The 20th annual national Environmental Stewardship Award (ESA) winner was announced Thursday night during the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association tailgate party held at the Denver Broncos football stadium.

The seven regional award winners were honored during a reception where they all received specially commissioned bronze sculptures by artist Vern Friesen of Nebraska, courtesy of sponsor Dow AgroSciences. The national winner was Couser Cattle Company of Nevada, Iowa – represented here by Bill and Nancy Couser. They received another special bronze for being the best in the country.

The awards are also sponsored by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Since the ESA program began in 1991, nearly 130 cattle operations in 33 states have been recognized for outstanding environmental stewardship. The 20 year milestone of the program is being marked by a special video presentation that will be aired on NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen program this summer.

BTW, we did a post about the Couser Cattle Company last year when they hosted a tour of the operation as part of the TATT Global Farmer to Farmer Roundtable.

Listen or download my interview with Bill here: Interview with Bill Couser
2011 Cattle Industry Convention Photos

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