RANCH HISTORY

Mrnak Family at their Centennial Celebration in 2006

WELCOME TO THE MRNAK HEREFORD RANCH

In 1906, Jim Mrnak’s grandfather, Vincent, homesteaded the present Mrnak Hereford Ranch. They came from the East with the usual homesteader belongings and a few head of livestock. In 1944, Jim’s father, Wencil, bought him a few registered Hereford heifers. This was the foundation and beginning of the Mrnak Hereford Ranch. Since 1968, the entire cowherd has been of recorded seedstock.

Since its inception, the ranch has seen many changes in the cattle industry, from the small compact cattle, to the large framed cattle and everything in between. It has always been our program to stay with the moderate framed cattle with thickness, muscling and natural fleshing ability. We strongly believe that a highly fertile, functional and sound cowherd is a must in the Hereford cattle industry.

Over the years, as the cowherd grew, many influential bulls have contributed to the successful marketing of our cattle. BB Selkirk Lad 3136, purchased from BB Cattle Co., Connell, WA, has left a lasting genetic mark on our cowherd. Other strong breeding sires were BHHR 4088-642, CL1 Domino 590, Dan Mischief, and many more. At present we are using a combination of Canadian and US genetics. We feel this combination will be very beneficial to the commercial cattlemen that purchase our seedstock. Our Canadian genetics are highlighted with BP Debonair 205D, a bull we purchased from Bar Pipe Farms at Okotoks, Alberta, and LCI Diamond Bow 201E, purchased from Doenz Ranch, Warner, Alberta.

Through the use of A.I. some of the useful performance bulls in the US have been utilized in our breeding program. Star Donald 335F, a great maternal sire, has left a host of great daughters as well as the very popular BB Patriot 0293. It was a genetic cross of the Patriot sire on a 335F daughter that resulted in our popular herdsire MH Patriot 3159. This bull is in partnership with Hoffman Herefords, Leola, SD & Rocking Chair Ranch, Fort McKavett, TX and is leased to ABS.

In 1968 we had our 1^st production sale here on the ranch selling 50 bulls. In the spring of 1981 we moved our production sale to St. Onge, SD where we felt we could offer our cattle at a closer location to our customers. Over the years we have seen our bulls sell all over the western United States. In earlier sales we sold strictly bulls, but in recent years the demand for Hereford heifers has convinced us to open up our market of heifers in our annual sale.

The 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th generation of Mrnaks now resides on the Mrnak Hereford Ranch.  Jim and wife Marlene have 5 children; Connie, Wayne, Terry, Loren and Carla. Wayne, wife Jill and daughter Robyn along with Terry, wife Debby and sons Brent and Andy operate the ranch that consists of 470 cows and farming practices that include growing wheat, corn, oats, barley and alfalfa hay. Over the years Jim, Marlene and Wayne have served the Hereford breed on local, state and national levels. Wayne was recently elected as a director of the AHA board. Marlene was President of the ND Cattlewomen. Terry and Debby are the ND Jr. Hereford advisors, Brent served Vice President and director of the National Junior Hereford Association for three years and Andy is currently director of the NJHA board. Brent and Andy are very active showing cattle on the local, state and national levels.

One could say the family is “Hereford” through and through as they preach, “Every calf should have a white face.”

Custom Feedlot is a New Enterprise for Mrnak Family
By Julie Schaff Ellingson, for the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association
Click here to read the whole story (pdf)...

NDSA Environmental Services Director Scott Ressler got involved in the project during the early stages. He worked with Brent and his family and engineers on the planning and development stages of the 999-head state-permitted lot, its S-shaped containment dike and clean water diversion system.

The Mrnak project is special for a couple of reasons – it is the first one completed through the Stockmen’s Stewardship Support Program, the association-run cost-share assistance program, and the first state-permitted lot utilizing a water-spreading system instead of a holding pond.

The NDSA has been promoting the use of water-spreading systems, like on the Mrnak Ranch, and other “alternative technologies” to producers and Environmental Protection Agency and North Dakota Department of Health regulators for several years.

Mrnaks’ feedlot is complete with pens on two sides of a 32-foot hard-packed-gravel alley, which is a viable option in southwestern North Dakota, where excess moisture and high water tables are not a problem. It took a lot of dirt moving to achieve the desired depth, Brent said. In fact, there’s 12 feet of fill in the alley alone. The family reduced some of their out-of-pocket cost by hauling much of the gravel and welding all of the sucker rod, pipe and guard rail feedlot fence themselves.

The goal is to raise all of the feedstuffs – corn, barley, screenings etc. – needed to sustain the nearly 4,000 head of feedlot cattle they will turn per year. With extreme drought conditions in 2004, that didn’t happen in the feedlot’s inaugural year, but they are hopeful for 2005. In order to meet the new demand from the feedlot enterprise, Terry said many of their traditional cash-crop wheat acres will be converted for corn. He anticipates planting 1,000-plus acres this spring. Consulting nutritionists help Mrnaks make their ration decisions.

The feed supply will help them offer backgrounding, finishing and even heifer development services to commercial customers. The latter is something Brent is particularly excited about. “We could use some of the bigger lots and use them on grass so they get some exercise, develop and even AI-breed them,” he said. “We have had excellent conception rates on our own heifers – 70 percent bred AI last year – and are confident we could do the same for our customers.” If that project goes farther, a grass site immediately north of the existing feedlot could be an expansion option, he said.

Mrnaks are also using the new feedlot to custom feed and finish or even purchase some of their bull customers’ calves, a practice they began on a small scale nearly six years ago. This has been a good customer service practice and a good way to collect carcass data on the progeny of certain sires and determine which bloodlines are best at producing the kind of product consumers demand, Brent said.

Here are a few pictures of our fields.