Three Jerks Jerky Update 2026: What Happened After Shark Tank?

Three Jerks Jerky entered the snack industry with a bold claim: they made the best beef jerky on the planet. By swapping out tough, cheap cuts of beef for 100% premium filet mignon, the brand quickly became a fan favorite. 

After a highly successful appearance on Shark Tank in 2015, the company seemed completely unstoppable, generating millions in sales.

However, consumers trying to buy a bag of Three Jerks Jerky in 2026 will quickly hit a brick wall. The official website shows every single flavor as “out of stock,” and the once-vocal brand has gone completely silent online.

What exactly happened to this booming meat snack company? Did the famous Shark Tank deal fall through? Are the founders still involved in the business today?

This complete 2026 update covers everything to know about Three Jerks Jerky, the truth behind their television business deals, the founders’ new career paths, and the current state of the brand.

What Made Three Jerks Jerky Different?

Before diving into their sudden disappearance, it is important to understand why Three Jerks Jerky was so incredibly popular in the first place.

Most traditional beef jerky found in gas stations and grocery stores is made from the “round” cut of a cow, which is the top or bottom rump. This muscle is heavily worked by the animal, making the meat inherently tough, rough, and chewy. 

To cover up the lack of natural flavor, many commercial jerky brands pump their products full of artificial flavors, nitrates, MSG, and excess sodium.

Three Jerks Jerky took a completely different approach. The company used 100% filet mignon, which is widely regarded as the most prestigious, expensive, and tender cut of beef available. 

Because filet mignon comes from a non-working muscle (the tenderloin), it has excellent marbling and a highly soft texture. The resulting jerky practically melted in the mouth, completely avoiding the “shoe leather” texture of standard snacks.

Furthermore, the brand committed to a clean label. Their jerky was marketed as free from artificial preservatives, nitrates, and MSG.

The Five Core Flavors

During their peak production years, Three Jerks Jerky offered five distinct flavors to satisfy different taste preferences. Each two-ounce bag originally retailed for around $11.99, a premium price tag that reflected the high cost of raw filet mignon.

Flavor Name	Flavor Profile
Original	A classic, savory blend of spices designed to let the natural filet mignon flavor take center stage.
Memphis BBQ	A sweet and tangy rub inspired by traditional Southern barbecue spices.
Chipotle Adobo	A smoky, slightly spicy flavor profile rooted in traditional Mexican adobo seasoning.
Maple Bourbon Churro	A highly unique, sweet-and-savory option that tasted like breakfast in a bag.
Hamburger	A fun, savory flavor crafted to mimic the taste of a freshly grilled burger.

The Founding Story: Who Were the “Three Jerks”?

The company was founded in 2012 by two longtime friends, Jordan Barrocas and Daniel Fogelson, who met while attending Emory University.

The story began when the two friends were hanging out, eating a bag of disappointing store-bought beef jerky. They decided that the tough texture and chemical taste ruined the snack, and they believed they could do better. They bought an old food dehydrator, which was a gift from Jordan’s mother, and went to a local Costco to buy various cuts of raw meat.

After testing multiple options in their apartment, they realized that filet mignon produced an incredibly tender jerky that easily blew the commercial competition away. They started sharing their homemade creations with friends and family. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with people constantly asking for more.

Realizing they had a real business opportunity, the duo decided to launch a Kickstarter campaign in August 2013. Their original financial goal was modest, intended just to help them secure a commercial facility and USDA compliance. However, they ended up raising an impressive $45,663 from 641 eager backers to get the company off the ground.

Why the name “Three Jerks”? A common question asked by fans was regarding the company name, considering there were only two founders. Originally, there was a third co-founder involved in the early days of the business. 

However, the trio had a falling out over creative disagreements, and the third partner was removed from the company. Jordan and Daniel decided to keep the catchy name, joking with customers that the jerky itself was the “third jerk”.

The Shark Tank Pitch

In October 2015, during Season 7, Episode 5 of the hit television show Shark Tank, Jordan and Daniel stepped onto the carpet to pitch their business. They were seeking an investment of $100,000 in exchange for 15% equity in their company.

At the time of their pitch, the company was doing very well for a startup. They had generated $350,000 in sales over the previous year and a half.

However, their manufacturing costs were cutting deeply into their profits. It cost them $3.99 to make a single bag of jerky, which they then sold wholesale for $6.00 and retail for $11.99.

The founders needed a Shark’s investment and industry connections to secure bulk meat discounts and transition to a much larger commercial co-packing facility.

The Sharks sampled the filet mignon jerky and were visibly impressed by the taste, tenderness, and lack of preservatives. Because the product was so good, a fierce bidding war quickly erupted among the wealthy investors:

• Mark Cuban loved the product and said he would buy it as a customer, but he felt the overall meat snack industry was far too competitive. He was the first Shark to drop out of the negotiations.
• Kevin O’Leary (Mr. Wonderful) offered $100,000 for 33.3% equity, arguing that his connections were worth the high price. When other offers came in, he later bumped his offer up to $150,000 for that same 33.3% stake.
• Lori Greiner jumped in and offered $100,000 for 20% equity.
• Robert Herjavec also offered $100,000 for 20% equity. Seeing the intense competition, he eventually teamed up with Lori to offer a combined deal of $100,000 for 15% equity, plus an option for another $100,000 later.
• Daymond John, calling himself a “Jerkologist,” offered $100,000 for 15% equity, with the option to invest another $100,000 for an additional 15% in the future.

Jordan and Daniel appreciated Daymond’s enthusiasm and immediate decisiveness. They accepted Daymond John’s offer on the spot. Daymond celebrated the new partnership by loudly declaring, “I love being a jerk!”.

The Immediate Aftermath: Massive Growth

The “Shark Tank Effect” hit Three Jerks Jerky instantly. On the exact night their episode aired on television, the company sold $250,000 worth of jerky. 

Within the first three months following the show, their overall sales skyrocketed to $1.4 million, which equated to over 150,000 individual bags of jerky sold.

This massive influx of orders created a great problem to have: the company simply could not keep up with consumer demand. Their original, smaller co-packing facility was completely overwhelmed by the volume.

To solve this critical issue, Daymond John stepped in and introduced the founders to Rastelli Foods Group. Rastelli is a major global meat processing and distribution company. Daymond had previously worked with Rastelli on another successful Shark Tank food brand, Bubba’s Q Boneless Ribs.

Rastelli Foods took over the supply of the raw filet mignon, as well as the packaging, distribution, and accounting. This massive partnership allowed Three Jerks Jerky to significantly lower their manufacturing costs and rapidly scale up their business. 

Soon, the premium jerky was available in thousands of retail stores across the country, including major chains like ShopRite, Publix, and Safeway-Albertsons.

The brand also enjoyed incredible public relations success during this growth period. In April 2016, Three Jerks Jerky formed a highly innovative partnership with SpaceX. 

Their filet mignon jerky was launched into space to serve as a delicious, high-protein treat for the astronauts living aboard the International Space Station. 

Later, the founders and Daymond John appeared on the Home Shopping Network (HSN), where they completely sold out of their inventory in just six minutes.

The Real Deal: Behind the Scenes

While everything looked perfect from the outside, the underlying business structure was shifting in ways that would eventually impact the brand’s long-term future.

Business deals negotiated on television are not always the exact deals that are signed in the boardroom weeks later. 

According to industry reports, Daymond John changed the terms of his investment deal during the final due diligence phase. Instead of a direct cash capital injection for equity, the deal was restructured so that Daymond received a 5% royalty. In exchange for this royalty, he provided the strategic introductions and opportunities that helped the business grow.

Furthermore, the partnership with Rastelli Foods Group came at a steep equity cost. To handle the massive nationwide scaling and upfront supply chain costs, Rastelli Foods essentially absorbed half the company. 

The final business structure left Rastelli Foods and Daymond John owning 50% of the Three Jerks Jerky business, while original founders Jordan and Daniel retained the remaining 50%.

With Rastelli handling the meat sourcing, packaging, and financial accounting, Three Jerks Jerky effectively transitioned into an outsourced brand.

Quality Control Hurdles

As the brand scaled rapidly, it also faced minor quality control hurdles that are common in the packaged food industry. One notable issue involved independent testing by the consumer advocacy group, Gluten Free Watchdog. 

The group tested a specific flavor of the brand’s jerky (the Teriyaki flavor) and found that it contained soy sauce made from wheat. Because wheat contains gluten, this specific flavor did not meet strict gluten-free standards, despite the brand’s general marketing. 

The USDA was notified, highlighting the difficulties of maintaining perfectly clean labels when dealing with complex, outsourced marinades.

Where is Three Jerks Jerky in 2026?

As of 2026, the Three Jerks Jerky brand exists in name only. The company is no longer actively producing or selling new products to the public.

If a customer visits the official Three Jerks Jerky website today, the store remains online, but a short pop-up message reads: “Thanks for trusting us jerks over the years. We appreciate your business.”.

Every single flavor, variety pack, and meat snack listed on the site is marked as “out of stock“. The products are also completely unavailable on Amazon and have vanished from all physical grocery store shelves.

The company’s digital marketing presence has been entirely abandoned. Their last official blog post was published in June 2019. Their final social media posts on Instagram and Facebook were made in February 2021, which was simply a brief post wishing a happy birthday to their investor, Daymond John.

Why Did They Stop Making Jerky?

The exact details of why production completely halted have never been outlined in a formal press release. However, business experts and available data point to several clear factors that led to the company’s quiet closure:

1. The Founders Walked Away: The most significant reason for the brand’s fade is that both original founders eventually left the company to pursue entirely new careers. Without Jordan and Daniel actively steering the ship and pushing for innovation, the brand lost its creative drive.
2. Loss of Majority Equity: Because the founders only retained 50% of the business after the Rastelli and Daymond John deals, their personal financial upside and operational control were heavily diluted. It is highly common in the startup world for founders to step away when they lose controlling interest in their own creation.
3. The High Cost of Beef: Sourcing 100% filet mignon is incredibly expensive. As global supply chain costs, inflation, and raw beef prices fluctuated wildly over the years, maintaining healthy profit margins on an $11.99 bag of jerky became increasingly difficult for the co-packers to justify.

Where Are the Founders Now?

Both Jordan Barrocas and Daniel Fogelson have successfully moved on from the jerky business to start new, thriving entrepreneurial ventures in entirely different industries.

Jordan Barrocas

Jordan Barrocas officially left his role at Three Jerks Jerky in December 2018. Coming from a family with a deep history in the footwear industry, Jordan returned to his roots. He went on to work in private label footwear in Miami.

Today, Jordan is the founder and CEO of IF/THEN, an innovative, premium footwear brand. The brand focuses on “smart athleisure” sneakers that combine ultimate all-day comfort with professional style. 

Jordan frequently speaks in interviews about how the intense lessons he learned while building a company on Shark Tank help him run his new footwear company today.

Daniel Fogelson

Daniel Fogelson officially stepped away from the jerky business a bit later, in January 2020. He transitioned his career into the sustainable beverage industry.

He currently serves as the Head of Operations for Malibu Mylk, a highly popular plant-based milk company. Additionally, he has worked as the Chief Operating Officer for a growing coffee brand based out of Los Angeles.

The 2026 Meat Snack Market Landscape

The snack market has evolved significantly since Three Jerks Jerky was featured on television. The global meat snacks market is projected to expand to $32.20 billion by 2035. However, the way consumers buy and eat jerky has fundamentally changed.

In 2026, the market is heavily driven by personalized nutrition. Consumers no longer buy snacks solely based on flavor or luxury ingredients like filet mignon. Instead, buyers are looking for functional foods that fit highly specific dietary needs, such as Keto, Paleo, or low-inflammation diets.

There is also a massive push toward sustainability. In 2026, retail buyers demand sustainable packaging, such as biodegradable bags or highly recyclable materials.

For an older brand like Three Jerks Jerky to survive in this modern market, it would have required a massive financial investment to completely overhaul its packaging and marketing strategy.

The Best Alternatives to Three Jerks Jerky in 2026

For consumers craving premium, clean-label beef jerky today, there are several excellent alternatives currently dominating the 2026 market.

Brand	Specialty Focus	2026 Market Position
Chomps	Grass-fed beef sticks	Highly popular for having zero hidden sugars, no artificial preservatives, and perfectly portioned protein.
Stryve Biltong	Air-dried meat snacks	Biltong is never cooked, leaving it incredibly tender. Stryve is a top contender for high-protein, zero-sugar diets.
People’s Choice Beef Jerky	Traditional handmade jerky	A family-owned business making jerky for decades. They offer premium, handmade jerky that rivals the artisan feel of Three Jerks.
Carnivore Snax	Single-ingredient “meat chips”	Makes unique chips out of premium cuts like ribeye and brisket, providing that melt-in-the-mouth texture.
Epic Provisions	Exotic meats and clean ingredients	Known for creating highly functional, paleo-friendly meat bars with very clean nutritional profiles.

Final Thoughts

Three Jerks Jerky will always be remembered as one of the standout food products in the history of Shark Tank. Founders Jordan Barrocas and Daniel Fogelson successfully proved that everyday consumers were willing to pay a premium price for a high-quality, artisan meat snack made from the best ingredients possible.

While the company successfully generated millions of dollars in revenue, reaching an estimated $4 million to $5 million at its absolute peak, the harsh realities of scaling a physical product eventually caught up with the brand. 

Giving up major equity, managing highly expensive supply chains, and relying on outsourced manufacturing ultimately led to the brand’s quiet conclusion.

Today, the story of Three Jerks Jerky serves as a fascinating example of how a business can experience explosive television success, fundamentally change its operational structure to keep up with intense demand, and eventually fade away as its founders move on to build their next great companies.