Celebrating Environmental Stewardship: Bar 7 Ranch

Updated: Oct 18, 2022

The Canadian Cattle Association (CCA) is pleased to feature the provincial stewardship award recipients nominated for 2022 The Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA). The recipient of the CCA’s national award will be announced during the Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Penticton, British Columbia, August 16-18, 2022. For 26 years, recipients have shared their stories, insights, beliefs, and values, so Canadians can get a glimpse into the care and commitment that is taken to raise cattle, while protecting and enhancing the environment. In this issue, we feature the British Columbia Cattlemen’s Association’s 2022 Ranch Sustainability Award recipient, Bar 7 Ranch.

Fossen Bar 7 Ranch named B.C. nominee for TESA

By Lee Hart

For the Fossen family of south central British Columbia (B.C.), applying proper stewardship to forage and water management on their private land as well crown range pastures not only benefits the environment, but ultimately makes good business sense for their ranching operation.

As the second and third generation on the Bar 7 Ranch near Rock Creek in B.C.'s Kootenay Boundary Region, Doug and Erika Fossen, along with daughters Adele, Jade and Reine, have for the past 25 years been applying their best management practices to optimize forage production on deeded, rented and leased land. That management has helped to provide stability to the ranching operation through market and weather ups and downs over the years.

"We have adopted a number of practices which have benefited the sustainability of our ranching operation," says Doug Fossen. "Our grazing management for example is geared to avoid overgrazing. If pastures are overgrazed, they won't be as productive. And if you don't have the forage production then the calves won't have the same rate of gain, which means there will be fewer pounds of beef to sell in the fall. It all ties in together.

"Proper management of our forage resource has kept us viable over the past 20 years through BSE as well as dry growing seasons. It has made it possible for us to keep making improvements and gradually expand the operation."

Award Recipients

Those management practices also earned the Fossen Family recognition as the recipients of the 2022 Ranch Sustainability Award presented by the B.C. Cattlemen's Association and to be named the B.C. nominees for The Environmental Stewardship Award (TESA) presented by the Canadian Cattle Association.

The Fossen Bar 7 Ranch west of Rock Creek and about 42 km east of Osoyoos was started by Doug's parents, Ed and Louise Fossen in 1976. Doug and Erika met during their studies of Agricultural Business at Olds College in Alberta and after graduation in 1998 they returned to the Fossen farm in B.C. and later began the transition of the ranch business from his parents to the next generation. Ed and Louise Fossen, continue to live on the ranch and are still involved, although mostly retired.

Today, the Bar 7 Ranch includes about 2,300 acres of deeded land, which supports a 350 head commercial cow-calf herd along with 80 replacement heifers, 18 bulls and backgrounds about 100 calves each winter.

Along with their private land, they also rent some private pasture, and hold grazing leases on about 19,000 acres of Crown Land in the Rock Creek and Midway area. The private land includes about 600 acres of timbered, rough native grazing land along with about 150 acres of old hay fields that get grazed. In addition, they have about 250 acres of irrigated land, leaving roughly 1,500 acres of native grassland. The Fossens have been an audited VBP+ operation since 2019 and currently have an active Environmental Farm Plan.

The production cycle begins with calving that starts in mid-February on a 15-acre calving ground. "Probably mid-February here is a bit like March in other parts of Alberta and the prairies," says Fossen. "There is still a bit of winter, but the weather is improving." They start calving fairly early giving calves time to get some growth before the herd moves out to first spring pastures in early May.

By March 1, ground conditions are drying up so as cows calve the new pairs are moved to a fresh area soon after they calve. And by early April, the cattle are moved into pastures of stockpiled forage from the previous year. They still receive some supplemental feed.

Most years, between May 5 and 10, the spring range is ready for turnout. About 120 pairs are hauled 20 kilometres west to a 10,000 acre Crown range unit near Midway where they will spend the spring and summer grazing native forages. That range is divided into five pastures.

By May 20, another 130 pairs will be turned out onto the 9,000 acre Johnson Creek range unit, which is near the ranch headquarters. And another 1,400 acres of deeded and rented pasture is used by young stock and first-calf heifers.

Grazing Management

Over the years, the Fossens have developed a rotational grazing system. "It is not a super intensive system, but over all our grazing land, including private and crown land, the cattle move through about 35 pastures during the grazing season," says Fossen. "Our plan is to use each pasture only once, giving the grasses plenty of time to recover. Depending on the year and growing conditions, we may graze some a second time, but ideally it is only once."

That approach also applies to managing the creek side riparian areas on the ranch. In some areas they have off-site watering systems set up which encourages cattle to drink from a trough rather than the creek while other riparian areas are used for grazing late in the season after the ground is frozen. "In most cases, cattle are in pastures with riparian areas only once during the grazing season for a short period before they move on," says Fossen.

The summer grazing season usually ends in late September with cow-calf pairs brought home and placed on alfalfa hay field regrowth. Calves are sold through on-line sale and remain on the farm until weaning and delivery to buyers in late October. About 220 steer and heifer calves are sold to feedlots, while another 110 head remain on the farm. Between 50 and 80 heifers will be kept as replacement, while the rest are backgrounded over winter to be sold as grassers the following spring.

After calves are weaned, the cows graze a combination of hay field aftermath and stockpiled forage until winter settles in usually by December 10 to 15. The winter feeding ration which is a combination of corn silage and hay, is fed on pastures to better distribute manure and urine back onto the land.

The ranch has about 200 acres of irrigated cropland, watered by five small pivot irrigation systems as well as some hand-move irrigation pipe. Corn for silage, although some of the crop may be used for grazing, along with alfalfa for hay are all produced under irrigation.

An overall philosophy of the ranch is to properly manage the forage resources to not only benefit beef production but also to benefit wildlife habitat. There is an extensive weed management program on the ranch to control invasive weed species. Fossen is a licensed applicator and somewhat of an expert on invasive plant management. The family is constantly controlling weeds such as Spotted Knapweed and Leafy Spurge on their operation through spraying and rotational grazing practices.

The 600 acre timbered area of the ranch is carefully managed. Selective logging practices opens up areas to improved forage growth. Properly managed livestock grazing makes use of the grass and also helps to clear some of the undergrowth and mitigate wildfire hazards in and around their ranch. Being able to utilize these areas for grazing helps lessen the pressure on their fragile natural grasslands.

The Bar 7 Ranch is home to diverse wildlife such as white tail and mule deer, elk, moose, bobcat, cougar, coyote, black and brown bears, badgers, marmots, mountain western bluebird, northern pygmy owl, tiger salamander, Lewis’s woodpecker, fox, bald eagles, and wolves.

While there is a challenge with deer and elk feeding in hay fields during the summer months, the Fossens mitigate impacts in the winter by feeding their cows silage that wildlife ungulates don't typically enjoy. "I haven't been a fan of exclusion fencing to keep the elk out," he says. "We do take advantage of wildlife damage compensation programs, and otherwise we just have to manage our forage resources knowing that wildlife is a factor."

The Fossens believe they have a responsibility to the wildlife in their area and do their best to ranch in a way that enhances healthy habitat for them, while also caring for their beef herd.

Over the years, the ranch has partnered with both Ducks Unlimited and the B.C. Ministry of Forests. Under their partnership with Ducks Unlimited, they were able to install an off-stream water trough, and were able to install five more water troughs on range with the Ministry of Forests.

"Looking ahead our goal is to continue to improve forage production on the ranch," he says. "We will be looking at ways to improve efficiency perhaps through a more intensive grazing system. Our motto is farming for big production on a small acreage using tools such as zero till, proper crop rotation and diversity and properly managed fertility. We're looking to lower equipment costs, reduce water use while having more pasture for the cattle."

Learn more about TESA

In celebration of TESA’s 25th anniversary in 2021, CCA checked in with some of the outstanding farmers and ranchers from across the country who have been recognized as past recipients. Learn more about their stories in the short video below.