FROM THE WILDERNESS TO THE WORLD
It begins in the northern Wisconsin
The history of what quite possibly might be the world’s best meat snack begins in northern Wisconsin. It’s inextricably connected to the Link family.
THE BEGINNING
01
HISTORY OF DRIED MEAT
The company’s history is based on the pursuit of the American dream.
It begins with Jack Link’s great grandfather, Chris, who left Germany to make a new life in the US and laid the foundation for Jack Link’s. But first things first.
Native Americans
02
NATIVE AMERICAN PROVISIONS
It was the Native Americans who invented jerky. They cut buffalo meat into thin strips, dried it in the hot summer sun, and smoked it over the fire.
They seasoned the meat with herbs found in the vicinity. Meat cured in this fashion served as a provision on strenuous hunting expeditions, as it was easy to transport and kept for a long time. It also gave the hunters energy with its high levels of protein and iron and very little fat.
chris & earl
03
CHRIS & EARL
This is where Chris enters the scene. He settled in Minong in northern Wisconsin in 1885, having brought along a whole host of delicious meat recipes. His delicacies became legend in no time and farmers and lumberjacks practically ripped the snacks out of his hands.
Years later Chris’s son Earl opened a supermarket with a meat counter, selling everything from horseshoes and nails to pots and pans. At the same time, he carried on the old family tradition by producing the most delicious sausages and the very best dried meat that the New World had ever tasted.
JACK LINK'S
04
JACK LINK'S - A TRADITION
Earl’s son Wilfred “Wolf” Link was born in 1916 and never left his father’s side. The Link family divulged the jerky secrets to him early on and he even made a name for himself later as a cattle breeder.
He taught his son Jack everything he knew about cattle breeding, the meat business, and how to produce the best products while Jack was still young. Years later, during a hunting trip with his two sons, Jack came up with the idea of trying out old family recipes in the production of jerky – and Jack Link’s Beef Jerky was born.
Beef Jerky
Original
It was the Native Americans who invented jerky. They cut buffalo meat into thin strips, dried it in the hot summer sun, and smoked it over the fire.
NATIVE AMERICAN PROVISIONS