Flying Heart Meats and Valley View Ranch
Valley View Ranch
Close to nature, close to home
Our family ranch – Valley View Ranch – near Strathmore, Alberta is just a short drive from Calgary. We practice responsible farm animal care and follow humane livestock management and handling techniques. Our herd of Angus cattle and flock of Katahdin sheep are raised on open native and annual forage pastures.
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We care about our animals and we love what we do.
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Our “Flying Heart” brand is a heritage brand in Alberta from our family dating back to the early 1900’s. It represents pride in our past, and care for our animals, our environment and our future – and its serves as the perfect brand for our grass finished beef and lamb.
Our Sustainability Story
At Valley View Ranch, sustainability is a family-shared value. We truly believe that the future of our businesses lies beneath the hooves of our livestock, and we constantly challenge ourselves to improve our soil health and plant biodiversity through environmentally conscious practices. Over time, we have worked alongside Ducks Unlimited and ALUS to implement livestock watering structures that not only provide cleaner water for our animals, but also conserve the wetlands that have been in our care for over a century.
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We like to think of our ranch as it's own ecosystem. Every sector within our operations is linked to the success of each other, and we believe that when our grain farming, forage growing, and livestock divisions are working in harmony, then we are truly sustainable. Our livestock is the keystone tool to our business and it gives us the ability to manage our soils for maximum microbial activity and nutrient availability, which in turn provides a natural source for our grain and forage crops to grow on. Not only does healthier soil grow more productive and stress tolerant crops, but also provides a healthy food source for our beef and lamb. The way we manage our ranch brings our family together and helps us work toward a future founded on the wise use of our natural resources and landscapes.
On April 7, 2021, we were honored to receive the J. Laslo Legacy award from Wheatland County for showing exemplary leadership in implementing beneficial environmental farm and ranch practices. We have always strived to be on the forefront of improving the health of our land as well as our bottom line, and it means a great deal to us to be recognized with the presentation of this award.
The history of our homestead
Beth’s great great grandpa emigrated to Edwardsville Illinois, USA from Hanover Germany in 1842. In 1909 his grandson moved his family to homestead east of Strathmore, Alberta, Canada with intentions of farming and raising cattle.
The homestead was named Valley View Ranch – a name that we are proud to continue today.
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Our photo gallery below shows a few photos from the early 1900’s on the Valley View Ranch homestead. These old photos show Beth’s grandfather – Harold Scheer – and his brother Norman hauling grain and herding cattle on the open Alberta range in 1917. Beth’s father – John Scheer – carried on the tradition of farming and raising cattle on this same land.
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Rod's grandfather - Pete Vergouwen - homesteaded his ranch in 1931 just a few miles Northeast of Strathmore. Pete and his new wife originated from Holland and barely spoke English when they made the move. However, they learned quick and made a good living by ranching, working for local farmers during harvest, and trapping during the winter.
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Much of our livestock history originated on the Vergouwen side of the family, as Pete and his sons Joe (Rod's father) and Morris didn't own any piece of motorized equipment until 1946 when they bought their first truck. All of the hay was cut and hauled with horses, and fence posts were installed by hand. A picture of an original corner post from the 1940's is included in the gallery below.
In 2003 Rod & Beth purchased the Scheer farm east of Strathmore. Beth and Rod's children mark the fifth generation of farmers and ranchers on this land since her Great Grandfather originally homesteaded here in 1909.
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We were honored to celebrate our families’ 100th centennial year in Alberta in August of 2009. We paid tribute to our pioneer families by dressing in pioneer costume and riding in Strathmore’s rodeo parade. Our photo gallery features a few photos from that fun and meaningful day.
We are thankful that we can live and raise our family in such a beautiful area that we are proud to call our home.
