Ryan's had a passion for cooking since he was a kid. For years that passion just lived in a dream — a restaurant, a food truck, something that let him feed people and watch their faces on the first bite.
"Have you ever smoked pretzels?" Ryan hadn't. So he fired up the smoker, ran a small batch, and knew immediately there was something real here. Months of experimenting with flavors and technique later, Back 40 BBQ's first product was born: Garlic Parmesan smoked pretzels.
At the start of 2026, Ryan and his wife Holly launched Back 40 BBQ together — a family business in every sense of the word.
Operations, cooking, and sales. Every show starts with him.
Runs the books, designs the booth, keeps the plan honest.
Helps with cooking and packaging — runs her own station now.
Head Taste Tester. Does not take bribes.
The back 40 is the part of the land where the real work happens — no audience, no applause, just heads-down effort. That's the culture we wanted around this food.
The number 40 runs a little deeper for us too. In Scripture, 40 marks a season of preparation before something greater. Colossians 3:23 says to work at everything with your whole heart, as if working for the Lord. That's what this business is to us — we make pretzels, but the real mission is building community and serving people well.
That's not a slogan we came up with for a website — it's the actual mission, and it's why a family of four spends its weekends running a smoker trailer instead of resting.
Farmers markets, church fundraisers, school events, local festivals across West Michigan — this is where we built the business, one sample at a time.
Real Amish butter. Legacy bourbon distilled in Hudsonville. Hand-shredded cheese, fresh jalapeños. Neighbors first, distributors second.
Pretzel platters, on-site smoking, and custom flavor blends for weddings, church events, and company parties.
Planning a market, fundraiser, or event in Holland? Reach out — we'd like to be part of it.
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