First Nature Farms Becomes Certified Wildlife Friendly®
26th of June 2026 - GOODFARE, ALBERTA, CANADA
Wildlife Friendly® is delighted to announce that First Nature Farms has achieved Certified Wildlife Friendly® status, recognizing a family farm model rooted in coexistence, biodiversity, and regenerative agriculture.
Photo credit: First Nature Farms
Based near Goodfare, west of Grande Prairie, Alberta, First Nature Farms is led by the Kitt family, who have been farming in the region for decades. The certification follows another recent milestone: the family was named the County of Grande Prairie’s 2026 Farm Family of the Year, an honor celebrating their long-standing commitment to organic farming, local food systems, and community stewardship.
Across 3,000 acres of pasture, forest, wetlands, ponds, rivers, and streams in Alberta’s Aspen Parkland, the Kitt family is proving that farming can be productive, regenerative, and deeply connected to wildlife.
At First Nature Farms, organic Berkshire pork, beef, chicken, eggs, vegetables, garlic, and microgreens are produced within a living landscape shared with coyotes, black bears, grizzlies, trumpeter swans, river otters and many other species. Rather than treating wildlife as separate from the farm, the Kitt family has built their approach around coexistence.
"There’s a few things we do to keep our livestock safe and the predators on the diet they were intended to eat," said Jerry Kit, owner of First Nature Farm. "Since we raise a lot of livestock, we’ve made sure carcasses get composted. Rather than leaving any carcasses out in the bush we’ve built a compost site surrounded with an electric fence. Electric fencing is the key to training predators. They learn that chickens and turkeys ‘bite back” and are dangerous to touch. After a couple of attempts the predator gives up and also teaches their offspring to stay away. Having a good fencer and grounding system is essential. Right now, we have around 800 chickens grazing alongside a creek with the closest human 1/2 mile away. The electric chicken keeps the birds safe."
Meet your farmer, Jerry Kitt.
Photo credit: First Nature Farms
Their coexistence model recognizes both the beauty and the complexity of farming alongside large carnivores. Through practical, non-lethal measures such as careful compost management, electric fencing, habitat protection, and allowing natural predator-prey relationships to remain part of the landscape, First Nature Farms is showing how agriculture can help sustain healthy ecosystems.
“At the heart of First Nature Farms is a deep respect for the land and the life it supports,” said Christine Lippai, Executive Director of Wildlife Friendly®.
For Wildlife Friendly®, this certification highlights how farming can go beyond production. Agriculture can happen within a landscape where biodiversity, ecological balance, and community values are part of the picture. By choosing Certified Wildlife Friendly® products, consumers help support producers who protect wildlife, strengthen rural livelihoods, and keep working landscapes alive.
To learn more about First Nature Farms, visit: https://firstnaturefarms.ab.ca/
To read Jerry Kitt's profile on predator management, visit: https://firstnaturefarms.ab.ca/predators/
To learn more about Wildlife Friendly®, visit: www.wildlifefriendly.org
About Wildlife Friendly®
Wildlife Friendly® supports enterprises that conserve wildlife and habitats through verified production practices that meet its rigorous Certified Wildlife Friendly® standards. Wildlife Friendly® works globally in more than 25 countries across landscapes home to threatened and endangered species.
https://www.wildlifefriendly.org