
Who Owns the Ranch? Ed Ashurst on Arizona Cattle, Vanishing Grazing Land, and Beef Imports
Arizona ranch manager Ed Ashurst joins Trent Loos from Cochise County, where he runs a 1,000-cow operation and insists black Angus cattle can profit in desert heat. Ed explains how drought insurance drives up ranch prices and squeezes out small operators, while Trent reveals 88% of farmland lost since 2000 was grazing land. They tackle hobby ranchers, high-fence hunting, wild horses and burros, government subsidies, and the shrinking cow herd. Ed criticizes the NCBA, weighs in on Trump’s beef import policy and falling cattle prices, and shares how the 2010 murder of rancher Rob Krentz sparked his 17 books.






