The first three cows had names: Sparkle, Anna and Rosie.
Joe Singleton brought them home from a cattle auction, and his daughters did the naming. The herd grew gradually, part of a family life already filled with animals. There were even dairy cows for a time, before the family settled on beef cattle.
In 2013, after 31 years in civil construction, Joe made cattle ranching his full-time work.
Joe and Sheri Singleton had wanted their daughters to grow up with room to explore and responsibilities that mattered. Their family’s equestrian website describes a childhood grounded in nature, work and stewardship. Their daughter Adelia eventually took on management of the horse-boarding operation, NF Equestrian at Neverdun Farms.
The cattle business expanded, too. A newer location at Cane Savannah became home to the main cow herd, hay fields and processing facility, while younger animals continued using the original property.
But growth exposed a problem. The family could raise cattle and find customers for beef shares. Securing enough processing appointments was harder.
Then the pandemic brought empty shelves and new questions about food’s origins. Joe saw a possible answer in shipping containers. A conventional processing building was beyond the family’s means; containers offered another route.
They developed a facility where they could process their own cattle and serve other South Carolina producers. Solving a problem for Neverdun could also help neighboring farms reach their customers.
That work became part of a broader effort to strengthen South Carolina’s beef supply. In March 2023, the state Department of Agriculture named Neverdun among eight businesses selected for matching grants to expand processing capacity. The department’s project listing identifies support for additional processing space and packaging and labeling equipment.
For families buying beef, the result is practical: a direct relationship with the people behind it. Neverdun offers shares ranging from an eighth to a whole animal, along with smaller beef boxes. Customers choosing whole or half shares can get help deciding how their beef will be cut.
Educational tours, arranged with the farm, offer a chance to see the cattle and learn about the operation.
Three cows became a cattle business. Shipping containers helped that business connect more directly with local tables. Along the way, the Singleton family created something useful for other farmers, too: another place to bring the animals they had worked to raise.
