This summer hasn’t been a great one for farmers and ranchers across the country. Fires cover almost a million acres in Montana alone, and hurricanes and flooding have hit Texas and Florida hard. People have been pitching in to help, like the police and cowboys driving cattle through the middle of the town of Dayton, Texas to get to higher ground, and helicopter pilots herding cattle to safety.
Texas ranchers and officials have set up supply points across Texas to provide free hay and fresh water for cattle. To help his fellow Montana ranchers, Jesse Bendel harvested 80 acres of Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land and donated the hay to feed cattle that have nothing left to eat, and many more neighbors have joined in to help.
Jesse did what he did for reasons we’re sure you understand. “Agriculture is a small community,” he told the Great Falls Tribune. “They are all our brothers. When they’re struggling and we’re doing decent, it tugs at your heart strings. It makes you feel like you want to do something.”
If you’d like to help your fellow producers but don’t know quite how, AgDaily has compiled a list of organizations that includes a lot of farmer-focused support. If you are a farmer or rancher facing these challenges, we are here thinking of you, and sending all the hope and support we can.
Your community,
On Pasture
