Letter to the Editor: Committed to Sustainable Beef Production

Cattle ranchers, like me, are dedicated to caring for our animals and the land every day of the year.

Sustainability is at the forefront of what we do each day. Our grasslands remove carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the soil. Our cattle grazing practices accelerate the process of carbon storage in the soil, reducing the carbon footprint and increasing the soil’s capacity to hold water so the land is more drought tolerant and wildfire resistant.

Our nutrient rich soil promotes the growth of native plant species and the ranch’s open space provides a habitat for various wildlife, including elk, white-tailed deer, Sandhill crane and Canadian geese. We border the Pahsimeroi River and we work with conservation groups to protect endangered salmon by reducing erosion and increasing water use efficiency.

We believe in making the land better than it was when we found it, and we know our fellow ranchers do, too. In fact, 90% of the ranches in the U.S. are family owned, just like ours. Preservation of the land and its ecosystem services is essential for family ranches to continue thriving for future generations.

My family takes great pride in knowing that we provide our neighbors with high-quality protein in the most sustainable way possible.

Consumers should feel good about eating beef, knowing it is produced on ranches just like ours, by people just like us, all across America.