From Farm to Face: The Story Behind The Tallow Twins

Meghan (left) and Madison (right) standing in front of shelves of their many different Tallow products.

By Leah Bauer

Megan and Maddison, two twins who live and operate their business on Cockshutt Road, have turned beef tallow, an often-forgotten by-product of cattle farming, into a skincare business.

The origins of their business are founded in a belief that what we put on our skin is just as important as what we put on our body. In considerations of health, it is common to question the ingredients of our foods, but less common to question what is in the products we use on our skin.

The ‘lightbulb moment’ to use beef tallow as a natural alternative came to Megan when she was working as a doula. A doula is a person who provides support to women before, during and after pregnancy. In this position, Madison was often asked by expectant mothers, “What skincare products are clean enough to use on my pregnant belly, and on the skin of my baby?” When investigating this question for her clients, Madison found that many of the products offered in ‘wellness’ stores were not actually clean or safe, and they often relied on toxic chemicals that were detrimental to the health of the mothers and their babies.

From there, the journey began. Madison discovered beef tallow as a genuinely clean skincare alternative that she could, in good conscience, offer to her clients. From that point on, her kitchen was a mess as she created small batches of tallow products. However, the messy kitchen was a small price to pay for Madison who was content to see that her clients were no longer being exposed to harsh chemicals.

It was around this time that her twin, Megan, returned from studying business, and playing rugby in Nova Scotia. After Megan’s return home, the twins jetted off on a post-grad trip to Mexico where Megan said “there was a lot of creativity flowing.” Whether it was the creativity, or the margaritas we may never know, but either way the two returned with a business plan, a logo, a website, and a passion for clean skincare products.

Originally, the twins rendered and purified the tallow themselves, though they have transitioned to using tallow from Norpac in Norwich, who do the rendering process. The twins are grateful to work with local producers, and to be familiar with the cattle from which they source their tallow. They began working with Norpac in 2023. When the twins originally reached out to Norpac they were told that the company just recently started keeping the tallow in the last six months. Before that, it it was being thrown away. The twins believe in the importance of “nose to tail” use of animals, which is the belief that if you are going to kill an animal then try to use all of its parts.

Nutrition and wellness are the central tenets of why Madison and Megan founded The Tallow Twins. The incredible benefits that come from Ontario-grown cattle is not lost to them, they believe that our society needs to revert back to using all parts of the animal stating: “We’re throwing away the organs. We’re not using the hide. We’re not using the tallow. We’re not using all the incredible parts of the animal that are actually arguably a million times more nutrient than muscle meat. So it’s crazy. It’s crazy. We’ve definitely become very lost in the last little while of how we harvest animals and what nutrition means.” The twins argue that humans evolved on natural animal products and a progression towards more processed foods and products has accelerated the rise of poor health and health complications in our modern world.

The creation of their products, and the growth of their business is something that the twins take on as a team. While they have a shared passion for their product, and delegate responsibilities for business operations and believe that “they wouldn’t be able to do it without each other.” When asked if they ever fight when running a business together the reply was simple, “The personal relationship between us is more important than the business relationship. So, you have to pick your battles.”

The Tallow Twins’ social media has garnered significant traction, with their videos often receiving thousands of views. This goes to show, in Madison’s opinion, the “hole in the market” for good quality, clean skincare. Originally, the twins received most of their sales from local farmers markets, though with their growing online popularity, a lot of their sales have shifted online. As their business grows and their ability to be at the farmer’s markets has dwindled, they still believe that local farmers’ markets are “why they are here.”

The twins offer 28 products, including soaps, body butters, exfoliants, deodorants, and lip balms. The quality of their products is demonstrated in the amount of repeat customers they have. One of the best parts of their business according to them is interacting with their customers and hearing reviews such as, “Thank you for making this. I’ve been using it for two years now, or it healed my baby’s eczema or I had psoriasis for years and it’s been the only thing that has helped me.”

It is reviews like these ones that keep the twins going, when they hear about the impact of their product they often think, “Yeah, that’s why we’re doing this. It’s not just like a business. It’s so cool that we made a thing that is making people happier and healthier and more confident in their skin.”

The Tallow Twins have come a long way from their origins in 2023, and they are just getting started. Their goal is to one day include makeup in their line of tallow products, and to continue to educate and enlighten people on the importance of clean products.

Check out their website at: tallowtwins.ca, or find them on Instagram @tallowtwins. 