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The Global Stewardship Podcast
Inspiring weekly food and farming interviews with natural-minded food producers and food system leaders around the world who are caring for the land and nourishing the planet.
The Global Stewardship Podcast
Restoring the prairie with Wild Idea Buffalo
With every episode that passes, I end the recording feeling so honored and excited to share the stories of the food producers and growers I interview. Jillian and Colton Jones are no exception; their work in the Great Plains to restore grasslands is crucial to ecosystem health. Some of my new favorite people (which I say every week)!
Wild Idea Buffalo Company | 100% Grass-Fed & Humanely Harvested
Join me Thursday for a bonus episode brough to you by Farmhand - Farmhand
Happy Tuesday and welcome back to the Global Stewardship Podcast. What if the key to reviving America's native ecosystems isn't innovation but restoration? Not a new technology, but actually an ancient presence Returning home, I'm joined by Jillian and Colton Jones today of Wild Idea Buffalo, and they're doing just that, restoring the great plains by raising the very animals that once shaped them. The buffalo. These are not just meat animals. They're ecosystem engineers. Sacred to the land and to the people who lived in relationship with them long, long, long before fences and feedlots. Today we are gonna explore why bringing back native ruminants might be one of the most effective ways to heal a broken prairie, and how a family in South Dakota is doing just that one herd at a time. Could you guys, first of all, introduce yourselves so that listeners know who you are and what you do? You bet.
Colton:Yeah. Colton Jones married, Jillian Jones here. We're second generation land stewards, Buffalo ranchers and, we're second generation small business owner operators, with wild idea Buffalo Company.
Jillian:Yeah, Jillian Jones and, uh, everything that he said, uh, land stewards, ranchers, business owners, we're parents of two growing energetic boys, which has been really fun and great. Um, and yeah, that's, yeah, that's us. Of course.
Hannah:Very cool. So you're second generation. Can you share how wild Idea Buffalo got started? What was the original vision and how has it evolved to where you guys are today?
Jillian:So Wild Idea got started. It was actually, um, my dad, Dan O'Brien, um, started Wild Idea, she's almost 30 years ago now, and. He had come over, he's from originally from Ohio, and as a young boy had traveled across the Great Plains and fell in love with the prairie and found himself, back, uh, on the Prairie, you know, as a young adult. Started working for the Paragon Fund and trying to, at that time, Perens were on the endangered species list, and so he. Worked with the program fund trying to, lift them off the endangered species list. And with that, had him going up and down the Rocky Mountain front, um, working on hack sites. And, during that time, you know, he. He looked at the land and the landscape and mm-hmm. Saw it, you know, being converted to monocultures and being, you know, turned upside down. Right. And came back to his little ranch and, at that time he had, worked with, you know, had cattle and sheep and kind of did all this, you know, the things and kind of took a step back and. Looked at, you know, focusing in on a single species, especially on if it's on the endangered species list, is important. But we're really missing the whole connectivity of it all. Right. And so looking at his land, one of the things missing was the keystone species, the bison, the buffalo. Mm-hmm. Um, and that's where that wild idea kind of got started. Um, And I think when he entered that though, he. Really looked to the Native Americans and looked at the buffalo as a, as a wild animal. And, said to himself, you know, he went to slaughterhouses and meat plants and things like that. And I don't know if anyone's ever been in one, but mm-hmm. Kind of horrifying. Right. And he didn't wanna do that to, to the buffalo and. Said if he was going to get into the meat business, he was going to give these animals respect that they deserve and, and dignity and death. And so, um, that kind of, again, wild idea to make sure that all of our animals were harvested, on the prairie. And Colton has really taken that to the next level. yeah.
Hannah:Plenty of people have parents that are farmers and they leave the whole lifestyle behind. Like, how did you two end up there? Have you always been there? Did you leave and come back? Like, what was your individual stories?
Colton:Go ahead. Well, it starts with you because I jumped on your ship, so.
Jillian:Yeah. So as as a little girl was always in love with animals, anything, that moved free, crawl, whatever. And then, as a teenager, really got involved in sports and ended up moving out to, to Dan's ranch. As a freshman and at that time I, I really thought my parents were trying to ruin my life and, keep me away from my friends and all the things Yeah. As most young people do. Yeah. So it was a little bit rebellious, to say the least. made my way up to Wyoming and then over to Montana, was going to school, but just kind of lost, you know, not really sure what I was gonna do. Um, And then ended. Back, at home, in my early twenties and started working for a wild idea full-time actually. And at that time it was the harvest crew of, few guys and then my mom and Dan and myself, and, um, really started to. Take a deeper look at the, the bigger mission of Wild Idea and really connect with that. And then the rest is history. Just haven't left. I've been there for 15 years now. No more than that. I don't know. Yeah. Wow, that's awesome.
Colton:But yeah, I, I came on board, um, obviously met Jillian and then. I got more familiar with Dan and the operations of Wild Idea and the ranch, and I'm originally from southeast Nebraska and, and grew up neck deep in, you know, commercial monoculture, row crop farming. I was an outdoorsman. Grew up, my grandpa taught me the ins and outs of hunting and fishing and, um, ran around with a crowd that was like-minded in that regard as well. Mm-hmm. We, uh, as kids watched a lot of the places where we used to roam around and adventure and hunt, get decimated by the expansion of row crop farming. With the advances in big ag technology, there was even the, the few remnants of drainages that had a few trees residing and them still were pushed over to gain another three bushels of corn or whatever it is, right. And that, you know, that always bothered me, but just growing up around it just felt like it was normal and that's what was happening everywhere. And, uh, actually started college over in western Nebraska. Started out as a ag business major'cause I didn't know what I wanted to do. And, um, ended up transferring to Black Hill State University in Western South Dakota up in Spearfish. And while all this was going on, met Jillian. Met Dan. Um, admired Dan. Still admired Dan to this day, have the utmost respect for him and his outlook on life and, and, and the environment and ecosystems and, and conservation and all that. Just as a nor outdoorsman had always resonated really well with me. And so it was sure, it was easy to become really good friends with Dan. And, uh, ironically he'd become my father-in-law down the road, but Dan made it. Seemed okay and cool in my eyes to think that science was cool and trendy.'cause like he's a falconer, right? And he's a writer and he is just like this, he is this cool dude. And, um, I had always done well in biology and science and just had never exploited it because I was, you know, kind of a jock in school. And that's just not what you did. But Dan gave me a window of opportunity and um, gave me some confidence to switch my major from ag business to biology, which just made a huge difference for me in school and my ability to actually show up to class and pay attention and do well. And, um, so I think that, I think that all that, um, was just kind of pivotal moment in my life, and that's what. Opened my eyes up to what wild idea stands for and uh, just made me want to be a part of it and have a passion for it. And like Jillian will be the first one to tell you. There's a lot of thankless parts of owning a business that's not exactly streamlined and, or maybe even the most efficient, but it, it all boils down to ethical. Um, environment, environmentally responsible business decision making, not always putting profitability at the forefront. And, uh, I think that's why we've been at it for so long and probably will and hope to raise kids that have similar beliefs and priorities.
Hannah:I love that. That's so cool. I am an outdoors woman and I've always thought that what you guys are doing and people who are raising buffalo, like that's the epitome of the outdoorsman food producer. Um, just really cool. So I'm sure that was like the perfect fit for you. That's awesome. Still here.
Jillian:Yeah.
Hannah:Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So you kind of have touched on it, but. Buffalo. It's just so environmentally friendly what you guys are doing. Bison grazing, I believe when done right is the best way to support prairie regeneration. Can you share with listeners, I mean there's, I'm sure there's plenty of people listening who really don't know a whole lot about why that is and, um, just could probably use a whole debriefing about like, why what you guys are doing is so important.
Jillian:I'll piggyback.
Colton:Okay. Well, I just, I think Jillian touched on it earlier, just bison being a keystone species, uh, is, is kind of what it all boils down to, right? Just something that has such a large share of the energy diversion and an ecosystem being how they used to exist and the numbers they used to exist. Just the mass. Of the animal in itself and taking that such a large energy manager of an ecosystem in an environment and removing it and then taking that step away from the ecosystem and all the other components of the ecosystem that rely on that. I think it's just, it is kind of a no brainer to put such a key component back into an operating system that's been removed. If that's what you want. If that's, if your, if your ultimate goal is to put something back together or at least get it to function in a way that evolution has engineered it to function.
Jillian:Right.
Colton:Um, and I, this all goes back to what, you know, Dan was after to begin with. But I think you just, it's just, it's just a no brainer. You know? It's like, it's trying to, you know, drive a race car without an engine. You can't, you're not gonna win the race if you don't have, if you don't have an, an engine in it that's made to be in that car. And this is an ecosystem's no different. And I think that that's why, like you said, when when managed responsibly or correctly, it makes. It makes sense for a native work of war to be on a great plains landscape. Now obviously it's 2025 now, and there's x amount of more humans on this planet than there was when, uh, European settlements started to happen in the Americas. So we, I think our balance is always trying to figure out what level of human intervention do we implement on the property, on the animals, on the soil, whatever it is. Within reason, um, because we're a part of this system now. Humans are a part of this system now, right? Evolution, natural selection, like we're all here, we're all gonna coexist. Um, so like what's the most responsible level of human intervention and then still allowing Buffalo to be Buffalo.
Jillian:Yeah. I think one thing Dan always says is. I think the first step is just believing in evolution, right? And then looking back and, and acknowledging that Earth has been building for billions of years now, right? And mm-hmm. Looking at the buffalo keystone species, I mean, sure there's science and there's research and things, but it, you know, all of those plants evolve together. And so there's stuff that we probably haven't touched on and will never touch on that's happening. With that relationship. Um, and you know what, what we're doing and finding is, like Colton said, there's a level of human intervention, but we do try to operate, you know, as close to what we think nature's intentions, uh Right. Be as possible. And, um, you know, allowing the buffalo to be buffalo and. It's a slower process. Um, but what's coming back? I mean, there are native, uh, plants that are coming back that we haven't seen before. We have bird populations and new bird species that we haven't had in years past. So something happening. Right. And we attribute that to, to the buffalo.
Hannah:Yeah, absolutely. I oftentimes picture.'Cause, you know, I'm very aware of our pollinator crisis and myself as a food producer, watching the bird populations come back here has just been one of the greatest joys of my life. And just have always thought like, what would all of that look like if more people were doing something like what you're doing? How transformative that would be to the land. It's a pretty crazy thought.
Jillian:It is so crazy, right? Yeah. Mm-hmm. I think, I mean, you can go back. I mean, the prairies used to consist of hundreds of different, um, plant species, right? And with that, the insects and the birds and the ruminants and the, you know, if more people did it, you know, I think I was just listening to another podcast and it's like 50% of our agricultural lands are bare. Like, or bear, I mean, we had sun that rises every single day and we're just wasting that energy away. But I, I just, I don't get it.
Hannah:Yeah. You were talking about the just intimate relationship with the buffalo and the land, and of course there's relationships between the plants and the buffalo that you may never know, but I know that you guys. Seeing this every day, what are some examples of the perfect designed relationship between maybe the buffalo and a specific type of plant or the buffalo and birds. I've personally like learned about the ways that, birds use different parts of the buffalo for shelter and I would love to hear some of those examples.
Colton:Yeah, I mean, we find a lot of ground nesting birds. Nests with buffalo fur in them. Like, it's just, it's no, um, coincidence that bison are shedding their code at the same time. Ground nesting birds are building their nest out on the prairie. Like, that's not a coincidence. That's just, that's symbiotic and, and, and evolution, uh, at the park. But we also see other examples too, like. For instance, if we maybe have rested a pasture, maybe it's one we haven't, or it's a section of the Forest Service land, which is a big grazing allotment that, um, it's a shared allotment. So there's cattle that are grazing out there in the warm season and buffalo are out there in, in like the fallen winter months, but. There's parts that I have stumbled across where the buffalo have been across there and they've, they've jerked every single yucca plant out of the ground and just dropped it. Like they just pulled it out of the ground and dropped it.
Jillian:Hmm.
Colton:And, um, you know, there's parts of the, the Sandhills and even, and, and then a lot of parts of the Dakotas too that are, they've becoming overrun with Yucca because. Of how they're being grazed and probably even the species that are being grazed on it being cattle, because I've never known or talked to anybody, and maybe I'm wrong, that has known a cow to a beef cow to pull a pe, a yucca plant the ground. Yeah, probably not. You know? And so I think it's just like those, those little subtle symbiotic nuances that, uh, you know, that have been happening for millennia, but it's, it's a perfect example of why. That why bison have a part on the prairie present day as well.
Jillian:Wow, that's amazing. Yeah, and I think, I mean there's a lots of different things. I mean, they wallow, you know, they create the wallows and they dust bath and stuff, so you'll find just this bare patch of. Of ground and a lot of insects and bees, I mean, they use that either to water, if we get a rain event or to nest, you know, they burrow in to, but it has to be fair ground. You know, and the grazing habits, I just. And how they move together as a herd. You know, we don't, we don't have to do kind of that mob grazing or, because they already do it. They're, they're pretty close and their hooves, you know, are, are, are smaller than cattle and they're kind of turned in. So just how they massage the ground. Mm-hmm. You know, like all little things that, you know, I think add up and, um, impact. The soil, the grass, the bird species. I mean, even, even, we'll, we'll find rodent nest mice or gophers, you know, that have the buffalo, her hair in there, tucked in and they got this little cozy nest. You know, it's just, it's
Hannah:cool. I think it's interesting that you touched on how they naturally move in the herd. I was just thinking today we, uh, are potentially buying our farm property here. We've just been leasing forever. Congratulations.
Jillian:Congratulations. Yeah,
Hannah:thank you. And just kind of envisioning what that could look like and remembering back to my time raising sheep and how I'd have to like force them into these small sections and they hated it. They just wanted roam free. But like knowing that this land. The best thing for it is to be grazed like in one giant section at a time.
Jillian:Yeah.
Hannah:And it's so fascinating that your animals naturally do that. Like that's, and it's, that's what the land needs. And of course the animals that were here naturally would be the ones to do that. So just fascinating.
Jillian:Yeah. Yeah. It's fascinating too. I think that people though are recognizing that and adopting that and trying to mimic it with other species. I, I give credit to that because mm-hmm you are right. The land does, it's used to being disturbed, like, you know, really disturbed. Think of millions of buffalo traveling, you know, like that land had to have been beat up. Mm-hmm. Um, but then there's rest and time to recover but I think there's a lot of cool things that regenerative ranchers and farmers are doing just to try to mimic the buffalo. Um, it's awesome. Yeah.
Hannah:That's so cool. What different ecological changes have you seen over time as the land heals under the bison?
Colton:I think largely like a, just a redi diversification in general. Just the overall diversity that exists in the plants and animals comparatively to 15 years ago is exponential. Wow. I mean, in 15 years is a long time for some people, but, and a lot of it you just have to hold out in blind faith for a little while until the right up, you know, the right events start to happen and, um. These changes don't happen overnight, but once you start to see'em, they're, they're pretty encouraging. But I would say the reverification and just the resilience of the landscape now compared to 15 years ago is, is pretty dramatic as well. So like right now we're already, I feel like we've probably been in like a four or five year drought right now. And, um, to look at our place and in comparison to some of, of the neighboring properties. After a hot spell or a long, long stretch of heat wave that moves through. And then just what we've been able or had to have to do with our stocking density with the herd is, um, that's what I've been blown away by is just how, how resilient the pastures are starting to become. Even on on unfortunate years.
Jillian:Yeah, I, I would echo that it was out for run today and there's a pasture that we're resting right now and I was blown away with the side os grandma and blue grandma and green needle, like all these native species that we haven't really seen in large amounts just across the ranch. Um, but in that particular pasture that we have, I mean, I think it's. That's the biggest one. And the birds too. Our bird pocket. Yeah.
Colton:Just wildlife. Yeah, just wild. Just wildlife abundance in general has, right. Is noticeably different than it was a decade ago.
Hannah:Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Like you saying that you guys, there's just now a species that wasn't there prior is crazy. Your point about patience, it's ever changing. Every year, the more and more that you guys are there and doing this. Yeah, really powerful. What does a day in the life look like for you guys? Oh,
Jillian:crazy. Um, we start our day pretty early. Um, it's nice that it's summertime now. Uh, our kids go to school in town, um, but start the day pretty early, usually on the computer, you know, doing the emails and, uh. Doing some operational and logistical stuff with for a wild idea, and that really occupies a lot of our time, I think speaking for, for you. But I think you would agree that if, if Cole and I could spend more time on the ranch and on the land and with the buffalo that's where we wanna be. And, um, you know, but wild idea, running, running that company, occupies a lot of time and especially the field harvest is, is important and therefore requires quite a bit of time. But, so a lot of computer time. And then again, we have two boys. So, uh, these guys snuck away from fishing this morning for a couple hours, um, and awesome. And it's moving, hurt, moving herd, your fixing fence or water tanks, um, fielding calls, finding new customers, you know? Right. Always something. Yeah.
Colton:Yes. It's, it's not monotonous, but it's always something different.
Hannah:Yeah. Mm-hmm. You touched on the field harvest, so I'd love to chat about that. Just I love your emphasis on honoring the animal and doing that whole animal butchery. What does that process look like now? I've kind of watched it evolve over time. Can you share a little bit more about it and why it's super unique and important in our food system today?
Colton:Yeah. I think it's, it's kind of, I think the way that we do it out in the pasture is symbolic for the industry and kind of a crossroad that. The industry holds right now, whether it's beef or buffalo or pigs or anything. And it's, there's, there's a fork in the road that one direction will take you down, you know, behind closed doors, so to speak. And it's riddled with taboo and, um, corruption and, uh, a lot of the practice jeopardized food safety. It's all derived from kind of a capitalism lens where we want to do, we wanna make as much as we possibly can so that we can sell it for as cheap as we possibly can, but there's no prioritization and, and animal dignity and, and consumer health and animal health and food safety. But it, but it caters to this culture that we've developed in our country and in other co countries too, of that we deserve more for less. Right? So there's that fork in the road and then where Wild idea becomes, I think, more symbolic of what is probably right and more closely resembles the native culture that was here before we were. Is taking only what you need, doing it in a respectful manner. And if you can accomplish those two line items, then that will be reciprocated back to you and your family because of what you're putting into your body. And I think it, just take it a step further, I think that the, the people that you surround yourself in around and that process just creates this kind of synergetic. Culture of field harvest to where people aren't out there and they're not out there for just an eight to five, nine to five job and collecting a paycheck. They're out there for the camaraderie. They're out there because they appreciate the animal. They appreciate the animal's part and the ecosystem. Yeah. What that animal's providing them for a livelihood and even because of the mobile. Nature of the Harvest unit. We, we don't just harvest animals from our ranch. Our ranch only makes up 25% of what our annual demand through wild idea demands. And so the other 75% we get to go to different places across the Midwest and the Great Plains we get to go to. We get to go to the Sand Sandhills, you know, we get to go to. Central South Dakota and we get to meet these new people. And so that like kind of synergistic culture doesn't just stay contained to the wild idea harvest crew. We get to go experience that with other land stewards and, and managers and, and share our appreciation, uh, for, for conservation and, and for animal and animal welfare and mm-hmm. So I think it's like there's these two completely different worlds, right? Yes. Okay. And I, I, I feel like whether it's, whether it's field harvesting, you know, pigs or sheep or cows or buffalo, um, I think that the, the qualities that come with field harvest are much more gratifying and fulfilling than, you know, getting, getting some sheep garbage meat that's, that you're gonna end up paying for in the hospital or at the pharmacy, you know, later on down the road.
Hannah:Yeah, it's uh, definitely a stark contrast to like, there's just so much. In agricultural news about the big four, the meat packers right now, and I've just read so many studies about the mental health crisis and people who work in processing plants and, um, you guys have inspired me on my own farm. We have community processing days every Christmas and it's the most amazing thing, especially'cause where we live, so it's like totally life changing for people too. Have that first experience of like truly appreciating where their food comes from. But it is like, it is very, very different. And for many people that's super hard to wrap their minds around because we do culturally have that really, really serious disconnection. It's almost like, I'm sure you guys have heard this from people, but. I'll oftentimes get messages like, how could you do such a thing? You know how I could never raise animals for meat? Things like that. Almost like we're lesser than or something, but it's like so clear to me that they are really, really missing. Like truly it's. I would much rather every single day have this intimate experience than to blindly just pick off a styrofoam, plastic wrapped, soggy piece of meat off the shelf. You know,
Jillian:100%. You're absolutely right. There's the. There's no, there's no connection. There's no reciprocity, there's no giving thanks. There's no exchange, there's, it's nothing. It's, we're not, we're no longer connected to the land through animals, and it's just, yeah, it's,
Colton:well, and it's easier to be reckless if you don't pay those emotional taxes. Like yeah, they might be uncomfortable, but they're supposed to be uncomfortable. Right. Yeah.
Jillian:Shouldn't be it. Yeah. Yeah.
Colton:I've been around and watched thousands of buffalo have their life end out in the pastures. They were born and raised. And I, it, it still gives me solace that. We are providing that for'em and not that they're not going down the other avenue. And so that's why I don't think it's taken a toll on me over the years to, to your point of the mental health crisis in the meat industry or the butchery industry. Um, and so like that to me is just evolution. Taking its course of like, you haven't lost your mind and you're still doing it. There's some, there's some purpose behind it.
Jillian:Mm-hmm. Yeah. And
Colton:that we all have like that primal connection in our genetics. It's just what happens to us when we lose it, you know, what happens if we lose that as a human race? What does that do? What does that do to us? You know?
Jillian:Mm-hmm.
Hannah:Yeah. All set. Um, what is a moment out on the prairie with the buffalo that you'll never forget?
Colton:Oh,
Jillian:yeah.
Colton:They're, they're a creature that, and I tell everybody this, and I, I truly mean it as I, the, the. What they wake up in you emotionally in their presence. I don't, it, it doesn't matter if it's the first time or the 5000th time, they kind of awake that inner emotion. And so I don't, it's, I don't think I could pick out one instance. I, I really couldn't.
Jillian:No, and it's something I don't think you can really put into words. It's, it's a feeling, you know, more than anything. Like you, like KOMO was saying. It's, I mean, there's never a bad experience. It's just, you know, we, we have some that we kind of know pretty well and can pick out. Um, and, but I don't know whether it's the RU or we were just moving the buffalo the other day and three. Like two year olds just like took off, like they were just sprinting and they went 200 yards up because we were moving and everybody was so excited. Like they have emotions, you know, like everyone's kicking and jumping, and these guys took off and then they circled back to the herd. You know, everybody is a family and they, they don't go far from each other and, mm-hmm. Just, yeah. It's an, it's a new experience every single time you're out there.
Colton:They're, it sounds cliche, but they're, yeah. They have, they have spirit and they have soul. Like it's
Hannah:Yes,
Colton:a hundred percent.
Hannah:Totally. I am so glad that you guys have said that.'cause I have always felt that way. I grew up like 10 minutes from a bison ranch in Montana and have always thought there's just something about it that you can't put into words. And, I don't know if that's because like. There's just something really unique about them and this land that's you just have that sense, like this is so right. I don't know what it is, but yeah, it's just really, really incredible. It's my fairytale in another life dream that I would get to spend just and be intimately involved in a bison operation at some point in my life. I definitely don't think I could ever do that here cause we're so close to cities and people just think that it's so dangerous and they're really afraid of these giant animals. Um, like I get enough trouble for my pigs and sheep and chickens and so, but I would love to know like, are they really as hard to raise as people think? I listen to a lot of bison podcasts and in many ways a lot of producers kind of say that it's. Some things are a lot more natural than like animals, like cattle because they belong here.
Jillian:Yeah, I mean, you nailed it. They, again, they belong here. They evolved here, so it's, it's pretty much hands off. I mean, Colton does a lot of the work, but I think we found that as long as they have what they need, you know, space. Good, good forage water. They're, they're pretty content and easy to handle and they respect, you know, our fences that we have majority of the time. Um, uh, and we do, when, you know, we work'em or move'em or anything, it's really slow, you know, nobody's ever in a hurry. Take our time. Um, you know, it's not a big yee-haw, you know, or Ram Jam, four wheelers and things like that. It's, it's really low key. We're not pulling calves or anything crazy like that.
Colton:I, I I think it's all kind of circumstantial, like it's nothing. Stuff doesn't go right. It's not like the buffalo being malicious and wild and trying to be destructive. It's just like the conflict between the level of human intervention and the buffalo being buffalo. And so, mm-hmm. It's, it's never the animal's fault, but they definitely compose challenges like the forest service, at least that they run on. You know, they're, they're buffalo, they're made in Rome, so they might, a lot of that, a lot of the pasture out there is supposed to be natural barrier. Uh. Mostly to beef cows, but buffalo, they're a little more trained, the beef cow is. So if they find a way out through one of those natural barriers, then it can be. You might have a few weeks of a challenge ahead of you going and again, going and trailing them back home. You know, we might have to trail'em four or five, six miles sometimes and that's in the winter time, so it's cold.
Jillian:Wow.
Colton:You gotta, then you gotta coordinate another time to go out there and construct some sort of fence or something in the cold. And it's pretty remote areas that you can't just drive up an a TV up to. You might have to, you know, there's coup been a couple times. Jillian and I have had to hike fencing material into some pretty. Um, that's crazy Impossible areas in the winter time to, to get something put up to keep'em on the forest service lease. But it's nothing, you know, they're not just like, we're just gonna tear the fence out every day, all day because we're buffalo. Mm-hmm. And they don't do that. It's all inadvertent. It's just buffalo being Buffalo. Buffalo,
Hannah:yeah. That is so like, what? That's so crazy. But really cool. Wow. Um, speaking of the Forest Service leases, I think that's pretty amazing. Also, I have been in conversation with some people who really want to put a stop to livestock grazing on any kind of public lands, just because like there are a lot of people who haven't been super great stewards of that land and have contributed to a ton of water waterway issues and ecosystem degradation and, um. It's cool to hear that you guys are doing it because I know that nature's at the forefront of your mission and what you're doing and, just love to have those examples to point back to like, there are incredible land stewards utilizing this land to feed people and actually bring nourishment to that piece of land. So really cool.
Colton:Yeah, I think it's, you know, with Buffalo it's just there. It's like we've been talking about their place in an ecosystem that they've existed in for so long. But it also kinda boils down to, at a federal level too, and relationships between private and federal entities. And, um, at the end of the day, it's whatever federal agency is, or state agency. Has rule over that particular piece of public land because they're the ones that should be implementing the grazing practices on it. And if they have a lease that's not executing, or not following their, or not doing their part on the, on their grazing permit, then it should be the federal entity that steps up and does something about it. And that's, I think that's been an ongoing thing for decades of, of private disagreements with federal entities. And we are particularly. Just as an example, we get along fine with the Forest Service. Like we're, we're in a good standing relationship and, um, I, I don't, I think that that can work all across the board just as long as there's a level of understanding of what responsible land stewardship ship is and what, and what it can look like. And I know that's all kind of circumstantial depending on people's operations, but at the end of the day, it's. It's still a resource that you're leaning on to provide livelihood for yourself. So you should, you have a due diligence to do and what, what's in its best interest both parties do on the federal and private end at the end of the day.
Hannah:Mm-hmm. Yeah, for sure. So, recognizing that, obviously not everyone can do what you guys do, what are your beliefs about regenerative agriculture or our food system in general?
Jillian:I think, well, I mean, right now if you look at our food system, I think it's extremely fragile, right? And if it, and thank goodness that regenerative agriculture is taking hold, and there has been this big movement, I think in this growth that has happened over the last several years, which has been amazing because. These are the folks that, I mean, are gonna be feeding us, uh, when hits a fan.'cause I mean, lack of a better term, I don't, um, it's so fragile. We had a logistics, uh, working with Wild Idea, for example, they got hacked, one of the big distributors, and it affected our little co-op in Western South Dakota. They were out of food for like two weeks. The shelves were bare, you know, like. We're one. I mean, just any part of the system is so fragile distribution, the farming, like all of it, and as you know, right? Like you're in it and you get it. It's the future. I mean, it has to be, it's, we have limited resources and if we don't start recycling and regenerating the land, like, forget it. Mm-hmm.
Colton:Yeah. And I think just like it's, it is kind of ironic how the reverification of a landscape or an ecosystem is important and usually reflex the resilience. Ability to, ability to be resilient in a, in a landscape or a system, but simultaneously where that that agriculture process has a market value and the public place, it's ironic that it should, it should be as equally as diversified in the marketplace as it should in the ecosystem because of. What it means to be a healthy market and,
Jillian:and resilient. And resilient,
Colton:right. To your point of how fragile food system is, so like how commercialized and monopolized segments of the, of ag of the, of the food industry have become, have crippled us and, and not made us resilient. Resilient as Americans. Mm-hmm. Not made us resilient as Americans in our, in our health and wellbeing. And so I think what doesn't get talked about as much in regenerative agriculture is, is the reverification that is an opportunity sitting there in the form of reverification in marketplace as well. And interesting, and Dan's always said it too, Dan's Dan has said it from day one. He goes, if there's. If we get ran outta business because there's 10,000 mobile slaughter units rolling across the Great Plains, harvesting buffalo, or whatever it is. He said that I would chalk that up as a win. Like we've, we've accomplished what we, what we've wanted to accomplish by changing, changing the rubric and changing the industry.
Jillian:Mm-hmm.
Colton:I would echo that to him now, now that I've been in it long enough now, like we don't, we don't need to drive Maseratis around, you know, we want. We want our kids to experience a wild world still, or intact ecosystems with lots of diversity. Mm-hmm. And have them have, you know, uh, live in a country that has a strong food system and is, is contributing to the wellbeing of people and not degrading the wellbeing of people and making'em sick. Sick and, you know, contributing to the trillion dollar big pharma. Right. Um, industry instead, you know, we have agriculture provides, provides us the power to take things into our own hands. You know, politics set aside. I mean, granted, I know it's not that simple. There's always gonna be bureaucracy involved, but, land stewards, ranchers, farmers really do behold the power.
Hannah:Mm-hmm. It's funny that you talked about Maseratis. Like I really think the life that you guys are living is like the richest form of life. And definitely, you know, we're one of the wealthiest countries in the world, yet our food system would collapse. And uh, for example, there were the hurricanes in the Carolinas last year and one of the major in interstates shut down our grocery stores. Didn't even look recognizable there for a while.
Jillian:Yeah.
Hannah:Like, and all it takes is just one little thing. How, like, how rich are we really as a nation? If we, it takes a storm to have no food. You know, that's just, it's the questions people need to be asking.
Jillian:Exactly. And I think, and, and just to circle back to this,'cause you brought it up, is that, that disconnect, the fact that the entire nation or world is not up in arms because of how sick we are. And that disconnect from our, that's our food, right? Food should be medicine. Mm-hmm. It shouldn't be making us sick, we shouldn't have chronic diseases and obesity and diabetes and all the, you know, things like, it's, it's wild.
Hannah:Yeah. I love it. Love all of your insights for sure. Um, I think people are gonna really learn from this. I know that this is your life and you guys live this and breathe this and think this every day, but for a lot of people, this stuff is new. And I know when I first was exposed to just the power of Buffalo and what they can do in an ecosystem, it totally rewired my brain. So I'm excited to hear what people think about it. Could you guys just share like what would success look like for Wild Idea in 10 years, say 10 years?
Colton:Well, I, I mean, I hope it just continues to be a beacon. Like I hope we can continue to be a beacon. Of hope and education and, um, just proof that this can work. Like, like I said, we're not driving Maseratis, but our bills are being paid to some level and we sleep at night because we know we're not contributing to the problem and we hope that we're actually hoping it via regeneration. Um, but I, I just hope 10 years from now wild idea has an even larger part. And legacy of changing a very impactful industry like the ag industry and having wild idea, having left its mark and being, being a part of that and not, and it's not really so much from, from the stance of recognition, but you know, this is what we've put our lives into to make a difference for the future. So it's really, it's kind of. For the future. And so it's for our kids and it's for their friends and their peers. So I, I hope that, uh, we haven't digressed. I hope we're still in business and that, uh, our influence has, has only excelled, um, 10 years from now.
Jillian:Yeah, I would agree. I think yeah, wild Idea is still, still standing and is successful and has, become a model that then Colton and I, that we can go and, and work with other ranchers and farmers and help them stand something up, based on, wild ideas, operation and mission. Um, and, and be that change.
Hannah:Yeah. That's beautiful. Well, thank you guys so much for joining me on the podcast today. Is there anything else that you would like to share with listeners while you have their ear?
Colton:Um, be inquisitive. Be inquisitive about your food. Ask questions. You, that's you're right. As to ask questions and demand transparency and, um, yeah.
Jillian:And. I think that regenerative movement is grown so much. So for listeners out there, there is definitely a local farmer rancher in your area that is working with the land, working with nature, um, and trying to produce nutrient dense food. Um, they're, they're right there. They're your neighbor. Go find them.
Hannah:Yeah. Beautiful. Well, that was absolutely amazing. Thank you again to Jillian and Colton for coming on the podcast. I think for the rest of today, I'm just gonna be picturing beautiful, thriving prairies in my mind. Just lush grasses and healthy ecosystems. And in the Midwest where so, so much of the acreage has just turned into monocrop systems that are not conducive to natural life. Hearing their story is super inspiring, and if this podcast episode just inspires one person to maybe do something like this, that would be the most life-giving thing for me. Thank you guys again for listening to the end like you do every week. It is the highlight of my week. Hearing what you guys think about the episodes and then watching the listener number tick up, like new listeners. Every single week is so, so exciting. We have more incredible guests coming every Tuesday this month, so please be sure to keep tuning in. In the podcast description, there is a link to wild idea to their site. If you wanna check it out on my social media, I'm gonna be tagging them and sharing some pictures and stuff about them, and. In the description of this podcast, there's also a link to where you can text me and you can directly share what you thought about this episode. Please feel free to leave a review. That would also make my week, and I would love to shout someone out on the podcast who does leave a review and just say Thank you.
Before I go, I also wanted to announce a special bonus episode this Thursday, so in two days, that is sponsored by Farmhand, which is an email marketing system specifically for farmers. The episode isn't going to look exactly like what Tuesdays look like, but it's still very on theme with our food system and farming. So I will see you on Thursday.