Russian herdsman Leonid Agibalov worked alongside a team of Montana cowboys to help build a cattle ranch. Photograph by Ryan Bell.
A great migration is underway in the world of ranching. Cowboys from the United States, Canada, and Australia are taking cattle by the thousands to Russia and Kazakhstan. Why? To help solve major food security problems.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia and Kazakhstan's cattle populations dropped by 50 percent. These countries spend U.S. $4 billion a year importing red meat to feed their people. To reverse the trend, their governments loaned $10 billion for their farmers to import breeding cattle, equipment, and cowboy expertise.
For the next nine months I will journey through Russia and Kazakhstan researching their emergent beef industries. I’ll collect data to measure how well these countries are meeting their food security goals. I’ll visit grocery stores, restaurants, and kitchens to understand beef’s role in the local cuisines.
Along the way, I'll write about the adventure for National Geographic's Voices and The Plate blogs.
Here are more ways to follow along:
