Who’s Behind FAT?

Farm Animal Transparency (FAT) was founded in early 2019 by Dirk Adams, a Montana cattle rancher and agricultural entrepreneur with over forty years of experience in ethical ranching, food-system reform, and rural economic renewal.

Dirk began in 1984 with three cows on 160 acres in the Shields River Valley. Over the next four decades, he built that small start into operating Lazy SR Ranch (LSR), a large Black Angus cow/calf operation known for its genetics, rotational grazing, and dedication to animal husbandry.  The Lazy SR diversified into heritage Berkshire hogs, pasture-raised heritage Freedom Ranger poultry, heritage turkeys, and Targhee sheep, producing some of the highest-quality, sustainably raised meat in the Northern Rockies.

His team designed and operated the only poultry processing plant between Minnesota and Spokane, giving independent poultry producers legal access to markets while ensuring humane handling and USDA compliance. Under the LSR Ranch brand, Dirk marketed beef, pork, and poultry directly to universities, grocers, and restaurants—including Yellowstone National Park—building one of Montana’s most respected local-food supply chains.

Dirk also revived and managed the Wilsall General Store, turning a struggling rural grocery into a thriving community hub and increasing its revenue seventeen-fold by emphasizing local sourcing and transparent pricing. He founded the Wilsall Ranch Rodeo, a nonprofit event that has supported rural youth and cultural traditions for more than twenty years.

Beyond the ranch, Dirk’s leadership extended statewide.  He was an Assistant Professor at the University of Montana and a lecturer at Montana State University. He served on the Montana Stockgrowers Foundation and the Northern Rockies Rural Conservation & Development District, advocating for responsible land use, producer profitability, and fair labeling standards.  

A 2019 Fellow of Harvard’s Advanced Leadership Initiative, Dirk worked with the Harvard Chan School faculty and Amazon to suggest a national framework for  on-line food access and affordability through SNAP.

Today, Farm Animal Transparency represents the next phase of that work: improving inadequate meat-labeling practices, elevating ethical producers, and ensuring that consumers can know—truly know—what they’re eating. FAT builds on decades of firsthand ranch experience to promote honest labels, accountable supply chains, and a fair market for the farmers and ranchers who do things right.

Dirk is a Harvard Law graduate with 48+ years bridging Wall Street and Main Street. Former General Counsel at Federal Home

Loan Bank of San Francisco during the S&L crisis, CEO of Home Savings Bancorp, and EVP at $130B Golden West Financial. Built Montana’s Lazy SR Ranch from 160 acres to 10,000-acre sustainable cattle operation. Currently pioneering livestock transparency technology and AI-assisted legal/agricultural innovation through Honest Cattle, Farm Animal Transparency, FAT App, and Dylan Report platforms.