Episode 381 - Greg Putnam

Cleared Hot

Society & Culture

4.9 • 11K Ratings

🗓️ 7 April 2025

⏱️ 160 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Greg Putnam spent nine years of active duty as a US Navy SEAL stationed out of Hawaii before making the decision to return to the Rocky Mountains with his family. After his time in the service, he dabbled in the private sector as the business manager of Ascent Vision before changing course and setting in motion something he’d been toying with for years - owning and operating a cattle ranch in Montana.

In 2020, amidst the global pandemic, Putnam partnered with a fellow veteran and friend, Tim Sheehy, to make this vision a reality. Connecting three different properties nestled at the foot of the Little Belt Mountains in central Montana, they founded Little Belt Cattle Company together. With the help and mentorship of some seasoned Montana cattle ranchers, they made it through the winter and just finished their first calving season.

Veteran-owned and run by the two families, LBCC sits on about 9,000 acres. The two families are set on making the operation as sustainable as possible, implementing regenerative agriculture practices whenever possible, including soil and grass restoration, a 12-month grazing plan that prioritizes the health of the pastures, and a calving schedule that aligns closely with nature. Working dogs and horses are used to move the cattle as often as possible in place of 4-wheelers, reducing the overall amount of stress on the cattle, which leads to higher-quality meat.

Little Belt Cattle Co: https://littlebeltcattleco.com/

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Black Rifle Coffee Company

https://blackriflecoffee.com

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Good morning, everybody. I hope you'll have a great weekend. My guest today is Greg Putnam.
0:08.8	He's a former Navy SEAL and current owner of Little Belt Cattle Company, Cattle Co, north of Bozeman, Montana.
0:19.0	Now, you might ask yourself, did they call it Little Belt because he's so
0:23.0	tiny? No, they didn't. Although he is very wee, if you know what I mean. They called it that because
0:28.5	that's the mountain range that's right there. Greg has been on before. God damn. So he,
0:33.6	his career mostly was in the SDVs, seal delivery vehicles.
0:40.0	And I'm going to be honest with you.
0:40.8	They terrified me because I didn't really know what they did other than spend an ungodly
0:47.3	amount of time in the water, far longer than I would ever want to spend.
0:51.4	So any time that I've ever seen one, and there's only been one time
0:54.5	that I've seen it for real, I went in the other direction because I just didn't want to get put
0:59.4	inside of it. He opens with a story about perhaps exactly why that is the case. So episode 381
1:08.2	with former Navy SEAL, current businessman Greg Putnam.
1:13.6	Now, before we dive in, let me pay the bills.
1:16.9	Today's episode is brought to you by Black Rifle Coffee.
1:20.0	That's right.
1:20.9	You know they've been a part of this podcast for years now.
1:23.2	They help me bring this podcast to everyone for free.
1:27.1	I've been a fan of the brand, a part of the brand for
1:28.9	quite some time now. I own one of their coffee shops up here in Montana, currently the only one in
1:32.8	Montana, and it's been a hell of a ride. But today, let's talk about their website. So let's head
1:37.6	over there right now. First thing I'm looking at elixir, I don't know how to say this, Vitae, Vitae, I don't know how to say this. Vitae. Vitae. I don't know. Its origin is from Mexico. The region is
	...

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