Family Seeking Food Independence Leaves the Bitterroot

By Cynthia Mealy. This story was collected as part of a 2023 open call for submissions. It is one of 17 stories that were selected to be published.

Many of us have heard about the effects of drought on commercial agriculture in Montana. Eastern Montana was especially hit by drought and all of Montana was impacted by unseasonal wet weather which delayed harvests. This story is one of severe impact on a family who was seeking food independence.   

My neighbors had six small Dexter cows. When eastern Montana's drought and unseasonal rains hay became scarce. It was very difficult for them to get hay for their cows, they ended up cutting down their aspen trees for those cattle. On top of the two-year scarcity, what hay they *could* get was moldy.  

The family had always thought in drought, they would sell some cows. The problem was, that no one was buying cows in Montana; everybody was trying to get rid of them!  It was also impossible to make the refrigerated accommodations required to slaughter all of them. This put them between a “rock and a hard place.”

After living in Montana for decades, they ended up moving. They acknowledged that the effects of climate change are everywhere, but their cows were not happy with aspen leaves and moldy hay. They feared that Montana seems poised to have severe hay shortages on a regular basis.

I fear for families I know who raise their own livestock and crops for food. Drought and unseasonal wet weather are affecting agriculture – both the larger commercial enterprises and Montanan families. Families who tend livestock, or gardens, and especially those who wish to have their food supply be self-sufficient are at risk of losing their livelihoods as well.  

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Author’s note: This family owned livestock as part of their self-sufficient lifestyle. When drought came, they couldn't sell them and they didn't have hay. Their story is a bell-weather for the future of families seeking food independence in Montana.