From Saddles to Straws: A Founder’s Story of Horses, Racing, and Renewal

For Gerald Shaffer, founder of Naturally OG Straws, the connection between horses and rye grass is more than symbolic — it’s personal. Long before straws became his mission, Gerald spent his youth working with off-the-track racehorses, helping them transition from the world of speed and competition to new lives under saddle.

“After their last run at the track,” Gerald recalls, “these horses needed patience, guidance, and trust to find a new rhythm. I had the privilege of riding them, retraining them, and giving them the chance to be more than racers. That experience shaped me — it gave me a lifelong love for horses and a deep respect for the people who care for them.”

That same spirit now drives OG Straws for Track Horses, a program that channels funding into equine welfare and aftercare through something as simple as a straw in a glass. Every case of 500 rye-grass straws sold to pubs, clubs, and restaurants directs £5 toward equine charities and retraining programs. In this way, every sip poured becomes a small but vital contribution to the future of horses leaving the track.

The symbolism runs deep. Rye grass has long covered racecourses and training grounds, prized for its strength under pounding hooves. In the 19th century, rye stalks were the original drinking straws, cut from the field and dropped into cocktails. And it was in that same century that cocktails themselves gained fame at America’s racetracks — none more iconic than the Mint Julep at the Kentucky Derby, forever tying together the ritual of the drink, the straw, and the horse.

Today, OG Straws brings those histories full circle. The rye grass that once cushioned racehorses and stirred Derby cocktails now comes back in a new form: an eco-friendly, carbon-negative straw that funds equine aftercare.

For Gerald, it is not just a business initiative. It is the continuation of a promise he first made in the saddle as a young man — to honour the lives of these extraordinary animals and ensure they are given a future after the finish line.

OG Straws for Track Horses is more than a program. It is a way of saying that the story of a racehorse should never end at the track. With every cocktail stirred, every pint poured, and every straw lifted, we help write the next chapter — one of dignity, care, and renewal.

One straw, one sip, one stride at a time.

Media Contact. Gerald Shaffer gerald@shafferfoods.com