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Feed A Cow
TK Ranch has been a steward of the endangered Northern Fescue Grasslands of east-central Alberta for over 60 years. There are only 4% of this grassland ecosystem left in the world and it needs protection. Raising livestock to the highest pasture based animal welfare standards in North America and managing the land in a way that enhances biodiversity has always been our goal. For over 25 years we have provided nutrient dense grass-fed and finished beef & lamb and pasture raised pork to Alberta families. We have received local, provincial and national awards for our commitment to animal welfare and environmental stewardship.
The summer of 2024 is looking promising, but...
Raising livestock with a focus on animal welfare and environmental sustainability takes a lot of time and caring attention. Many people don't realize that because we retain ownership of our animals from birth to the consumer it's a very expensive enterprise. On average it costs $700 per year to feed one animal and it takes approximately 2.5 years for it to be grass finished - almost double the time compared to conventionally raised grain-fed beef. This cost does not include any other expenses - just feed - and in 2022-2023 the price of feed more than doubled because of widespread drought across Alberta. We have 300 mama cows on TK Ranch as well as their calves from this year, their calves from last year and half of their calves from the year before. When you add all of them together this makes for a lot of mouths to feed.
The extra time it takes to finish our animals means that our meat products are more expensive than those found in grocery stores. Our business is tied to the Alberta economy and the recession has understandably caused many of our customers to reduce their spending. Especially the current economic crisis we're all finding ourselves in. Soaring inflation and fuel prices are seriously impacting our business. We're very innovative and have been working tirelessly to diversify our income, but several years of having to purchase expensive winter feed has tapped our financial resources.
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The last few years of sustained drought have been very difficult. Last winter we received almost no snow so when spring arrived there was virtually no soil moisture. With no moisture the native grasses weren't growing and we were worried we'd have to continue feeding all summer. Then in late May the rains finally came, and just in the nick of time. We were finally able to stop feeding and turned our cows out onto pasture the beginning of June. This is the longest we've fed our cattle in decades. Today is June 24 and we've received a little over 3 inches of rain so far. Luckily it's stayed relatively cool and the native grasses have bounced back, but it's still very dry. Our large Ducks Unlimited dams are almost empty and many of our dugouts are low. Soil moisture is also superficial. We hope the rains continue, sadly many of the thunderstorms that have popped up the last couple of weeks have passed us by. But there's still time. Please stay tuned and thanks for your wonderful support!
