Parma and Tamworth Boar, Boris

Strong environmental stewardship values are expressed by the slogan for this ranch: “In Harmony With Nature”

Contact:
Rainer and Gigi Krumsiek and son, Florian

Address:
Box 128
5647 Lincoln Road
Horsefly, BC
V0L 1L0

More Information:
Big Bear Ranch is a 2,300-acre mixture of picturesque certified organic pasture and forest. The Ranch offers a panoramic view of the Cariboo Mountains and Wells Gray Park, 100 kilometers in the distance.

Rainer and Gigi educated themselves in schools, seminars, conferences and literature about all aspects of a sustainable family farm. They are convinced that biodiversity is the base for truly organic production. Evidence they are going in the right direction is the incredible increase of earth worms in their pastures.

There are no commercial fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides used on the land and no growth hormones, antibiotics, or insecticides used on the animals. Rainer believes that “healthy soil, healthy grass, healthy animals create healthy products which – in the end – creates healthy people.”

This is achieved by a great diversity of grazing species (ruminants, non-ruminants, poultry) and a closely monitored rotation of pastures. Their 80 head of cattle are specifically bred and selected to finish exclusively on forage. These and the 300-500 custom cattle are moved daily to new pastures.

Humane animal handling, guardian dogs, sustainable logging, enough residue after grazing for wildlife (e.g. deer, crane, curlew, grouse) and caring for topsoil are some of their ways of trying to be in harmony with nature.

The Krumsieks raise rare Tamworth pigs, Bronze Breasted turkeys, and Hereford/Angus-cross cattle bred by their Galloway bull. All animals are pasture-raised together. Calving is done in summer on green grass, not in winter. Cattle are grass-finished, not grain-finished. They raise Icelandic horses which are a small, unique breed known for endurance, longevity, and an extra gait called ‘tolt’.

When the Krumsieks purchased the ranch in 1995 the land had been logged and seeded to hay land. Rocks, stumps, woody debris and topsoil were left in long windrows. Pastures had been chemically fertilized to grow hay. Rather than remove the debris, Rainer decided to fence livestock out of these areas to allow them to regenerate. Now, there are 25 kilometers of shelter belts, 10-30 meters wide and 800-1200 meters long throughout the ranch. Diverse mixes of poplar, birch, alder, cottonwood, maple, willow, spruce, pine, fir, rose and berry bushes provide ‘edges’ for raptors and habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Approximately 60 kilometers of electric fence exclude grazing from the hedgerows, rock piles and the 17 ponds and wetlands.