Food Forests Can Save Our Ranchers
Previous administrations have treated federal land policy as an obstacle against America’s ranchers rather than an asset.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recent decision to restore and expand livestock grazing across National Forest lands is an overdue return to common sense that will strengthen local communities, bring an end to bureaucracy, and lower grocery store prices all while restoring forest health.
Our National Forests are one of our greatest resources, which is why we need to treat them as such.
The USDA’s directive instructs the Forest Service to accelerate grazing authorizations, prioritize vacant allotments, reduce permitting delays, and listen to rural communities whose livelihoods depend on responsible land use. According to the USDA, roughly 23,000 permittees and lessees rely on public rangelands to survive.
More than 15,000 American farms shut down in 2025 alone. We cannot let more family ranches get sold to foreign companies. We cannot watch silently as our cowboys and cowgirls fade into memory.
Across the American West, public grazing is not supplemental income, but is often the difference between staying in business and shutting down operations that have sustained families for generations.
The U.S. agricultural industry already faces mounting pressure thanks to rising costs and excessive regulations. Labor shortages persist. Feed prices stay volatile. Transportation and insurance expenses rise, while cheaper international competition takes away American consumers. Cattle inventory currently stands at practically the lowest levels in decades.
When Washington creates delays that leave available grazing land unused, ranchers pay the price first. Consumers pay second, and we’re already seeing the second-hand effects.
Restoring access to federal grazing lands can help ease pressure across the supply chain by lowering operating costs and expanding herd flexibility.
The USDA’s actions also remind the public that livestock grazing is actually a partner for conservation. When managed correctly, it can improve environmental outcomes.
A case study from Idaho, supported by the USDA, shows targeted grazing can reduce excess grasses and vegetation that act as wildfire fuel. By consuming dry plants before they accumulate, grazing can create natural fuel breaks that slow fire spread and reduce fire intensity.
As drought conditions become increasingly severe, and wildfires ravage the West, cattle can help fight the battle.
Without regular disturbance through grazing, thinning, or other active management, forests accumulate dense understory growth that can choke regeneration, suppress healthier vegetation patterns, and create conditions where fires burn hotter and spread farther. This can harm herbivore populations like deer herds, who rely upon eating young plants.
America successfully managed working landscapes for generations before modern regulatory expansion turned routine approvals into years-long administrative exercises.
The Trump administration's directive recognizes that conservation and economic growth are not competing values. They reinforce one another.
At the Lafayette Partnership, we believe strong communities are built through constitutional governance, individual liberty, economic opportunity, and respect for the people closest to the problems they solve. Rural Americans understand their land because their futures depend on it.
At a time when Americans need cheaper groceries and our ranches need saving, Washington should embrace policies that trust local expertise, remove barriers to productivity, and keep working lands working.
“For too long, bureaucratic overreach and activist-driven lawfare have undermined the multiple-use mandate of our National Forests and Grasslands. Today, we are empowering line officers with clear direction and reaffirming grazing as an essential tool for healthy landscapes and vibrant rural communities.”