Avery and Julianna are expected to be the fifth generation |
| Official website | Stemple Creek Ranch official site |
History of Stemple Creek Ranch
The Poncia story starts with Angelo Poncia, who emigrated from Italy to the remote outpost of Fallon in west Marin more than a century ago and built a dairy that survived three generations.
About 20 years ago Loren and Lisa Poncia moved back to Marin County to reinvent the family business. They began by leasing 400 acres of Loren's family land while both kept day jobs. Loren's father, Al, had already started fencing creeks and riparian areas and planting trees in the 1980s, and the next generation built grazing, marketing and conservation work on that foundation. Today the ranch reports that the couple's daughters, Avery and Julianna, are expected to be the fifth generation to steward the land.
What Stemple Creek Ranch Grows and Raises
Stemple Creek Ranch raises free-range beef and lamb that are 100% grass fed and grass finished, rotationally grazed on open pasture from birth to harvest. The ranch states that its animals receive no grain, corn or soy and no artificial hormones, growth promotants or antibiotics. Pigs are raised in large outdoor pens on a vegetarian diet, and most of the pastureland is certified organic.
The Sand County Foundation describes miles of movable fencing, dozens of permanent water troughs and solar pumps. The ranch added more than five miles of fencing and planted 10,000 trees, and its land supports wildlife including bobcats, black-tailed deer and the endangered California red-legged frog. Audubon certified it as bird-friendly in 2021, and much of the land is covered by Marin Agricultural Land Trust conservation easements.
The ranch was an early demonstration site for the 10-year Marin Carbon Project and has an active carbon farm plan. It has hosted hundreds of educational tours.
How Stemple Creek Ranch Makes Money
Direct and wholesale meat sales
The ranch sells its beef, lamb and pastured pork direct to consumers and also to grocery stores, restaurants and butcher shops. The Poncias began direct sales about 17 years ago at a large farmers market and grew beef sales from 10 head to more than 1,500 head a year.
Ranch stays
The family purchased a neighboring ranch and restored its buildings as ranch stays, giving visitors a paid way to experience working grazing land in west Marin.
Events and education
An old hay barn was converted into an event venue, and the ranch hosts tours and educational visits.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Stemple Creek Ranch
The ranch shows how a family can leave a commodity model without leaving the land. The Poncias started small on leased ground, kept outside income while they built a brand, and grew sales channel by channel, from a farmers market to grocery, restaurant and butcher accounts. Operators weighing direct marketing can test demand before committing capital.
Conservation work and marketing also support each other here. Easements, riparian fencing, carbon planning and third-party certifications gave the ranch a verifiable story that supports premium pricing and visitors. California ranchers can pair this approach with NRCS cost-share and local resource conservation district help.
Any rancher who has moved a mob of sheep across a Marin hillside knows that the fog, the fence and the flock all have opinions. At farm.FM we file that kind of thing under farm satire, and the Poncias' rotational grazing schedule would make a fine farm humor sketch about a very organized cow demanding fresh pasture on time. If you enjoy ranch humor and farm jokes about grass-fed everything, farm.FM is the place to browse after you finish the serious reading.
farm.FM calls itself the nation's first satirical farm site, and between the headlines it spins Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers; a good place to start reading is this farm.FM columnist's archive.
How to Contact Stemple Creek Ranch
Website: https://stemplecreek.com/pages/our-story
Only the official website is listed here; use the contact options on the ranch's own site. Ranch stays, tours and product orders are arranged through the ranch, so confirm availability before traveling.
Stemple Creek Ranch Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Stemple Creek Ranch official site - The ranch's own story page and product information
- Sand County Foundation award announcement - Details of the 2025 California Leopold Conservation Award
- Visit Marin ranch profile - Independent county tourism listing for the ranch
- California Farm Bureau - State producer association that hosts the Leopold award presentation
- California Department of Food and Agriculture - State agency for programs, marketing and regulation
Stemple Creek Ranch FAQ
Where is Stemple Creek Ranch?
It is near Tomales in Marin County, California, in the coastal grazing country of west Marin.
What does Stemple Creek Ranch raise?
The ranch raises organic, grass-finished beef and lamb and pastured pork, sold direct to consumers and to grocery stores, restaurants and butcher shops.
Why is Stemple Creek Ranch considered elite?
It received the 2025 California Leopold Conservation Award, earned Audubon bird-friendly certification in 2021 and has been a demonstration site for the Marin Carbon Project.
Can I visit Stemple Creek Ranch?
The ranch offers ranch stays and tours; check its official site for availability.
Stemple Creek Ranch is a strong example of how a coastal California family can pair grazing, certification and direct sales into a durable business. For wider context on the state's farm economy, programs and markets, read the California farms guide and explore the other profiled operations on BestFarms.