CLEAR Conversations: Katie Roberti on Communicating California Agriculture

Katie Roberti sat down for a conversation that reflects both her roots and her mission. As Director of Communications for the California Cattlemen’s Association (CCA), Roberti spends her days translating the realities of ranching into language policymakers, media, and the public can understand. But her connection to agriculture is far more personal than professional.

Roberti grew up on a cow-calf ranch in California’s high alpine country near the Sierra Nevada, where her family has ranched for more than a century. Founded in 1923 by her great-grandparents, the operation recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. “I really loved growing up on a ranch,” she said. 

Her hometown was tiny—so small that graduating classes numbered just over 20 students—but the experience shaped her appreciation for her community. Today, her family still runs the ranch, producing high-quality alfalfa hay and raising primarily Angus cattle. Seasonal movement is part of life: cattle winter in the Sacramento Valley, where green grass is abundant, and return to mountain pastures in the summer. It’s a rhythm that feels natural to ranchers but surprises many outside agriculture.

That gap in understanding is exactly where Roberti’s work begins.

After high school, she attended Cal Poly, where she became part of the first official graduating class in agricultural communications. Journalism followed, then a move to Sacramento and a role at the California Cattlemen’s Association—an organization that, she says, many people misunderstand.

“People think we’re a magazine,” Roberti laughed. “But really, we’re a lobbying and advocacy organization for California ranchers.”

The CCA represents cattle producers in legislative and regulatory matters, monitoring everything from labor laws to gas prices to environmental regulations. With 38 local affiliates stretching from Humboldt County to San Diego—and even Los Angeles County, where cattle still graze in the hills—the association serves as a unified voice for a diverse and geographically vast industry.

“We’re watching the laws so ranchers can ranch,” Roberti explained. “We have their back.”

Much of her role involves communicating those efforts back to members through newsletters, magazines, and updates. But another major focus is public-facing education through the CCA’s foundation, which works to explain why ranching matters to California as a whole.

“What do ranchers do to make California more resilient?” Roberti asked. “We try to communicate through the foundation the importance of agriculture and ranching to California.”

That question has become more urgent as fewer Californians have direct exposure to agriculture. Roberti says one of the hardest parts of her job is explaining ranching to people who have no frame of reference for it—and don’t necessarily feel the need to understand it.

“I don’t expect everyone to know how ranching works,” she said. “But we have to break it down in a way that makes sense and connects to what they care about.”

Whenever possible, that means bringing people to the ranch. Legislators, reporters, and students often leave with a new perspective after seeing operations firsthand. “Ranchers aren’t hiding anything,” Roberti said. “They’re doing good things on the land, and they’re proud of it.”

When in-person visits aren’t possible, storytelling fills the gap. Roberti hosts a podcast for CCA that features ranchers, scientists, legislators, and industry leaders discussing everything from sustainability to regional challenges. Some of the most popular episodes spotlight ranchers themselves—voices that listeners trust and relate to.

One standout guest was a ranching legend, Ellington Peek who is in his 90s and still works with livestock daily. “He was so authentic,” Roberti said. “Hearing how things have changed over decades was interesting and he even took a phone call during our podcast which ended up being a lot of fun.”

Sustainability is another topic that has evolved dramatically. A decade ago, Roberti says the word made some ranchers uncomfortable, as if it implied criticism. Today, it’s embraced as a reflection of what family operations have always done.

“Ninety-three percent of farms and ranches in the U.S. are family-owned,” she noted. “If they weren’t sustainable, they wouldn’t still be here, generation after generation.”

Despite that progress, misconceptions persist—especially the idea that ranchers are wealthy land barons. “Most ranchers are asset-rich and cash-poor,” Roberti explained. “They work incredibly hard, often have off-ranch jobs, and reinvest everything into their operations.”

One of the most emotionally difficult issues she communicates about is predators, particularly wolves. As wolf populations have expanded in Northern California, livestock losses have increased. Roberti recalled waking up on New Year’s Day to news that a rancher’s horse had been so badly injured by wolves it had to be euthanized.

“That’s not just an animal,” she said. “That’s someone’s livelihood.”

Those incidents have drawn increased media attention, helping the public better understand the real-world impacts of wildlife policy. “It’s not the same in every region,” Roberti emphasized. “That complexity is hard to communicate, but it’s important.”

Looking back, one of the most meaningful moments of her career came after devastating wildfires in 2020. CCA advocacy helped advance legislation recognizing the role of grazing in reducing fire fuel loads—policy that later helped ranchers protect land, cattle, and communities.

“Seeing something you worked on actually make a difference—that’s incredibly rewarding,” she said.

For Roberti, the heart of the job isn’t policy or media coverage. It’s people. “The ranchers I work with genuinely care about the land, their animals, and their communities,” she said. “They also care about us—asking how we’re doing, checking in. That’s what makes this work special.”

Her advice to the public is simple: be curious. Ask questions. Seek information from the people doing the work.

And host Tracy Sellers agreed with Roberti and added, “There are stories behind the facts and figures. And those stories matter.”