Where it all began

Carzan didn’t start as a jerky company.

It started during COVID, when supply chains were shaky, grocery shelves were empty, and a lot of people started asking the same questions:

Where does my food actually come from? And who’s behind it?

That’s when Carzan Local Market was born. The idea was simple — shorten the food chain, support local producers, and put a FACE TO THE FOOD people were eating. Not just labels and claims, but real people you could point to and trust.

That idea stuck.

And it’s still at the heart of everything we do today.

Check out the video of where it all began!

Carzan was built on the Canadian Prairies, where ranching isn’t just a job — it’s a way of life.

Carter grew up in rural Saskatchewan, immersed in agriculture from an early age. Long days on the ranch, 4-H competitions, and a deep respect for the land shaped how he sees food, farming, and responsibility. From high school onward, he had a clear vision: create something that showcased high-quality Saskatchewan products, raised and made the right way.

Those roots still guide everything we do today — from how we choose our ingredients to how we think about our impact on people, animals, and the land.

Carmen grew up on a farm too — a mixed cattle and grain operation in southwest Saskatchewan. Farming wasn’t a story she learned later; it was something she lived. Those years built an appreciation for how food is raised, how much work goes into it, and how disconnected people can become from that process once it leaves the farm gate.

Between the two of them, agriculture wasn’t a brand choice — it was just home.

Carmen’s interest in food deepened through her own health journey. She started paying closer attention to ingredients, not out of trend, but out of necessity. What was in food. What didn’t need to be. And why so many everyday products felt overly complicated for no good reason.

When Carter and Carmen started talking seriously about building something together, one thing kept coming up again and again: people want to trust their food, but they’re tired of guessing.

That idea — trust through transparency — became the backbone of Carzan.

Carzan Local Market came first. Jerky came later.

As we worked with customers face-to-face, the same conversations kept happening. People wanted food they could recognize — not just for dinner, but for real life. Snacks for workdays, kids’ lunches, sports bags, and long road trips.

When we looked at the snack aisle, especially meat snacks, the gap was obvious. Too much sugar. Too many preservatives. Too many shortcuts.

So we started experimenting. Grass-fed beef. Simple recipes. Honey instead of refined sugar. Nothing added just to stretch shelf life.

People responded immediately — not because it was flashy, but because it made sense.

Like a lot of small businesses, Carzan found its footing during uncertain times.

Demand grew quickly, and with it came pressure to move faster, scale harder, and say yes to everything. But the lessons from Carzan Local Market stayed front and center. If you lose the connection to your food — and the people behind it — you lose the whole point.

So we chose to grow carefully. Sometimes slower than we wanted to. Sometimes the hard way. But always with ingredient integrity and transparency intact.

Putting a face to the food isn’t a slogan — it’s a responsibility.

It means standing behind what we make. It means knowing our suppliers. It means answering questions honestly, even when the answer isn’t always perfect or convenient.

We make jerky for real people with real lives. Families. Athletes. Busy parents. People who want something dependable in their bag without overthinking it. JUST LIKE US!!!

If an ingredient doesn’t need to be there, it isn’t. Simple as that.

From the beginning, Carzan was meant to do more than sell snacks.

Through our Snack & Give Back initiative, 2% of proceeds go toward helping feed Canadians in need. It’s a direct extension of what started with Carzan Local Market — food should support communities, not just commerce.

Thanks to our customers, we’ve been able to support organizations making real impacts across Canada, and we don’t take that lightly.

Through 2024 and 2025, we have donated tens of thousands of dollars to charities across this nation and right here in Saskatchewan!

Carzan isn’t a big team behind a brand.

It’s just us — Carter and Carmen. (And sometimes the kiddos)

We’re the ones you see at farmers’ markets and tradeshows. We’re the ones answering DMs, building recipes, tweaking labels, taking photos, and trying to keep up with everything that comes with running a growing business.

Every order that leaves our garage is packed by Carter. Every flavour starts on our own kitchen table. If you’ve emailed us, messaged us, or stopped by our booth, chances are you’ve already talked to one of us.

That’s important to us.

We don’t want to be a faceless brand. We never have. We believe food should come from real people who stand behind what they make — and if something isn’t right, we own it.

As Carzan grows across Canada, that part won’t change. We’ll keep doing things the same way we always have: working hard, staying honest, and doing our best to leave the land, the food system, and our communities a little better than we found them.

Thanks for being part of the Carzan story.

We’re glad you’re here — and we’re proud to snack better together.

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