Most tallow sold commercially comes from rendering plants that process fat at scale with speed as the primary goal. Our tallow is rendered at our own facility in Springtown, Texas, from our own cattle, with quality as the priority. Here is what that looks like in practice.
The Fat
The best tallow comes from kidney fat and leaf fat — the fat deposits that surround the kidneys and line the body cavity. These are the cleanest, most neutral-tasting fat deposits on the animal, and they render into the whitest, most shelf-stable tallow. Our tallow is rendered from this fat, sourced from cattle we raised and processed ourselves.
The Rendering Process
We render at low temperatures over an extended period — what is called wet rendering or dry rendering at low heat. The fat is placed in a vessel and heated slowly, typically between 200 and 250°F, allowing the fat to melt gradually away from the tissue and connective material. This slow approach preserves the neutral flavor of the fat and prevents the caramelization that happens when fat is rendered at higher temperatures.
High-heat rendering is faster but produces tallow with a beefier, more pronounced flavor and a slightly shorter shelf life due to greater oxidation during the process. For cooking applications, some people prefer this — the added flavor is a feature. For skincare applications, neutral tallow is the right starting point.
Filtering
Once rendered, the liquid fat is passed through filters to remove any remaining tissue particles or impurities. Multiple filtration passes produce clearer, cleaner tallow. The filtered fat is then cooled, which causes it to solidify into the white, waxy product in the container.
The Result
Pure tallow. One ingredient, one source, one production location. The same fat goes into our cooking tallow, our skincare products, and our candle. No different sourcing for different product lines — everything starts at the same cattle, the same facility, the same rendering process.
Shop the full tallow product line in our Beef Tallow collection.