VanWinkle Ranch Vows to Rebuild and Stay Put After Wildfire

By Jace DiCola | The Daily Sentinel

Less than two weeks ago, Colorado Politics reported that the VanWinkle family, known for their local cattle ranch and statewide agricultural advocacy, was considering selling their operation.

VanWinkle Ranch co-owner Janie Van-Winkle told The Daily Sentinel this week that a full exit from the industry was never a consideration.

Rather, the family was considering a move to more “ag-friendly” states, like Kansas or Nebraska.

Then, the Turner Gulch Fire sparked. Just a few days after, it spread onto nearly half of the VanWinkle’s land leased through the U.S. Forest Service — a 39,000-acre parcel the family has cared for since Van-Winkle’s great-grandfather.“ The fire has made us realize that we need to be here, and we need to be a part of putting this all back together,” VanWinkle said.

“We know the landscape is going to look different when we come out the other side, and we’re going to be here to take care of that landscape and care for these cattle on the other side for a long time,” she added.

The fire hasn’t changed VanWinkle’s concerns about what she calls the state’s increasingly “unwelcoming” atmosphere for the industry. However, it has motivated her to speak on their concerns and, hopefully, bridge the gap between Colorado politicians and the state’s $47-billion industry.

‘DEATH BY A THOUSAND CUTS’

According to VanWinkle, the past years have been marked by a rising number of anti-agriculture actions that are individually insignificant, but in the big picture, demonstrate a refusal to support or collaborate with rural livestock producers.

“The atmosphere is such that anti-meat activists are emboldened because of the governor’s position on many of these issues,” VanWinkle said of Gov. Jared Polis. “Really, any one of these issues are small, but it’s death by a thousand cuts. It’s just creating an environment that is clearly not supportive of production agriculture.”

According to Colorado Farm Bureau President Carlyle Currier, the state’s approach to agriculture has indeed shifted: through increased, uninformed regulations, controversial commission board appointments and a general anti-meat attitude. Both of the Mesa County producers added that the state’s handling of wolf reintroduction is another testament to the lack of consideration for agricultural input.

VanWinkle said she accepts that voters were the ones who made the decision. Her concern is that the collaborative plan between wolf advocates and ranchers, approved by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission, was disregarded. Specifically, she said there was an agreement not to introduce any wolves with a history of depredation; yet, one of the Copper Creek Pack wolves came from a pack with a history of depredation.

A CPW statement said enough time had passed (two months) without depredation, so it didn’t meet the plan’s exclusion criteria of “chronic” depredation.

The pack was relocated within a year of release after repeatedly killing livestock.

When asked about the disconnect, Colorado Department of Agriculture Commission Member Colleen Peppler said that her department and CPW have been consistently transparent and collaborative with producers in mitigating wolf depredation.

“I think there are misconstrued rumors out there, and there definitely wasn’t a disconnect,” Peppler said. “(CDA) has provided support for producers and helped them implement things like range riders and screens.”

POLARIZED PERSPECTIVES ON POLIS

Many of the governor’s appointees to some commissions and boards with a direct agricultural tie have also drawn criticism for lacking knowledge of or a connection to the industry. Currier said it seems like none of the recommendations from his organization and others in the industry are “ever considered.”

When asked to comment, a spokesperson for the governor’s office said rural representation has been a critical factor in his appointments. They added that 23% of Polis’ board and commission appointments have been rural Coloradans, despite the demographic accounting for 18% of the state’s population.

Aside from actual policy, many in the ranching industry have yet to forget his 2021 proclamation that March 20 would be “MeatOut Day,” encouraging residents to avoid meat consumption for the day.

“The MeatOut deal was certainly a real negative from the governor’s standpoint,” Currier said. “He’s shown that he isn’t necessarily a great friend of animal agriculture.”

The governor’s office spokesperson said that, at the time, Polis renewed any proclamations issued by previous governors when requested. According to them, a nearly identical proclamation was made by then-Gov. John Hickenlooper in 2011.

They added that proclamations do not hold the weight of the law, unlike many of Polis’ past efforts to support agriculture, such as providing agrivoltaic (solar sharing) tax rate reductions, conservation easement tax credits and agricultural stewardship tax credits.

“He (Polis) has not encountered any ‘anti-meat attitude’ during his time as governor and would be happy to invite anyone to try his roast brisket,” the spokesperson said.

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