More on How Grazing Got Complicated- it's a "heated" debate

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October 28, 2025

🌾 How Grazing Got Complicated

If you’ve ever driven through the high desert of Jordan Valley or Southwest Idaho, you’ve seen the same open landscapes that have fed generations of cattle — wide, windswept, and beautiful. But behind those quiet miles of sagebrush is a complicated story — one that shaped how ranchers like us graze cattle today.

🐄 The Early Days: Free Range & Fierce Independence

In the early 1900s, grazing was a free-for-all. Ranchers, homesteaders, and sheepmen all ran their livestock across open range, often crossing into one another’s territory. Without clear boundaries, disputes were inevitable — sometimes fierce. These “range wars” were part of the Old West’s growing pains, as settlers learned that the land could only handle so much grazing before it needed time to recover.

🏛️ The Birth of Oversight

By the 1930s, dust storms, drought, and overuse had pushed the land — and the people who depended on it — to the brink. That’s when the U.S. government stepped in, creating what’s now the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to oversee grazing rights. The goal was balance: protecting the land while still allowing families like ours to raise livestock.
For the first time, ranchers needed grazing permits. Those permits were tied to “base properties” — owned land that determined how much federal range a rancher could use.

🔒 The 1960s: Fences, Limits & Change

Then came the 1960s — and with them, big changes.
Federal agencies began requiring permanent fencing to control livestock movement, aiming to reduce overgrazing and restore vegetation. At the same time, grazing allotments — measured in Animal Unit Months (AUMs), or the amount of forage one cow and calf need per month — were drastically cut, in some cases by 30–50%.

Those reductions helped some areas recover, but they also created unintended consequences. With fewer cattle allowed to graze, grasses grew thick, dried out, and became tinder for wildfires. In regions like ours, where snow and rain can’t naturally crush down the old growth, fire became nature’s reset button — and a costly one for both ranchers and taxpayers.

🔥 When Too Little Grazing Creates Too Much Fuel

Today, the debate continues. Environmentalists and policymakers often call for less grazing, while ranchers like us see firsthand how well-managed herds actually prevent wildfires.
By grazing cattle thoughtfully — moving them seasonally, limiting how much they eat, and monitoring grass health — we can reduce fuel loads and improve soil fertility, all while keeping these ecosystems healthy and productive.

🌿 Working Toward Balance

At Cunningham Pastured Meats, we’re part of a 10-year study with Oregon State University that explores this very idea: proving that responsible grazing can restore balance to overgrown lands. The goal is simple — to show that livestock, when managed correctly, are not the enemy of conservation, but a vital part of it.

For us, this isn’t just about cattle — it’s about stewardship. It’s about ensuring that the same land that fed our great-grandparents will still be thriving for the next generation.

👨‍👩‍👧 Counting on our Customers

Added to rancher responsibilities, a revision of current laws and regulations is the important aspect of customers choosing to support local ranching operations like ours by purchasing locally grown products raised on regenerative ranches that adhere to best practice and raise cattle and animals the way that nature intended! Without a loyal customer base who understands the issues and supports ranchers who care about the issues we are destined to the limitations of heavy government oversite and a dying breed of ranching that has span the test of time.

Full 2026: Series on The Big Grass Fire "It Starts with a Spark!"

Neighbors Helping Neighbors: Standing Together During the Big Grass Fire When wildfires threaten our communities, they don’t stop to ask whose land they’re on. They move quickly, changing lives in a matter of hours. But in rural communities like ours, something else moves just as quickly—neighbors stepping up to help neighbors. As the Big Grass Fire continues to impact parts of Idaho and Oregon, Sean Cunningham of Cunningham Pastured Meats has joined countless ranchers, volunteers, firefighters, and first responders working tirelessly to support those directly affected. But, in spite of the effort to mitigate the damages, the devastation is real to life and property. While the Cunningham ranch has not been directly impacted by the fire, Sean has been spending long days assisting neighboring ranchers whose grazing lands, livestock, fences, and livelihoods have been threatened. Whether helping protect cattle, building fire lines, moving equipment, or supporting firefighting efforts wherever needed, the work reflects something deeply rooted in ranching culture: when one neighbor is hurting, everyone shows up. With but a brief reunion with Sean after his 3 days of fire service. As you can imagine, while Sean is all smiles to finally be home for some much-needed rest, tears were shed by the littles in his reunion with the family! As many of you know, Liz and Sean, while still only in their late 30s, have seven children and one on the way. To date, Liz and Sean have spent days apart, each taking on the role in their own capacity against the fires. Sean on the dozer in the field and Liz capturing the story in a digital war to garner the attention of news agencies like KTVB7, the Lt. Governor's office, the White House, electric company CEOs and others for much needed assistance and support for the communities who are now at the mercy of a rogue grass fire, The Big Grass Fire and simultaneous fires stretching thousands of acres throughout the Jordan Valley and beyond. That spirit of service and capitalizing on each person's strengths to wage the war against the fires is nothing new to ranchers. Across the West, ranchers have long been among the first to respond when wildfire strikes. Their knowledge of the land, equipment, water sources, and terrain often makes them invaluable partners alongside local, state, and federal fire crews. Many volunteer through Rangeland Fire Protection Associations, organizations that have become an essential part of wildfire response throughout Oregon and Idaho. These partnerships help firefighters respond more quickly while protecting communities, grazing lands, wildlife habitat, and homes. For ranching families, these fires aren’t simply headlines—they’re deeply personal. A single fire can erase years of stewardship, destroy fencing, eliminate forage needed to feed cattle, and disrupt generations of hard work. Yet even in the face of tremendous loss, ranchers continue helping one another because that’s simply what neighbors do. We are incredibly grateful to every firefighter, volunteer, dispatcher, law enforcement officer, ranch family, and community member working around the clock to protect lives and property. Their courage and commitment remind us that the strength of rural communities isn’t measured only by the land we steward—it’s measured by the people willing to stand together when it matters most. Please continue keeping the families directly affected by these fires in your thoughts and prayers. Recovery will take time, but our communities have always been built on resilience, compassion, and a willingness to lend a hand. As of Wednesday July 29, 2026 at 8 am the non-official update includes official agencies holding the line with the yellow circles area in the image below a wild card. With potential winds pushing north again, critical barriers may not be enough to hold the fire from encroaching on Silver City. The blue circled area on a post seen here with images is the most difficult to manage, with juniper trees, canyons, and rock formations making it difficult terrain to navigate intervention and support. See more details and images here From all of us at Cunningham Pastured Meats and Cliff’s Country Market, thank you to everyone serving on the front lines and behind the scenes. We are honored to stand alongside a community that continues to embody the very best of what it means to be neighbors helping neighbors. We continue to remain steadfast in prayer in the midst of a very active and devastating fire season.Watch Sean's interview with KTVB news.

Full 2026: 6 week series is housed here: real food, real health, and why quality meat matters

So as we step into 2026, we’re beginning a 6-week educational series to share what we know, what we’ve learned on the ranch, and why how your food is raised matters just as much as what you eat. We’re starting with the foundation. Why Protein Matters—Now More Than Ever. Discover the entire 6 week series here!

Why Beef Prices Are Rising Across America — The Full Cunningham Ranch 6-Week Series

This 6-part series breaks down the real reasons beef prices are rising across America — from retiring ranchers and shrinking cattle herds to land-use changes, disease threats, and extreme consolidation in the meatpacking industry. Each email in the series explains a different pressure facing ranchers today and how these issues ultimately impact consumers. Most importantly, it highlights why supporting small, local, transparent producers matters now more than ever.