We envision a farm that provides for our family, enriches our local community, and builds resilience in our landscape.

Jackstone Creek Farmstead is a living example that small can be sustainable, local foodsheds can strengthen communities, and ethical care of land and animals is not just possible, but profitable. 

We value trust and transparency, and are committed to talking openly about our practices and challenges with our community.

on our pasture

We raise Meishan pigs, a heritage breed that produces delicious micromarbled red-meat pork. The farm follows organic practices and is currently working towards organic certification, a process that takes about three years to achieve.

  • Meishan pigs

    Our Pigs

    Our heritage Meishan pigs originate in the Taihu region of China and have been domesticated for nearly 5,000 years. They are a landrace breed, which means they were bred for production rather than cosmetic traits, giving them superior disease-resistance, high mothering ability, hardiness, and adaptability with their diet.

    All of these traits make them an ideal choice for a small-scale, sustainable, pasture-based farm like ours! Like many other heritage breeds, Meishans struggled and ultimately failed to adapt to high stressors and grueling production expectations of factory farming, and are now considered endangered worldwide.

    We are honored and excited that our farm can contribute to the conservation efforts of this amazing heritage breed.

  • Meishan pigs on pasture

    Our Feed

    Our pigs are fed a Montana-grown diet of non-GMO, soy- and corn-free grain mix. We source the feed locally through Mintana Mills because we want to produce the highest quality pork from the healthiest, happiest animals.

  • A mother Meishan feeding piglets

    Our Practices

    Meishans produce large litters, which are born into a free-range production system with no crates of any kind. These hardy pigs are allowed freedom of movement at every stage of life. Thanks to their heritage adaptations, they don’t require any deworming products, antibiotics, or hormones.

how we got here

We are Carla and Ben Nordlund, co-owners of Jackstone Creek Farmstead.

Our first two inaugural Meishan litters were born in January 2025. Although this is our first year having pork available to consumers, we launched the farm in the fall of 2024 when we brought in our foundation Meishan herd from Oregon and began building our farm infrastructure literally from the ground up. 

We are proud to have our roots in this county – Carla is fifth generation in Stillwater County and we are raising the sixth in our home community of Absarokee. We began raising livestock for personal use in 2014, and fell in love with raising pigs. When the opportunity arose to move back to Absarokee, we leaped at the chance to fully return to our home valley and launch our farm. 

We are happy to be a part of the revival of rural towns, where we can strengthen our community by producing healthy food, supporting local businesses, and doing everything we can to make sure the land we care for stays beautiful, vibrant, and healthy.