• Montana Jerky Co. logo with mountains, trees, and a colorful sky.

    Montana Jerky Company has always been a family business – originally started by Ron Vandevanter, it is now owned cooperatively by the member-producers of Glacier Processing Cooperative and continues to be managed by the Vandevanter family.

    We’re proud to have taken the centuries-old process of making beef jerky and transformed it into an art. Our Grand Champion Beef Jerky and Buffalo Jerky is the result of the perfect blend of spices, the latest in equipment technology and only the finest cuts of choice beef and buffalo meat to have the finest beef jerky and buffalo jerky that you will ever try. Our jerky products continue to win awards every year.

A Little History

  • 1984: It all started with a deal on a smokehouse…

    Having purchased half of Vandevanter Meats from his uncle Gene 1977, Ron purchased the other half from his Dad in 1984. That same year, a deal too good to be true on a commercial smokehouse presented itself. Even though he knew nothing about it, he jumped on it.

    Ron went to every available seminar on how to make cooked products in his new smokehouse and spent the next two years experimenting with different formulations of spices to make what he thought was the best jerky he’d ever had.

  • 1987: The Van’s Smokehouse brand

    In 1987, Ron took his jerky and started selling it under the Van’s Smokehouse brand. The next year brought his first wholesale account. Sales increased, and the need for more room and a bigger smokehouse led to an addition in 1992.

  • 1995: Montana Jerky Company on the World Wide Web

    In 1995, Ron decided he was going to sell jerky on the internet!  He knew he needed customers to know exactly where the jerky was coming from, and rebranded as Montana Jerky Company. 

    In June of that year, Ron started the first internet sales of Montana Jerky Company. If you can imagine back then, the only search engine was Yahoo and when the website went live, search results for “jerky” returned only six items – and three of them were for the Jerky Boys movie.

  • 2001: Grand Champion Jerky and a new smokehouse

    Ron has won countless awards at the cured meat championship conventions held in Montana.  With sales for his award-winning jerky increasing every year, another building addition and smokehouse was built in 2001.

  • Today

    In 2023, Ron Vandevanter decided to retire from Vandevanter Meats and Montana Jerky Company. To secure the future of the local processing plant that had served the ranchers of northwest Montana since 1945, five ranching families banded together to form what is now Glacier Processing Cooperative.

    After nearly 2 years of hard work and dedication, the new Cooperative secured a loan to purchase the Vandervanters’ meat processing facility, and the Montana Jerky Company business along with it.

    Today, Glacier Processing Cooperative’s Board of Directors provides oversight for Montana Jerky Company, which is managed by Ron’s daughter, the very capable Jeni Vandevanter Smith.
Dried meat strips hanging on a metal rod against a neutral background
Dried meat slices on a wooden board with spices on a dark background

Find Our Jerky in Stores

Montana Locations

  • Kalispell

    • Woody’s Country Store

    3333 MT Hwy 35 

    • Flathead Mercantile Glacier Park

    International Airport 4170 US Hwy 2 

    • Kelly Rae’s

    25 Batavia Lane 

    • Woodland Quickstop

    81 Woodland Park Dr 

    • White Oak Super Stop

    4810 US 93 S 

    • Kalispell Ford

    2000 Rose Crossing 

    • Super One City Center

    55 N 1st Ave EN

  • Whitefish

    • Markus Community Market

    9 Baker Ave 

    • Super One Whitefish

    6475 US 93 S #1 

    • Whitefish Gift & Gear

    229 Central Ave 

    • Midway Mini Mart

    4899 US 93 

  • St. Regis

    • St Regis Travel Center

    55 Mullan Gulch Rd I-90, Exit 33

    • Two Rivers Station

    5409 MT Hwy 135

  • Missoula

    • Pattee Creek Market

    704 SW Higgins Ave 

    • Liquid Planet @ The Book Exchange

    2335 Brooks St 

  • Columbia Falls

    • Super One Columbia Falls

    21009th St W 

    • Junction Gas & Groceries

    7322 Hwy 2 E 

  • Libby

    • Golden State Oil

    31978 Hwy 2 

    • Saverite South

    33934 US Hwy 2 W

  • Coram

    • Glacier Center

    10049 Hwy 2 E

  • Condon

    • Mission Mountain Mercantile

    7217 MT Hwy 83 

  • Hungry Horse

    • Willows Huckleberry Land

    8730 Hwy 2 E 

  • Great Falls

    • Mitchell Supply Co.

    300 Smelter Ave NE 

  • Polson

    • Gateway Orchard

    37372 MT Hwy 35

  • Big Fork

    • Bowman Orchards & Winery

    19944 Mt Highway 35

Other locations

  • Las Vegas, NV

    • The Beef Jerky Store

    112-B North 3rd St

  • Edmond, OK

    • The Beef Jerky Emporium

    810 W Danforth Rd

  • Stuart, FL

    • Bob’s Barber Shop

    3485 SE Dixie Hwy

  • Auburn, CA

    • IKEDAS Market

    13500 Lincoln Way

The Montana Jerky Co. Team

  • Jeni Vandevanter Smith

    General Manager 

    HACCP certified, Jeni has served as a manager for 17 years, playing a key role in maintaining the company’s high standards in food safety and customer service. She has been employed at Montana Jerky Co. for 29 years.

  • Jayce Vandevanter

    Jerky Specialist

    Jayce, a fourth-generation worker, is responsible for preparing all the jerky and cooked products. His role ensures that traditional methods and family expertise are carried on through each batch.