Named after the land being a haven for pirates years ago, Blackbeard’s Ranch is a 5,000-acre ranch located outside of Sarasota, Florida. The ranch is the most recent recipient of the environmental stewardship award for the United States through the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.
“The property was one of the most beautiful and diverse properties I have ever seen in this part of Southwest Florida,” said Jim Strickland, managing partner of Blackbeard’s. “We found a lot of work when we bought this land. We were trying to reestablish the waterways. We were putting in retention structures so we could retain water on the land and to filtrate the water.”
Cattle serve multiple purposes to the land, including being a source of water filtration. “We need to show what our ranches do as a filtration system for the water that 22 million people in the state drink,” Strickland said.
Strickland said all of the water on the ranch flows into the Myakka River, then flows into the Charlotte Harbor, which is one of the economic engines on the Gulf of Florida, with multiple fishing and recreational activities.
“We felt like it was a great opportunity that while we were this close to Sarasota to tell and show people what ranch land does for Florida,” Strickland said.
Strickland said Blackbeard’s tells the story of conservation by selling its locally produced meat to restaurants in the area. In doing that, Blackbeard’s started using food as a way to connect with the public, he said.
“Our advocacy comes from opening up the ranch to people who wouldn’t normally get the opportunity to come on a cattle ranch,” Strickland said. “If someone calls, we try to accommodate them and answer their questions honestly.”
Strickland said the goal is to show the public how ranchers can help with the environmental issues seen in Florida.
A big part of having the opportunity to conserve land is to secure funding from the state. Strickland said one such opportunity occurred in 2019 when the ranch hosted several environmental groups.
“Last year when we were trying to advocate for funding for conservation easements during the legislative session, we had 24 different environmental groups come and visit the ranch,” Strickland said.
Blackbeard’s hosted ranchers from around the state and put them in front of the leaders of environmental organizations.
“We told them our stories,” Strickland said.
Through telling those stories, all 24 environmental organizations decided to endorse, advocate, and join together for conservation funding for ranch land in the state of Florida. It was the first time this many groups had ever come together, Strickland said.
“We have done lot of environmental projects with and cost shares with Natural Resources Conservation Service, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the local government to help maintain land in the state that provides water filtration system and wildlife habitat,” Strickland said.
Taking care of the land means taking care of everything on the land. All of the daily operations decisions that are made impact the land, Strickland said.
“If we can keep this land in the most pristine state that we can, we help preserve all those things ranchers hold close to them,” Strickland said.
In 2014, the voters in Florida approved Amendment 1, which asked the voters if they wanted to conserve the state’s natural land.
“It was one of the highest votes in the history of Florida, where over 76% of the population voted ‘yes,’” Strickland said.
This vote confirmed that Florida residents saw the value of the open green space throughout the state, Strickland said. This does not mean voters necessarily want to own the land, but instead see the importance of preserving the natural spaces in Florida.
Strickland said many different approaches can accomplish the goal of conservation.
“Florida Forever has been a very robust program for the state,” he said. “Simply, this program takes tax money and buys a conservation easement on the land.”
The way a conservation easement works is to start by getting a group of appraisers to look at the property. The property is then valued as it sits. Once the appraisal is done, the owner receives approximately half of the land value as a conservation easement.
An organization or entity will come into the ranch and is designated a section of the ranch. Simply, this group buys the development rights of the land, Strickland said. The land keeps the same ownership, but the owner relinquishes the right to build anything on the land.
Another similar program is the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. However, this program differs slightly because of having a little more latitude in using the land.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection does not allow any farming on the land once a conservation easement has been made. The Florida water management districts offer similar arrangements, Strickland said.
“It is a personal choice of whether or not a conservation easement is right for a landowner,” Strickland said. “Many times, a conservation easement helps if you need the money to stay in business.”
Strickland enjoys showing how Blackbeard’s Ranch is walking hand in hand with scientists, showcasing how ranchers and scientists work together.
“We can tell a good story as ranchers and cowboys,” Strickland said. “We can talk about how much we love and care for the land, but science comes into play when we make day-to-day decisions.”
University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences has researchers and resources that ranchers have to use every day, Strickland said.
"We know things are changing throughout the globe and science is going to help us," Strickland said. “We use science every hour. Whether it is giving a cow de-wormer that keeps the cattle from getting sick, if we test our grass or if we use nutritionist to tell us what meals are best to feed our cattle, we have to use science.”
Strickland said it is important to ranchers for the public to understand the science that is used daily on the ranch.
“If we as ranchers go to advocate for cost share funding, government programs and new legislation in Tallahassee, we have to understand there are not a lot of agriculturists in politics,” he said.
Strickland said even though ranchers can tell their stories, what is better received by the public is to use science in the explanation.
“We need third-party data to back up what we are saying,” Strickland said. “If we tell a water story, it is nice to hear a story about a clean spring. When we have a scientist help us tell the story, it resonates well with the public population.”