CALDWELL, Idaho — Nothing says Idaho like a good old working cattle ranch.
We met Idaho Cattle Association President Jerry Wroten at the Shaw Cattle Company in Caldwell.
“This is a unique operation, this is one of the largest seed stock operations in the nation," Wroten said. "They sell four to five hundred bulls every February and have been very prominent in the Idaho cattle industry.”
The Shaw Cattle Company has been at their Canyon County ranch since 1959, and Tom Shaw was a pioneer in many aspects of the cattle industry. Wroten is proud of all its members but says this ranch stands out for two big reasons: “The beauty of this operation is two great breeds, Hereford and the Angus.”
The purpose of the Idaho Cattle Association is to protect, promote, and preserve Idaho’s cattle industry. Wroten believes the future of the industry looks bright.
“We’ve become more effective at producing more beef per cow and in that regard it’s better for the environmental impact and it gets more productive protein to our Idaho consumer,” Wroten explained.
Wroten has good advice for anyone thinking about getting in the business of cows. “Go work on these operations to see what’s going on, build some cash flow, build up savings, talk to farm service agencies, get a loan to buy some parcels of land, and start growing.”
So what kind of steak does the President of the Idaho Cattle Association prefer? Here's what he told me. “As of late I’ve been doing a ribeye, I do about medium rare, Double R brand and if we’ve had a good year, I get a Tomahawk. I’ll try that because they're big cuts. They are a little more expensive, but you'll end up taking home plenty of leftovers."
