Audubon is introducing a certification program to benefit ranchers and grassland birds. The Audubon Conservation Ranching program links consumers to beef produced on farms that provide good grassland bird habitat. The goal is a profitable program for cattle ranchers. It also helps reverse steep population declines during the past half century by grassland birds, such as bobwhite quail.
Source: The Covey Headquarters, Fall 2017.
A real strength is that Audubon’s program allows producers to transition toward providing good habitat in a practical manner, Max Alleger said. They can sell cattle grown on their pastures while improving their grasslands to meet certification protocols. “In a very real sense, consumers who purchase this beef are helping pay for habitat improvements,” he said. “Audubon also realizes that implementing habitat and pasture improvements requires financial investment, so the habitat management plans also help link producers to cost-share and incentive programs to help defray these costs.”