After three wildfires cross their Oregon ranch, a fourth-generation cattle family assesses damage and calls for better land management.
More than 50,000 wildfires have burned over 7.6 million acres across the United States in 2026. Near Juntura, Oregon, fourth-generation ranchers Danny and Anna Pozzi are assessing the damage after three fires crossed their property. Their cattle survived, but the family now faces damaged roads, fences and grazing land while monitoring the herd for burns and respiratory problems.
Transcript
Danny and Anna Pozzi are living the American Dream. Along with other family members, they run about 3,000 head of cattle near Juntura, Oregon. The
recent wildfires haven’t been easy on the fourth generation ranching couple.
Danny Pozzi, DAAM Beef LLC: “It was hard on these fires because, you know, you work so hard and you're trying to grow these things in your businesses and you're trying to create something for the next generation and you're just watching it just kind of go up in flames.”
Three different fires have passed through the family's property so far. The latest was the lightning-caused Coleman Creek Fire. In all, flames consumed an estimated 60,000 acres but their cattle survived unlike some ranchers in neighboring areas of the state who lost everything.
Anna Pozzi, DAAM Beef LLC: “It burned around like big patches of yellow and it didn't touch it. And so the cows would get on that patch and they stayed safe as the fire burned around them.”
The family will be working to improve roadway access, checking fence lines and monitoring their cattle for burns and respiratory issues.
Danny believes rotating pastures for grazing and selective logging could help reduce the risk of fires igniting in rural America or urban areas like Spokane, Washington where hundreds of people lost their homes.
Danny Pozzi, DAAM Beef LLC: “To be able to run more cattle during the seasons that we need to and turn the loggers loose and let them log our forests and clean our forests up. That’s why we’re having these massive fires.”
For Market to Market, I’m Tammy Scardino.
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