Iowa Farm Wins National Award for Regenerative Cattle Grazing

Jack Smith doesn't see conservation as a cost center. On his Dubuque County farm, protecting the soil is the business model.

The Smith Family Farms just earned the 2025 Environmental Stewardship Award from the National Cattlemen's Beef Association for their regenerative approach to raising beef. Their secret weapon? Letting 425 Red Angus and Charolais cows do what they do best.

"The cows will take care of the land for you if you let them," Smith said. "They will pay you back."

The farm operates on three core practices that work together like a well-oiled machine. First, the Smiths never till their soil, which has triggered an explosion in earthworm populations that naturally aerate the ground and prevent nutrient runoff into nearby streams.

Second, they plant cover crops like rye, Sudangrass, and clover nearly year-round. These living roots keep soil cool in summer, feed beneficial microbes, and lock nutrients in place instead of letting them wash away.

Third, and most importantly, their cattle graze these covers in spring and fall while spending winters eating crop residue. No fuel-burning tractors needed, no expensive barn systems required.

The results speak for themselves. Smith's soil gains about 0.1% organic matter each season instead of losing it. During heavy rains, his fields absorb water like a sponge while tilled neighbors turn to mud.

One 140-acre parcel subdivided into 14 paddocks supported 78 cow-calf pairs through the entire 2024 summer without a single day of supplemental feed, even during drought. The system works because cattle rotate before rain events and paddocks rest for two months between grazing.

The Ripple Effect

The Smith approach shows how family farms can lead the sustainability revolution without sacrificing profitability. By working with natural systems instead of against them, they're rebuilding soil that generations of conventional farming depleted.

Jack's son Ted now manages the cattle alongside his mother Maria, while brother Nick handles crops. Ted loves being out in all weather with the herd, and both sons hope Iowa remains friendly to family-scale operations like theirs.

The sixth generation is already working the land their great-great-great-grandfather started farming after emigrating from Ireland in 1853. If a seventh generation wants to return, Jack says they'd happily add more cows, but right now the operation balances productivity with quality of life perfectly.

Hewitt Creek runs cleaner, earthworms tunnel deeper, and the Smith family is proving that taking care of the land means the land takes care of you.