If you're reading this page, you're probably a rancher, and you
know, better than we do, that ranching is a tough game to win.
Commodity prices have never been reliable, and now that real estate
values are going through the roof, it's hard to see how you could
make a profit.
We won't claim that ranching will ever be easy, but we will tell
you that opportunities await ranchers who can see their way out
of the commodities box and into stewardship-based diversification.
You've probably heard the term before. Here's what it means.
$$$ for Sustainable Management
More and more people are willing to pay you a premium for ranch
products that protect water, soil, wildlife and open space. As
you may imagine, very few of these new "customers" have
anything to do with a sale barn or the commodities market. They
are government agencies, tourists, conservationists, developers,
hunters, fishermen, and niche brand owners. While most of them
don't have anything against cows, they love scenic vistas, wildlife
habitat, nature in general, good hunting, good fishing, food
they can feel good about, and a little corner of heaven they
can call their own (even for just a couple of weeks a year).
And unlike the commodities market, they will pay you handsomely
for naturally-raised meat, your development rights, the permanent
protection of your wildlife habitat, the chance to hunt, fish or
photograph your place, or a secluded parcel of your land.
That's the potential for income side. Then there's the potential
for savings side.
We've found that ranchers who reduce their chemical and technological
inputs can save a bundle. And if they change their grazing management,
they can produce more forage and graze more animals. Combine the
savings with increased production and new sources of income, and
you suddenly have a sustainable, satisfying operation--something
your kids may want to continue when they come back from college.
At CNR we want to see ranchers stay on the land. We know that
they're the only things standing between sprawl and core natural
areas, and we'd sure rather look at cows than condos. Since 1994
we've been working with the ranching community to identify and
spread the management practices and marketing opportunities ranchers
can use to stay in business--even thrive--as the cattle cycle rolls
and real estate prices rise.
We hope you'll look into taking one of our training courses, and
we'd love to talk to you about marketing your natural beef, sustainably-produced
wool or guest ranch operation. Bottom line, we're a resource for
your long-term prosperity, and we hope you'll make use of us often.
