Easyford Cattle Company is a traditional cattle ranch of 1900 acres located along the Pembina River, 15 kilometers northwest of Drayton Valley. Owned and operated by Daniel Walton and Shirley Henkel-Walton, Easyford Cattle Company shows its commitment to good stewardship of the land with much of the ranch remaining permanent boreal forest with stands of Lodgepole Pine, White Spruce, Birch and Aspen serving as habit for a multitude of wildlife species. Some of the larger forest inhabitants on the Easyford Cattle Company include Black Bear, Elk, Moose,Mule Deer and Whitetail Deer. Resident and migratory birds such as the Bald Eagle, Great Blue Heron,Great Grey Owl, Pileated Woodpecker and Ruffed Grouse also call the ranch woodlands home. These forestlands also protect creeks streams of the Pembina River watershed.

A portion of the ranch was originally homesteaded by Shirley’s father, John Henkel in 1950 as a frontier cattle ranch. John Henkel, born in 1906 was one of the last of the old time cowboys using traditional ranching methods up until the early 1980’s. Much of this traditional knowledge has been passed down through Shirley.

Currently their farm consists of a 150 commercial cow herd and 100 feeders of mixed breeds, mostly Simmental and Red Angus. Easyford Cattle Company raises cattle from birth to market using hay and silage that is grown without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. We also have a flock of 50 sheep; raise free range chickens, turkey & eggs.

The animals on the farm are raised ethically without the use of unnecessary antibiotics or growth enhancing hormone implants.