SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Feb. 4, 2025) – The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) recognized seven of the nation’s top cattle operations during CattleCon 2025 in San Antonio as Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP) Regional winners for their conservation efforts.
“Conservation practices of cattle farmers and ranchers across the country help to preserve natural resources and provide wildlife habitat,” said NCBA President Mark Eisele. “The stewardship efforts of these award recipients confirm our industry’s commitment to protecting the land and water for future generations.”
Regional ESAP winners undertake stewardship efforts unique to their environment, landscape and resources. The 2024 regional winners are:
Region I: Angus Glen Farms, LLC, Watkins Glen, New York
Angus Glen Farms is a cow-calf operation in the iconic Finger Lakes Region, an agricultural area which sees more than one million visitors each year. Cattle are used as a tool to improve the soil, forest and forage health. Cattle are moved daily to manage and reduce runoff into nearby Seneca Lake while also promoting soil health, forage, and tree growth and improving the health of the cattle. In winter months when grass is not available, they practice bale grazing to reduce soil compaction and improve soil health in needed areas. The Chedzoy family also hosts “pasture walks” educating other producers, conservation professionals and visitors about their stewardship practices.
Region II: Kempfer Cattle Company, Deer Park, Florida
Kempfer Cattle Company is a 25,000-acre diversified ranch in central Florida. Since 1898, six generations of the family have implemented stewardship practices to conserve land and water resources. The purebred Brahman and commercial cattle operation also includes a variety of ventures including a sod company and sawmill. The Kempfer family collects and stores rainwater in stock tanks, which reduces the strain on natural water bodies, particularly during drought conditions. They also prevent overgrazing and soil erosion around rivers and streams, preserving ecological balance and protecting riparian areas. By actively managing and controlling the spread of invasive plants, the ranch preserves biodiversity, protects sensitive ecosystems and maintains the integrity of native plant communities.
Region III: Little Timber Farms, Blackduck, Minnesota
Located in northern Minnesota, Little Timber Farms is owned and operated by fourth-generation farmer Rachel Gray and her family. Over the years, the farm transitioned from dairy and crop production to cow-calf and the current heifer development operation. Gray recognized that the nutritious grass would benefit growing heifers through effective rotational grazing, and her family strives to improve the operation through healthier soil and healthier cattle. The family also takes protecting the Red Lake Watershed seriously as water eventually flows into Hudson Bay. Due to the family’s conservation practices, the farm has become a haven for wildlife and waterfowl, and species diversity has increased.
Region IV: Blue Ranch, Moore County, Texas
With perennial water flowing and native grasses perfect for rotational grazing, Rex and Susan McCloy saw an opportunity to expand their extensive farming and cattle operation. A decade later, the Blue Ranch just south of Dumas in Moore County, Texas, is a benchmark for stewardship that yields highly efficient cattle production and a thriving wildlife habitat, while managing constant environmental improvements to the sundry rolling prairie in the northwestern Texas Panhandle. The McCloy’s goals are to achieve the highest levels of environmental, economic and social sustainability through holistic management practices; improve riparian areas to reduce erosion; create higher wildlife populations through improved natural habitats; and promote sustainable grazing practices by advocating at the local level and beyond.
Region V: LeValley Ranch, Hotchkiss, Colorado
LeValley Ranch in Hotchkiss, Colorado, is a commercial cattle operation that seamlessly integrates federal and private rangeland to support livestock production, wildlife habitat, and range vigor with plant diversity, while also directly connecting to consumers and their community through direct marketing of beef. For five generations, the LeValley family has been stewards of the land and they achieve their goals through an overall philosophy of land health and management that concentrates on allowing time to rest, grazing moderately, and creating pastures where they are utilized in a different rotation in consecutive years. Diversification has also played a role in the ranch’s success with income support from a big game and bird hunting enterprise as well as through involvement in the beef supply chain with Homestead Meats processing facilities and retail store.
Region VI: Cottonwood Ranch, Wells, Nevada
Cottonwood Ranch is a six-generation cow-calf and horse operation in Wells, Nevada. The Smith and Molsbee families are at the forefront of sustainable cattle ranching realizing that wildlife, healthy lands, and livestock can coexist and thrive together through managing both private and public lands as a whole. The ranch has an extensive history of working with federal and state partners to implement conservation practices and is a leader in utilizing virtual fencing for cattle. Cottonwood Ranch has implemented intensive grazing management strategies on their private land that have created more diverse meadows. Diversification has also played a role in the ranch’s success, with the families expanding their business to include an events venue, hunting operation, veterans retreat and birding and wildlife learning center.
Region VII: Downey Ranch, Wamego, Kansas
Located in the heart of the Kansas Flint Hills, southwest of Wamego, Downey Ranch is a commercial cow-calf operation committed to stewardship. Owners Joe Carpenter and Barb Downey have incorporated numerous grazing management techniques to enhance rangeland health, minimize the need for harvested forages and meet the nutritional needs of their cattle with little supplemental feed. In addition to extensive use of rotational grazing, they utilize a novel bale grazing program to help cover winter feed needs. Downey Ranch utilizes prescribed burning to enhance the mix of grass species in their pastures as well as control woody encroachment. The family has also integrated new technology to enhance cattle well-being, improve land management and reduce labor needs.
Established in 1991 by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association to recognize outstanding land stewards in the cattle industry, the Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP) is generously sponsored by USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Corteva Agriscience, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Cattlemen’s Foundation. For more information, visit www.environmentalstewardship.
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