Local Ranch Receives National Attention - KXNet - Bismarck/Minot/Williston/Dickinson

Local Ranch Receives National Attention

One rancher is getting some national recognition.
Gabe Brown recently returned home from San Francisco where he received a Growing Green Award from the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Ag Reporter Sarah Gustin takes you to the Brown Ranch east of Bismarck, to show you what makes this farm stand out from the rest.

From the cows, to the crops, to the trees, Gabe Brown is working to replicate "nature's image" on these acres.
(Gabe Brown / Farmer) "We look at things at this ranch as a whole, because whenever you change one thing, it effects everything."
While most producers brag about going to the field with the latest technology and gadgets, Brown attributes much of the success at this ranch to getting back to the basics.
(Gabe Brown / Farmer) "We are actually going in the other direction. We have found that the more we focus on farming and ranching in nature's image and using a natural means, that we can really end up solving problems instead of just treating symptoms".
Notill cropping, mob grazing and planting a wide variety of cover crops are all part of Brown's soil changing practices.
(Gabe Brown / Farmer) "We don't use any fungicide, we haven't used any pesticides in years and years. We don't use on our own land any commercial fertility anymore, it's all comes about through improved soil health."
(Sarah Gustin / KX News) "These aren't your ordinary steers, for the past 3 years Brown's have been raising all natural beef."
Brown says the changes are paying off for both the land and the checkbook.
He says his corn yields are 20% higher than the county average.
(Gabe Brown / Farmer) "When you are able to cut back on the inputs and still get the production, you become a least cost producer that's highly profitable. For that reason we are actually shrinking the operation. Most operations are getting larger and larger and meanwhile, people are putting in more and more hours in. Stress levels are high. We are actually able to decrease."
Positive rewards he hopes last far into the future.
(Gabe Brown / Farmer) "Life's become much more enjoyable, much more profitable and most importantly we are sustaining the resource for future generations."

Brown spends a lot of his time spreading the knowledge he's gained over his 15 years spent changing his management practices.
He now travels the world speaking at roughly 60 events each year.