Environmental Sustainability  Environmental stewardship is one of the principles underlying everything we do at Niman Ranch, to produce the finest tasting meats.The value of sustainable farming can be understood by examining the alternative: factory farming. Factory-style hog farms house thousands of animals in crowded confinement buildings. Farm managers typically store liquefied waste in huge pits called waste lagoons that can be one story deep and acres wide. Even under the best circumstances, these lagoons are enormous sources of pollution--including antibiotics, bacteria, and nitrogen--that leaches to groundwater, contaminates air, and can spill and run off to surface waters. Niman Ranch farmers and ranchers raise far fewer animals than industrial-style operations; therefore their operations’ impact on the environment is lessened. Farmers and ranchers are encouraged to use manure from their animals as a beneficial by-product, fertilizing their fields or those of their neighbors. Our ranchers raise sheep and cattle in harmony with the grass seasons, and their grazing is a vital part of protecting grasslands and keeping open space in this country. By raising animals in modest numbers and using traditional farming methods, Niman Ranch farmers and ranchers preserve the integrity of the land and waters for themselves, their families and their communities.
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