Arizona ranch families pushed out as corporations cash in | Arizona's Family Investigates

Investigative reporters Amy Cutler and Morgan Loew discuss their months-long investigation into the disappearance of small, family-owned cattle ranches in Arizona, driven by drought, market pressures, and rising land costs as corporations and billionaires consolidate ranching operations. The episode examines how federal grazing leases on BLM and Forest Service land are essential for Arizona ranchers like fifth-generation rancher Ben Mengus, while environmental advocates such as the Center for Biological Diversity argue cattle are damaging sensitive riparian ecosystems, including rare cottonwood-willow forests. A joint investigation with ProPublica and High Country News found federal grazing fees are far below market rates, benefiting large entities and mining companies, as the Trump administration pushes to open more public land for grazing and other commercial uses. USDA data cited shows over 1,000 Arizona cattle ranches have disappeared in the past decade.
The Investigation: https://azfamily.tv/41iK3tO

00:00 Ranches Under Threat
00:43 Reporter’s Ranch Roots
01:17 Why Ranching Is Struggling
02:37 Inside the Mangus Ranch
04:26 Environmentalists vs Cattle
05:55 Trump Pushes More Grazing
06:42 Billionaires on Cheap Leases
09:27 Public Lands Explained
12:06 Ecosystem Damage and Tradeoffs
16:28 No Data and Weak Oversight
20:14 Debt Claim Doesn’t Add Up
25:45 Beef Prices and What’s Next
28:38 Final Thoughts and Signoff
#farming #cattle #livestock #podcast #investigativejournalism

Видео Arizona ranch families pushed out as corporations cash in | Arizona's Family Investigates канала Arizona’s Family (3TV / CBS 5)