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Some amateur ranchers use free-ranging cattle as part of land management, and they are finding they can make money by selling grass-fed beef. TomKat Ranch aims to emulate the migratory patterns followed by wild herd animals, allowing land time to recover between grazings. "Ranches can be working landscapes if people understand how animals and land work together," says Wendy Millet, a ranch director who once worked at the Nature Conservancy.

As one of the country's largest Canadian beef purchasers, McDonald's Canada, through the Pilot tracked the journey of nearly 9,000 head of Canadian cattle, or the equivalent of 2.4 million patties. The cattle spent their entire lives, from 'birth to burger', raised on or handled by verified sustainable operations.

The beef industry is seeking to spread the word about its sustainability efforts, especially to young, eco-conscious diners, experts say. "Our long-term sustainability is predicated on transparency and providing consumers with the information they need to make the decision to purchase beef," says Tom McDonald of JBS Five Rivers Cattle Feeding

Texas ranchers have forged an unlikely partnership with environmental activists to protest the 143-mile Trans-Pecos pipeline, which if completed would carry natural gas from West Texas to the Mexican border. "We all agree that the land needs to be regarded a little more highly," said Joel Nelson, manager of the Anchor cattle ranch

With December 2013 ending without rainfall, California's driest year on record is hurting crops and cattle and will likely cause more water rationing in 2014.

Martin von Hildebrand, founder of the Fundacion Gaia Amazonas, is working to establish an ecological corridor protecting 333 million acres of rain forest stretching from Colombia to the Brazilian coast. That will involve finding ways to work with the loggers, miners and farmers already active in the area, he says. "We have to look at those areas where there already is something like oil, or like agriculture, or like cattle ranching and approach it from a sustainable point of view," he explains. 

Chipotle has released a short film that touts the company's ethical-sourcing policies. The video features a scarecrow who wanders through a "Crow Foods Incorporated" factory, is horrified by the treatment of animals inside and decides to open his own ethically sourced eatery -- one that bears a marked resemblance to Chipotle