"As (farmers and ranchers) approach how to make a life in ranching, they've had to look at what works from the past but what they can do differently to make it more sustainable."
South Dakota pastureland values this year – calculated using the average revenue per acre and capitalization rate – increased 15.9% from 2025, driven by record-high cattle prices and limited land availability, according to data from the 2026 SDSU Extension South Dakota Farm Real Estate Survey.
Pasturelands are used for the production of forage plants for livestock to graze on, while croplands are used to produce crops for harvest, according to articles published by the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Cattle feeders are faced with much adversity, citing high heat indexes, low contract levels and short grass, the South Dakota weekly cattle auction summary for the week of July 26 showed. A year ago, the cattle market was more active and had good grazing and weather conditions, according to the cattle auction summary from the week of July 13, 2025.
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The state of South Dakota has an estimated 23 million acres of pastures and grazing land, an article published for SDSU Extension by Matthew Diersen showed.
The South Dakota Ag Land Income Tracker – a statistical service published by SDSU Extension that estimates and displays changes in ag land income value, revenue and yields – reported that pastureland rents in 2025 ranged from a low of $6.80 per acre to a high of $73 per acre.
As of July, 40% of the United States and Puerto Rico were experiencing drought-like conditions, data from The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) reported. Dry conditions have been especially noticeable in the prairie and western regions of the country, the U.S. Drought Monitor showed.
An estimated 660,630 South Dakotans are living in drought conditions concentrated in the southern parts of the state, the U.S. drought monitor showed in August. Over the previous three months, the percentage of regions experiencing dry conditions has almost doubled.
Eric Jennings, who raises cattle outside of Rapid City, said cool season grasses, which thrive in cooler weather, are not growing as much on his cattle farm, so he's been relying on warm-season grasses to feed his cattle.
Improvement techniques
To improve land conditions and make farming more productive, farmers are turning to new agricultural techniques.
Precision agriculture, a developing farming technique, shows promise in boosting productivity and improving land, said Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi, assistant professor and extension specialist at SDSU Extension.
According to Nafchi, precision agriculture works by adjusting inputs such as seed, fertilizer and water to maximize overall yield, which in turn, boosts profit.
Dave Ollila, a full-time rancher in Newell, South Dakota, about 50 miles north of Rapid City, said another way to improve rangeland is by improving soil health. Rangeland is 80% grass while the other 20% is made up of forbs (a type of plant), shrubs and legumes, he said.
According to Ollila, while inconsistent rainfall and other weather challenges are stressing rangelands, increasing rangeland health can make it more resilient and responsive to climate changes.
Ollila said healthy land directly correlates with good soil biology. Increasing overall land quality and soil health also boosts productivity. Good techniques include minimizing disturbances, maintaining plant diversity and keeping livestock on the land as a part of the nutrient cycle.
"As (farmers and ranchers) approach how to make a life in ranching, they've had to look at what works from the past but what they can do differently to make it more sustainable," Ollila said.
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