It's possibly just semantics that 'ranchers' wouldn't have as much of a feed problem as 'farmers' would. Cows turned loose to pasture/forage don't require the feed budget that (industrial) dairy cattle who are never out on their own do. I was amazed when I moved from NY (the rural part) to WA in 1994 that beef was about half the price in the PNW, 'cause they just don't have to feed the cows as much (yadda yadda grazing on federal lands yadda yadda subsidies yadda yadda).