Uptown Jerky Co. was founded in Oklahoma City by myself Mitchell Morris. In 2012, I had a near-fatal experience after being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. The craziest part was that I was in the best shape of my life! The doctors did not seem to have a clear cut explanation of what could have brought this on. Then again, I've since learned that Type 1 Diabetes usually doesn't seem to have as much to do with lifestyle as genetics seem to play a more key role. After spending several agonizing days in the ICU and hospital, my prayers were answered and I was able to finally get to go home. However, per doctors' orders, I was instructed to be on a very strict low carbohydrate, low sugar diet until my blood sugar could stabilize. This meant pretty much just consuming meat and vegetables each day. During this time, I was cooking a lot of meals from home, but was still craving snacks in between meals since having no carbs meant I was left still feeling hungry throughout most of the day. That's when I began crafting my own delicious beef jerky from home to enjoy as one of my favorite low carbohydrate, high protein snacks. As friends and family began to try my newly invented beef jerky snacks, they began requesting orders from me. Through God's blessings and grace, this is how this business came to fruition. It's my pleasure to be able to now share with you my hand-crafted, gourmet, gluten and nitrate free beef jerky creations. Thank you for your business and hope you enjoy!