December 23, 2025 • 39 mins
A famous outlaw's grave you can see from the kitchen sink, a trail that once fed frontier forts, and a family betting on rain—this is ranching in Fort Sumner, New Mexico. We sit down with Sarah Fitzgerald, chair of the New Mexico Beef Council, to unpack what it really takes to raise beef in an arid landscape where stocking rates stretch to 50–70 acres per animal unit and every decision hinges on land, water, and numbers.
We explore the engine room of their operation: a small, tightly run grow yard designed for careful weaning and efficient gains. Sarah explains how a grow yard differs from a feedlot, why audited feed labels and certified natural programs matter, and how source verification with EID tags builds traceability and trust. The conversation moves from dust to data—budgets, P&Ls, forward contracts, and the high cost of inputs that shape thin ranch margins. Along the way, we tie in Wild West history, the Goodnight Loving Trail, and the modern realities of rotational grazing, native grasses, and adapting to weather that doesn’t always cooperate.
This episode is also a window into family life on a ranch. Sarah shares how she runs the books, handles audits and trucking, and still reads the land for subtle signs—trampling near waters, cow patties, grass height—that guide pasture moves. We talk land prices, leasing strategies, and how to make farmland and forage work together when buying a traditional ranch won’t cash flow. For students and career changers, the beef industry’s breadth comes into view: animal science, meat science, nutrition, accounting, marketing, trucking, and more. And for anyone curious about grocery store beef, Sarah’s message is simple and clear: family-owned operations care deeply, and beef safety and quality are non-negotiable.
Stick around for a bit of holiday warmth as Sarah shares her family’s tradition of homemade Italian meatballs on Christmas Eve—proof that beef is more than a meal; it’s memory and connection. If you value grounded stories about food, land, and the people who make both possible, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves beef, and leave a review to tell us what you learned.
Dion's is has a new menu item! Try their Green Chile Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza today.
Thanks for tuning in to Behind the Burger!
Stay connected with us — follow @NMBEEF on TikTok and Instagram, New Mexico Beef Council on Facebook and visit nmbeef.com for recipes, nutrition info, a local beef directory and more.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_01 (00:03):
Welcome back to another episode of Behind the
Burger.
I'm Caroline Romo, the executivedirector of the New Mexico Beef
Council.
And I am here with SarahFitzgerald, who is the chairman
of our New Mexico Beef Counciland a New Mexico Ranger.
So Sarah, will you uh thanks forjoining me and will you
introduce yourself and kind ofwhat you guys do?
(00:24):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (00:24):
Um, well, my husband, Jimmy, was on a few
episodes before.
And um of course this will be acontest, so we'll see who who
wins out on that.
But no, um, we uh have a littlegrow yard in Fort Summer, New
Mexico.
Uh we also do cow calf, um, somecustom feeding.
(00:45):
Um, and we always joke and sayit's you know kind of anything
to make a buck.
We've got some Airbnbs, um, youknow, a little little bit of
everything.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (00:55):
And you guys um tell me kind of about your
background.
SPEAKER_00 (00:59):
You grew up in the area, right?
I did.
I did.
Um my husband's from Texas, andI I don't hold that against him.
But um my family actually, theyimmigrated from Italy in the um
first part of the I guess 1900s,you know, that that time frame.
(01:20):
Um, worked in the coal mines insouthern Colorado.
There's a little town calledMorley, um, not far from
Trinidad.
It was a company town.
And they grew up there.
Um, they tried to go to FortSumner and ended up kind of
going broke and went back to thecoal mines and finally decided,
(01:41):
you know, this isn't um the waythat we want to raise our
family.
This isn't what I want my sons,you know, to grow up in.
And so they were like, okay,we're, you know, kind of they
picked themselves up by theirbootstraps and went for round
two in Fort Sumner.
And in one way or another, we'vekind of been there, you know,
ever since then.
SPEAKER_01 (02:00):
So that's a long, long history in a in the small
town, uh, which makes for a lotof great memories and a lot of
great uh connection to thecommunity, right?
SPEAKER_00 (02:09):
Yes, yes, very much so.
We've um uh feed store owners,uh farming, ranching, you know,
a little bit of everything.
And um, you know, just part of aoverall community.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (02:22):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think uh can you tell us aboutFort Sumner?
I know uh we've had theseconversations a lot, but but
tell us about Fort Sumner,right?
And if you're a listener and youhaven't been, it's it's a very
charming community.
No, it really is.
SPEAKER_00 (02:35):
Um it's I think there's maybe it's one of the, I
think one of the biggestcounties in New Mexico, but I
think there's maybe 1,400 peoplein the whole county, um, when
Fort Sumner is the county seatand pretty much the only place
with a school and that sort ofthing.
But um if you like history, uhWild West, Billy the Kid, uh
(02:57):
Fort Summer was kind of one ofthe big towns, you know, with
that um Lincoln County Wars, um,which actually kind of tying it
into cattle, they were um uhdifferent kind of factions were
competing for the beef contractsfor the forts in the area.
(03:17):
And um, you know, it was bigmoney going on.
And so that's why Billy the Kidwas kind of fighting on one side
and the other.
Um, he was shot in Fort Sumnerand buried there.
And um growing up, we could washuh dishes and see his grave.
So kind of a cool place, a lotof history.
Um, and ranching, you know, beefproduction has always kind of
(03:41):
been a part of that.
Um, some sheep and then, youknow, farming too, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (03:47):
Absolutely.
And I think uh with that historyand the and the cows, is it
isn't it part of the GoodnightLoving Trail too?
SPEAKER_00 (03:54):
Yeah, so um the Goodnight Loving Trail was
actually created to bring umbeef to Fort Sumner.
Okay.
Yeah, so um, if you're alonesome dove fan, you know,
whenever he is um uh finallysuccumbs to his injuries and is
buried and then, you know,brought back, he was uh
(04:16):
truthfully was buried in FortSumner.
So yeah, there's a lot of fun,you know, historical things with
kind of the Wild West andranching that that ties into
Fort Sumner.
SPEAKER_01 (04:26):
So absolutely I always try and tell people New
Mexico truly is the Wild West.
No, it it is.
Yeah, everything of the the fun,you know, stories, the the lore,
and then the history, a lot ofit happened there.
And then in our travels as theNew Mexico Beef Council, I'm
pretty sure we went to aproducer meeting in Gladstone,
which is also on the GoodnightLoving Trail.
Yeah.
(04:46):
And then I wanted to say LaPosta and Mesia was maybe on the
Goodnight Loving Trail, right?
It was a stagecoach stop.
It was a stagecoach stop, yeah.
Yeah, and now it's turned into arestaurant.
So um, it's an important part ofNew Mexico's history.
Yeah.
Yeah, definitely.
Well, tell me about your youroperation a little bit more.
Um, you guys, you know, you farmand you ranch.
Um, but yeah, tell me, tell meabout your your ranching.
SPEAKER_00 (05:09):
So we um have, you know, a history and Fort Sumter
family history, but Jimmy and Iare actually kind of first-time
ranchers.
You know, we've bought intoeverything we have and um built
it, which causes, you know, someheartache.
And but, you know, anythingworth having is worth working
(05:31):
for too.
Um, but yeah, we um raise uhalfalfa in corn in the Pecas
River Valley, which it's areally neat um, I I think it's a
little spot of heaven becauseyou kind of with New Mexico,
there's such uh differingtopography, you know, weather
(05:51):
patterns, um, land masses, thatsort of thing.
But there's just this littlevalley that is flood-irrigated
by the Pecos River, and it isgreen and lush, and it it's a
neat, neat little reach.
So we farm there.
Um, and we also have a littlegrow yard.
We initially created it.
(06:13):
Um, it's a very efficient wayfor us to wean our calves.
Um, nothing is really close inNew Mexico, or at least, you
know, in our part of the world.
So um, you know, our reaches arelike an hour, hour and a half,
45 minutes away.
And so we're able to kind ofkeep eyes on them.
Um, and then we also, you know,do uh cow calf operations, some
(06:35):
stalkers, you know, depending oncattle or the price of of calves
that year.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (06:41):
When you talk about a grow yard, oh yeah.
Um, and you know, there'sdifferences, right?
So we have ranching and we havedifferent types of ranching, and
then you have grow yards andfeed yards.
Can you kind of explain a growyard?
SPEAKER_00 (06:54):
I could try, but I know uh well, and I mean you
could say it's a feed yard, butmy husband Jimmy is always like
it's not that big.
So we call it a grow yard.
But um it's it's a uh moreefficient way for us to feed,
but uh you kind of think of um afeedlot as or grow yard or you
(07:19):
know, whatever you want to callit, as just part of the life
cycle of um whether it be theanimal or the life cycle in kind
of the the feeding cycle there.
Um for us, we you know, we mightwean you know in the grow yard,
but two, um, calves may come inand you're wanting to get them
(07:41):
um, you know, from a certain somany pounds is so many pounds in
a very efficient manner.
So that's it's kind of a waythat we can um two, maybe we may
not have gotten as much rain inone area and we can kind of move
things back and forth.
Um so yeah, it's just kind ofpart of our overall operation,
(08:02):
if that makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (08:03):
Yeah, and and some of the things that I think kind
of differentiate, like a like agrow yard is often the younger
animals, the calves, right?
And then the feed yard is maybewhere it where you would finish
an animal, right?
And they go to the maybe thatmight be sometimes most tricky.
And then I and then I think umit's an important understand
too.
It's uh when you guys areweaning those calves and keeping
(08:24):
a closer eye on them.
I always to to you know go tothe goal of the podcast of
knowing the work and the effortthat goes in when there's calves
in the grow yard, Sarah can'tleave town.
I mean Jimmy can't leave town.
And it's not happening.
Yeah, you hear the calvesbawling in the background of
every phone call.
Yeah.
Because that's because it's it'sa place where you're keeping
(08:45):
track of maybe maybe they wouldhave been high maintenance on a
ranch, right?
So now they're closer together,you can keep them safe and and
uh get them growing and and uhum right in a controlled
environment.
SPEAKER_00 (08:57):
Yeah, and a misconception, I think, um,
about whether be a grow yard orfeed yard is maybe level of
care.
And then also like we'recertified natural, source
verified, you know, all thesethings.
And so all of our feed labels umare audited.
Um and so there's a lot ofdifferent types of ways to, you
(09:20):
know, feed um beef, if thatmakes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (09:24):
Yeah, absolutely.
And the and the level of care isextremely high.
Yes, very much so.
Well, and I think that kind ofis a good segue into what is
your role in the operation orsome of the things you have to
do on a day-to-day basis.
SPEAKER_00 (09:36):
Yeah.
So um I'm not reading anything,so I don't have readers, but I
sit behind a computer every day.
So hence the need for thereaders.
Um, when Jimmy and I firststarted, we just ran, you know,
a few pairs, um, maybe a bull ortwo.
And then whenever we're like,okay, this is gonna be our
(09:56):
full-time, you know, um gig, um,we got to the point where we had
to be a lot more deliberateabout our numbers.
Um, I actually have a backgroundin marketing and NPR, which I
enjoy, you know, using some ofthat um with a beef council.
But I went back and tookaccounting classes and, you
(10:19):
know, we pay attention to profitand loss statements, uh, budget
versus actuals, you know, thatsort of thing.
And then also with our umoperation, we also have a truck
and that we run mainly our hay,um, but then also as far as if
we sell calves, we may, youknow, use that instead of
contracting out, um, take careof all of that compliance items
(10:43):
and then billing, um, and thenalso with our IMI, you know, uh
certifications.
So I handle all those auditstoo.
So it's not as romantic, youknow, as being horseback, but um
it's it's a very important partof our operation.
And even Jimmy, you know, he'syes, he's outside more, but um,
(11:08):
there's just a lot of piecesthat that you have to do that
you may not want to do, but wejust tell our kids, but you you
still have to do it.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:17):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think I think it's really neathow you've even taught us.
I, you know, I I work a jobbehind the computer.
That's that's my full-time job,and you know more about uh
accounting and stuff than I'llever know.
And uh I think it's it's it'sjust a you know interesting part
of ranching, that you are arancher and you have to sit in
an office all the time, right?
(11:38):
And and that doesn't make youany less of a rancher.
Um some days it probably makesyou more of a rancher because
you you've helped the businesscontinue.
But uh I always think that'swell that's interesting.
SPEAKER_00 (11:47):
And two, um, with ranching, I I think another
misconception is just how savvyranchers are, how savvy beef
producers are.
Um, because if you're not, youknow, if you may not end up, you
know, it's just you have to payattention to your PCQs, if that
makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (12:07):
So absolutely the margins are margins are so thin
that you have to be you have tobe careful and and paying
attention.
So even though you are, youknow, working in an office, um,
can we talk about the land andhow the environment uh impacts
how you guys ranch?
SPEAKER_00 (12:22):
Yeah, most definitely.
At least in our part of NewMexico, and and I think as a
whole, um we're ranchers arestewards of the land anyway, but
uh taking into account rainfall,uh maybe I don't know what the
right term was, topography, youknow, uh mountain ranges or
(12:42):
hills, whatever, we have to be alot more particular on how we
utilize our land.
Um we rotational graze, uh, notnecessarily I don't know if
prescribes the right word, butwe'll pay attention to, okay, we
may need to rotate two weeksearlier here or there, but
that's something that wedefinitely, you know, take into
(13:03):
account.
Um we're pretty traditional asfar as everything's done
horseback, you know, of course,uh feed trucks and that sort of
thing.
But um, you know, some placesthat you have to be, it's easier
to be horseback than otherwise.
SPEAKER_01 (13:19):
So absolutely.
Uh so just at the very base ofranching in New Mexico, I was
explaining to someone recentlyand I didn't realize how you
know, simple of an idea it mightbe, but how unknown of a thing
it is.
So when you're ranching in NewMexico, you are waiting for
native grasses and naturalrainfall to grow in order to
(13:42):
feed those cattles.
And so that goes back to why youhave the grow yard to have more
predictability in certain times.
Um but I think that's just animportant background.
At the very basis of it, arancher is hoping for rain so
that native grasses can come.
And when you do rotationalgrazing, that means, you know,
there was less rain here, sothose those that's that two
(14:04):
weeks early, right?
Or anything like that.
And I just wanted to say thatbecause uh just at its
simplicity, it's it's natural,natural rainfall and native
grasses, and and uh, you know,it's not like you're running out
on horseback throwing seeds outhoping necessarily, right?
Yeah.
It's uh it's hoping that thethat you've cared for the land
enough and rescue it enough forgrass to come again the next
(14:27):
year.
SPEAKER_00 (14:27):
Yeah, and and two, the sheer monster scale, but as
far as stalking rates in NewMexico, um, yeah, you you're
depending on natural tendenciesand and characteristics of your
of your land.
Um, at least in our area,there's a lot more um warm
weather grasses than coolweather.
And so that's something thatwe'll take, you know, take into
(14:50):
account.
Um it helps as far as uh haythat we may not sell to dairy or
you know, other ranches, thatsort of thing.
It um it that allows us maybe anavenue we'll feed it, you know,
out on the ranch or that sort ofthing, if we can't sell it for a
premium otherwise.
SPEAKER_01 (15:11):
So, what is something you are looking for to
know when you can move on to thenext pasture?
SPEAKER_00 (15:17):
Certain things like we really don't want much uh
trampling, you know, aroundwaters, um, that sort of thing.
We'll pay attention to that.
Um, sometimes, quite frankly, asfar as on um cow patties, you
know, certain characteristicswith that.
Um, but two, based upon say thetime of the year, um, there's
(15:39):
certain grasses that we, youknow, notice they may be a
little lower than than they needto be, um, you know, that sort
of thing.
There may be, and I I've been toum, you know, regenerative
grazing classes and courses andthat sort of thing, and it's
great, but at least for ouroperation, it's more of a
hands-on than, you know, um aformula, if that makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (16:04):
Yeah, and you you mentioned stocking rate, and
stocking rate would mean howmany head of cattle per acre.
SPEAKER_00 (16:11):
Yeah, or or animal unit.
Yeah.
Like as far as bull might bemore than than that, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (16:16):
Right, right.
So, so in um New Mexico, I thinkI heard Dr.
(16:53):
Wentzel say recently that it waslike 50 and upwards of 70 acres
per animal unit um in NewMexico.
Exactly.
And then where it's really dry,it might be a hundred acres.
Um, and and that's you know, thecomparisons to, you know, if you
go in the Midwest, they mighthave they all they almost have
multiple animals in one acre,right?
(17:15):
Because their grass is so lushand the humidity and the rain
and all of that.
So because New Mexico is so dryand arid and and all the things
that we are, um that stocking,right?
So you have to have, you know,if you want to have 50 uh
animals, which I'm not gonna beable to do that math while we're
on the podcast, I'm gonna getembarrassed.
Yeah, uh, but you know, if youhave one animal for 50 acres, so
(17:39):
you have to buy 50 acres to haveone animal.
Yeah.
Just imagine if you want to buy50, right?
Exactly.
Um, or have the opportunity to.
So yeah, that's a reallyimportant part of New Mexico's
landscape.
Um what would you say is one ofthe biggest challenges you face
in your ranch?
SPEAKER_00 (17:55):
Um, for us, I say starting out, you know, we're
purchased or built everythingthat we've that we have is just
the cost, the sheer cost of allof your input.
Um especially nowadays with theway cat you know, beef prices,
cattle prices are.
(18:16):
Um I've heard a lot of commentson social media about all those
rich ranchers.
And that's not necess that it'snot necessarily it's not the
case because your input costsare are so um high that you
really have to pay attention tothat and make sure that, okay,
yes, did I really make thisamount because all of the cost
(18:39):
that it took um you know to getto that point?
SPEAKER_01 (18:43):
Yeah, absolutely.
We're we talked about it a longtime in the last podcast about
you know, everything costs moremoney nowadays.
Everything.
The the feed truck costs moremoney.
The horse that you were just intalking country about that.
Yeah.
Horses are expensive nowadays.
Everything has, you know, ahigher price tag.
And so when you see cattleprices go more up, or even if
(19:05):
you see it at the grocery storethat beef is more expensive.
SPEAKER_00 (19:07):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:08):
If you think about life being more expensive and
everything we have to go, all ofthe inputs into it, we even were
working on kind of a comparisonof of what the inflation is.
Well the price of beef nowversus 10 years and the but the
price of your coffee cup for twoyears ago and all of the things
(19:28):
that that have increased inprice.
And so we understand, you know,nobody wants super expensive
groceries.
We hope everyone can feed theirfamilies in in an affordable
way.
And we have to understandeverything is expensive now.
SPEAKER_00 (19:41):
Oh yeah.
And and even uh New Mexico, asfar as real estate, you know,
ranch real estate, you know,that sort of thing.
Um a lot of people will buy andflip things, which is great.
And that that's a wonderful wayum, you know, to make money and
that sort of thing.
But for people that are wantingto utilize um the land to, you
(20:05):
know, raise animal or long term,it it's created some
difficulties on, you know,getting man.
Um and another viable option isleasing, leasing land, which a
lot of the places that we have,we've got that as well.
So it's just it's kind of paid,it's forced us to pay attention
to our P's and Q's once again.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (20:23):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
And if we go back to the thelingo or the jargon of the
stocking rate and the animalunits, nowadays you like.
Look at you hope you can get, Ithink, from what you can land
under$15,000 an animal unit.
And if it's$10,000 an animalunit, you're getting a good
price.
Yeah.
But most things are priced at$20,000 and more per animal unit
(20:47):
right now.
Yeah.
And so yeah, you have, again,just more, more high input
costs.
SPEAKER_00 (20:51):
Yeah, no, it is.
And and for us, what we've seen,at least recently, is uh as far
as the price of land on beingable to cash flow it.
You know, say if you have to geta loan on doing that, um,
farmland, we're still able tocash flow that.
So maybe we invest in that,which we can then use, you know,
(21:14):
to put our calves out or steersout on wheat or, you know, that
sort of thing.
That's, you know, part of ouroverall operation.
But it it's important to realizethat, well, maybe you can't buy
this, but you can buy this, oryou can lease this.
There's a lot of options forpeople wanting to, you know,
start out.
SPEAKER_01 (21:32):
So as long as you uh are adaptable, right?
Yes.
Oh, exactly.
Yeah.
Um, what is something thatyou're excited about in your
operation right now, orsomething that that makes you
makes you proud?
SPEAKER_00 (21:46):
Um the past few years, uh, I mean, this year, of
course, yes, it's great.
Cattle prices were werewonderful.
Um we Ford contracted out, sowe're able to, which means um
you essentially have a contractat a certain price.
And so they will honor that, youknow, however many months out
(22:08):
whenever you uh ship out yourcalves.
So that was great.
But the past few years were, youknow, a little tough.
But one of the joys, I don'tknow if joys, yeah, one of the
rewarding things about ranching,um, and sp you know, I think in
New Mexico too, is just family.
Um, I work with my husband everysingle day, which isn't the
(22:30):
easiest, but now I know we canget through anything.
I mean, truly.
And um it's yeah, so I I I thinkit's that.
I we're looking forward tobrighter days and and uh you
know, our kids are gettingolder, they're able to help
more.
So I think one of the things I'mmost excited about is just uh
(22:55):
growth and and including ourlittle, you know, cowboy and
cowgirl that that help out onthe on the daily.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (23:02):
That's definitely something to be proud of.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
Uh what is the best piece ofadvice you've ever received?
SPEAKER_00 (23:14):
I'm trying to think.
My my dad was very particularabout his books.
Um and so I I think that'sprobably it.
I don't have like a great quoteto say, but um, yeah, I I think
it's just paying attention tothe bottom line, paying
(23:34):
attention to your numbers.
Um and two, uh, we make somepeople may see things that Jimmy
(24:01):
and I are doing being like, whatin the world are they doing?
But it's a calculated risk.
Um and so I think you can kindof step out and try some
different things if the numberswork.
So yeah, I think just payingattention to your numbers, um,
regardless of how big or littleyou might be, um, if the numbers
(24:24):
work, then you're in it for thelong term.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (24:28):
That's I great advice, right?
And obviously uh something thatyou learned well, right?
Yeah, because that's that'ssomething you guys work on
really hard.
Can you give an example of howyou care for your cattle to
ensure their health andwell-being?
Maybe an example, somethingdifferent than we've already
talked about.
SPEAKER_00 (24:43):
Yeah.
We don't really take vacations.
Yeah.
You know, um, everything rotatesaround, okay, we have this
window between, you know,calving and this window between,
say, Hayes and and and that.
So, um, so yeah, they're ourpriority.
Uh, they eat before we do mostof the time.
(25:06):
Um, sometimes that's you know,later nights, that sort of
thing, but they're they're ournumber one priority um as far as
that goes.
But also one of the things, youknow, as part of our um, you
know, all natural program, andyou know, as far as that goes,
is we've we pay attention tothem.
(25:28):
I mean, we know them uh as I g Idon't know, like the back of our
hand as far as you know, payingattention to that.
Well, and do you want to talkany more about some of the
certifications you have?
SPEAKER_01 (25:39):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (25:40):
Yeah.
So there's um it's I I think youyou'll have a like a third party
audit company or certificationcompany.
We use IMI.
Um our auditors actually grew upon a ranch not far from us, so
it's it's neat as far as shereally knows what she's you know
(26:01):
checking out.
Um, but there's differentcertifications that you can get.
Um for us, it was a financialdecision because you can get a
little bit more of a premium,you know, on that as far as uh
price per pound.
But uh we've got all natural,which basically means that
there's um the food that we feedthem is has to meet certain, you
(26:28):
know, certifications, that sortof thing.
Um and then also there they willreceive um you know
vaccinations, but anytime, saythat they were sick, of course,
you know, I'm a mom.
When my child is sick, I I giveit medicine, you know.
I mean, of course, why would Inot not do that?
(26:51):
Right.
But um when you do that, itit'll kick it out to a more
traditional route.
And so what we do is we'llusually um contract out calves
that are um I say traditional oryou know more traditional, and
then we'll have our all naturalfor that.
Um one thing that's prettyinteresting is uh source
(27:12):
verified.
So, you know, I mean uh it's anEID tag for people that that
don't know, um, kind of likealmost like a barcode reader.
And so essentially what thatdoes is it guarantees that you
know kind of where it's beenfrom point A to point B for
that.
SPEAKER_01 (27:28):
So well, and those the E ID, I think it stands for
just electronic identification.
Yeah.
Um and those are now mandatoryum nationwide, but you were
doing that prior.
SPEAKER_00 (27:40):
Prior, yeah.
As far as a um, you know, justit for us, like I said, it was a
financial decision on that.
But yeah, I think we've beendoing it about uh this may be
our fourth year, I think.
SPEAKER_01 (27:54):
Yeah.
And they just recentlyimplemented it that if an animal
moves across state lines, theyhave to have that um so that
they can know where they camefrom and I think an attempt to
um understand when outbreakshappen, when disease happens,
things like that, right?
For for that.
But I I'm I'm not as familiarwith that.
(28:16):
We'd have to ask the livestockboard and cattle growers more
about that if we go if we go toofar into it.
What is your favorite part ofyour job?
SPEAKER_00 (28:25):
Um, no two-day, no, you know, two days are ever the
same.
Um I think for us we're marriedto our operation, but it allows
us some, you know, someflexibility.
Um, there's always something newto learn.
We're always um, I would love tosay that we don't talk shop at
(28:46):
at night, but we do.
So we kind of, you know, umsleepy and and breathe all of
all of that.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (28:56):
Is there anything else that you would want someone
um especially if it was a youknow consumer, all they know is
they get their beef at thegrocery store.
What do you hope they learnabout ranching or hope they know
about uh the beef industry?
SPEAKER_00 (29:10):
Yeah.
I I don't know, I'm almostthinking that is it in the US
like 95% of the operations are ffamily owned?
SPEAKER_01 (29:19):
Yeah.
Um maybe even higher, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (29:21):
Yeah.
And so um, and actually the uhas far as um size of herds, that
sort of thing, is a lot smallerthan what people think.
So whenever you're choosing topurchase, you know, beef, it's
there's a story, you know,behind it.
Um and a family um that hasbenefited from it, um, at least
(29:45):
in our operation.
There's a little boy and littlegirl that learned some life
lessons in raising and uh yeah,raising your beef.
So we uh and and two, I wantpeople to know that it it's
safe.
Um I yes, we do retain, youknow, some beefs to process
(30:08):
ourselves, but like especiallywhen I don't have time to
defrost something or don't wantto mess with it, like I buy my
beef the same place that y'allwould, and I feed it to my
family.
Um so yeah, there's just a lotof lot of options out there.
And but to the story behind it,I think it's important to know.
(30:29):
And and uh that's one of thereasons I appreciate you with a
podcast is what behind theburger.
Okay, this is a story behindwhat you eat, what you consume.
Um, and I think it makes peoplea little more educated in their
food choices.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:44):
Yeah, absolutely.
And and if you're, you know,curious for the story, or we
just hope you're curious for thestory, it's here we are.
Yeah.
Don't we won't uh at least weare we are putting it out there.
SPEAKER_02 (30:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:55):
Um, well, why do you do what you do?
What makes you keep going?
SPEAKER_00 (31:01):
Um I think Jimmy and I'm gonna say the exact same
thing.
It's family.
You know, we're we're providinga future for my son and my
daughter.
Um and I would hope that theyboth want to come back home.
Um, which is, you know,essentially I came back home.
(31:22):
But at the very least, there'slife lessons that they learn on
the daily that we're providingfor them.
Um, and it's a blessing to beable to w some days, I may not
say it, but it's a blessing towork with my husband.
Um, I think there's a closenessthat that we get to, you know,
(31:43):
have that not many, you know,may have.
And then two, just um for me,it's it's almost a spiritual
thing, you know.
Um as a believer, I think we'retasked to care for God's
creation.
And that's something that umthat I'm honored, you know, that
our family gets to do.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:02):
What a what a wonderful answer and what a what
an impactful statement.
Uh what is a piece of adviceyou'd give someone that might
want to follow in yourfootsteps?
SPEAKER_00 (32:15):
Yeah.
You can you can do it.
I mean, truly.
Like, yes, our family um has along history in ranching in New
Mexico and you know, that sortof thing, but we just didn't
have the flexibility to inheritsomething.
So it it can be done.
(32:36):
Um, and there's uh is it SilesPastures?
Sile.
Sile pastures.
I just think they are thecoolest ever.
SPEAKER_01 (32:45):
On was he a chef?
Yeah, he was a chef and uh Ithink trained all over the
world, and then he's a chef inlike Hollywood.
SPEAKER_00 (32:52):
Yeah, and you know, I you can do it.
I I truly think that if yourgoal is to um have some part in
the you know beef production inNew Mexico that it is possible.
Um I think uh Beef Council is,you know, we've got the
directory and education as faras sponsoring educational
(33:15):
aspects.
Um, and then two, you know,there's a lot of other
organizations in New Mexico thatand two, just quite frankly,
people are willing to help.
I think that's one of the thingsthat I appreciate about the
ranching community in New Mexicois whether it's in your local
community, as far as someone's,you know, willing to at the drop
of the hat help.
(33:37):
Maybe you've got issues withcalving or you need, you know,
test something, or I don't know,a fire, and you've got to move
things, you know, really fast.
But it it's uh everyone'swilling to help.
So just don't be afraid to askfor help too.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (33:52):
Absolutely.
I think I think you and Jimmy, Ithink uh C Lai Pastures, and I
think there's a lot of othergreat examples of uh folks that
that have decided they wanted toranch and now they've done it.
Right.
Just doing it and just buildingand growing.
Um so I think that's that'sreally neat and really special
that as we go through this thisyou know podcaster task of of
(34:15):
talking to ranchers, we now havelearned about so many of them.
SPEAKER_00 (34:18):
And two, um, there's a place for everyone as far as
your place, um, may not bespecifically like on the
production side of it, you know,raising cow calf or having a
grow yard or having a feed yard.
Um it's been really interesting.
Like we've through the beefcouncil, we've been able to um
(34:40):
assist whether it be a meatscience, you know, which is so
interesting, you know, all ofthe things that they can do with
that aspect.
So it's, you know, um, it's youcan find your place, I guess, in
in the production cycle orscience aspect of it.
SPEAKER_01 (34:59):
Oh, absolutely.
I try and when we talk to highschoolers and college kids, a
lot of times I think theconversation with an 18-year-old
is the same.
It's like, I don't know what I'mgonna do, or what what can I do?
And and I always try andexplain, especially in the beef
industry, the possibilities areendless.
We have a registered dietitianon staff, we have a marketing
expert on staff, we can, youknow, and then we work with food
(35:19):
scientists and meat cutters andwe have accounts and all of
these things that if you want tobe involved in the beef
industry, come one, come all.
We've got well and jobs.
SPEAKER_00 (35:28):
I mean, we even have nutritionists for our cattle.
Right.
So um whether it be um making upa specific ration or mineral
pack or on, you know, say bulkfeed on the the ranch side, it
it's it's it's a calculateddecision, if that makes sense.
And there's specialists thatwill definitely, you know,
assist you with that.
SPEAKER_01 (35:49):
So absolutely.
And and if you're a you know, acollege kid or even a high
school kid and there's an agthere's an agriculture class at
your school, I I wholeheartedlysay sign up.
Um I grew up, you know, showingfor each and and having horses,
but I didn't understand, youknow, agriculture necessarily or
commercial agriculture until Iwent to college and I figured
(36:11):
out I could take a uh beefmanagement class and have a
class about cows, and it's like,what?
How is this a thing?
And then and then, you know, mymy love and hope to work in the
industry grew from there.
And so if there's a class, youneed an elective, sign up for
animal science class, yeah.
Sign up for, you know, the theag uh agriculture class or FFA
program at your high school.
(36:32):
Um if you have any interest andjust in and at least at least if
it stops at that class, you havea a bit of information about
where your food comes from.
SPEAKER_00 (36:41):
Exactly.
Yeah.
I think with anything, as far asbeing educated isn't a bad
thing.
You know, yeah.
And and make your decision asfar as whether be what you eat,
what you decide to be when yougrow up.
Um, I still, you know, I'm notsure what what my decision is,
but um at least you're educatedand then you proceed
(37:01):
accordingly.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (37:02):
Yep.
Always good to uh get moreinformation.
Uh so we I like to say this ismy my favorite question and last
question.
Um, what is your current?
I kind of edited it a littlebit.
What is your current favoriteway to eat beef or favorite
recipe?
SPEAKER_00 (37:17):
Yeah.
So as we're um coming up toChristmas, um, my family, my
dad's family in Italian.
So we always have uh homemadespaghetti meatballs, sauce, that
sort of thing um for ChristmasEve.
And they've done that for Idon't know.
I mean a hundred, I don't know,a hundred years, whatever.
(37:40):
And so that's special.
So yes, I love making homemademeatballs.
Um and I I think with beef orwith preparing it, whether you
choose to serve it, you know,just a family meal or you're
having a party or something,there's something sacred about
sharing a meal together.
(38:01):
And for us, at least, beef's,you know, usually on the plate
too.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (38:06):
Absolutely.
There is definitely somethingspecial in how uh you can
connect over a meal.
And I always feel special whenyou have beef.
We know it's high quality.
Yes.
You you know that you uh broughtyour guests the best thing and
and uh you know, and then I'malso paid to do that.
So yeah, exactly.
Uh well I appreciate your time.
Thank you for joining thepodcast.
(38:26):
Thank you for always being uhwilling to tell your story.
Yeah.
And lastly, you know, thank youfor what you do to help feed the
world.
SPEAKER_00 (38:33):
Yeah, no, it's our pleasure.
And um, I think Jimmy said it,but truly, I think yeah, he's on
on Facebook.
I am or or um LinkedIn or all ofthat.
But like, ask questions andwe're open book.
I don't we may not knoweverything, but we sure know who
to ask or happy to help.
So yeah.
(38:54):
Thank you for that.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (38:56):
Awesome.
Well, thank you again.
Yeah, thank you.
Behind the Burger is a podcastproduced by the New Mexico Beef
Council with the goal of tellingthe stories of the cattlemen and
cattlewomen of the New Mexicobeef industry.
Thank you for joining us fortoday's episode.
If you would like moreinformation, please visit
nmbeef.com.
Whether it be a burger, a steak,or another beef dish, we hope
(39:17):
you are enjoying beef at yournext meal.
Welcome back to another episode of Behind the
Burger.
I'm Caroline Romo, the executivedirector of the New Mexico Beef
Council.
And I am here with SarahFitzgerald, who is the chairman
of our New Mexico Beef Counciland a New Mexico Ranger.
So Sarah, will you uh thanks forjoining me and will you
introduce yourself and kind ofwhat you guys do?
(00:24):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (00:24):
Um, well, my husband, Jimmy, was on a few
episodes before.
And um of course this will be acontest, so we'll see who who
wins out on that.
But no, um, we uh have a littlegrow yard in Fort Summer, New
Mexico.
Uh we also do cow calf, um, somecustom feeding.
(00:45):
Um, and we always joke and sayit's you know kind of anything
to make a buck.
We've got some Airbnbs, um, youknow, a little little bit of
everything.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (00:55):
And you guys um tell me kind of about your
background.
SPEAKER_00 (00:59):
You grew up in the area, right?
I did.
I did.
Um my husband's from Texas, andI I don't hold that against him.
But um my family actually, theyimmigrated from Italy in the um
first part of the I guess 1900s,you know, that that time frame.
(01:20):
Um, worked in the coal mines insouthern Colorado.
There's a little town calledMorley, um, not far from
Trinidad.
It was a company town.
And they grew up there.
Um, they tried to go to FortSumner and ended up kind of
going broke and went back to thecoal mines and finally decided,
(01:41):
you know, this isn't um the waythat we want to raise our
family.
This isn't what I want my sons,you know, to grow up in.
And so they were like, okay,we're, you know, kind of they
picked themselves up by theirbootstraps and went for round
two in Fort Sumner.
And in one way or another, we'vekind of been there, you know,
ever since then.
SPEAKER_01 (02:00):
So that's a long, long history in a in the small
town, uh, which makes for a lotof great memories and a lot of
great uh connection to thecommunity, right?
SPEAKER_00 (02:09):
Yes, yes, very much so.
We've um uh feed store owners,uh farming, ranching, you know,
a little bit of everything.
And um, you know, just part of aoverall community.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (02:22):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think uh can you tell us aboutFort Sumner?
I know uh we've had theseconversations a lot, but but
tell us about Fort Sumner,right?
And if you're a listener and youhaven't been, it's it's a very
charming community.
No, it really is.
SPEAKER_00 (02:35):
Um it's I think there's maybe it's one of the, I
think one of the biggestcounties in New Mexico, but I
think there's maybe 1,400 peoplein the whole county, um, when
Fort Sumner is the county seatand pretty much the only place
with a school and that sort ofthing.
But um if you like history, uhWild West, Billy the Kid, uh
(02:57):
Fort Summer was kind of one ofthe big towns, you know, with
that um Lincoln County Wars, um,which actually kind of tying it
into cattle, they were um uhdifferent kind of factions were
competing for the beef contractsfor the forts in the area.
(03:17):
And um, you know, it was bigmoney going on.
And so that's why Billy the Kidwas kind of fighting on one side
and the other.
Um, he was shot in Fort Sumnerand buried there.
And um growing up, we could washuh dishes and see his grave.
So kind of a cool place, a lotof history.
Um, and ranching, you know, beefproduction has always kind of
(03:41):
been a part of that.
Um, some sheep and then, youknow, farming too, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (03:47):
Absolutely.
And I think uh with that historyand the and the cows, is it
isn't it part of the GoodnightLoving Trail too?
SPEAKER_00 (03:54):
Yeah, so um the Goodnight Loving Trail was
actually created to bring umbeef to Fort Sumner.
Okay.
Yeah, so um, if you're alonesome dove fan, you know,
whenever he is um uh finallysuccumbs to his injuries and is
buried and then, you know,brought back, he was uh
(04:16):
truthfully was buried in FortSumner.
So yeah, there's a lot of fun,you know, historical things with
kind of the Wild West andranching that that ties into
Fort Sumner.
SPEAKER_01 (04:26):
So absolutely I always try and tell people New
Mexico truly is the Wild West.
No, it it is.
Yeah, everything of the the fun,you know, stories, the the lore,
and then the history, a lot ofit happened there.
And then in our travels as theNew Mexico Beef Council, I'm
pretty sure we went to aproducer meeting in Gladstone,
which is also on the GoodnightLoving Trail.
Yeah.
(04:46):
And then I wanted to say LaPosta and Mesia was maybe on the
Goodnight Loving Trail, right?
It was a stagecoach stop.
It was a stagecoach stop, yeah.
Yeah, and now it's turned into arestaurant.
So um, it's an important part ofNew Mexico's history.
Yeah.
Yeah, definitely.
Well, tell me about your youroperation a little bit more.
Um, you guys, you know, you farmand you ranch.
Um, but yeah, tell me, tell meabout your your ranching.
SPEAKER_00 (05:09):
So we um have, you know, a history and Fort Sumter
family history, but Jimmy and Iare actually kind of first-time
ranchers.
You know, we've bought intoeverything we have and um built
it, which causes, you know, someheartache.
And but, you know, anythingworth having is worth working
(05:31):
for too.
Um, but yeah, we um raise uhalfalfa in corn in the Pecas
River Valley, which it's areally neat um, I I think it's a
little spot of heaven becauseyou kind of with New Mexico,
there's such uh differingtopography, you know, weather
(05:51):
patterns, um, land masses, thatsort of thing.
But there's just this littlevalley that is flood-irrigated
by the Pecos River, and it isgreen and lush, and it it's a
neat, neat little reach.
So we farm there.
Um, and we also have a littlegrow yard.
We initially created it.
(06:13):
Um, it's a very efficient wayfor us to wean our calves.
Um, nothing is really close inNew Mexico, or at least, you
know, in our part of the world.
So um, you know, our reaches arelike an hour, hour and a half,
45 minutes away.
And so we're able to kind ofkeep eyes on them.
Um, and then we also, you know,do uh cow calf operations, some
(06:35):
stalkers, you know, depending oncattle or the price of of calves
that year.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (06:41):
When you talk about a grow yard, oh yeah.
Um, and you know, there'sdifferences, right?
So we have ranching and we havedifferent types of ranching, and
then you have grow yards andfeed yards.
Can you kind of explain a growyard?
SPEAKER_00 (06:54):
I could try, but I know uh well, and I mean you
could say it's a feed yard, butmy husband Jimmy is always like
it's not that big.
So we call it a grow yard.
But um it's it's a uh moreefficient way for us to feed,
but uh you kind of think of um afeedlot as or grow yard or you
(07:19):
know, whatever you want to callit, as just part of the life
cycle of um whether it be theanimal or the life cycle in kind
of the the feeding cycle there.
Um for us, we you know, we mightwean you know in the grow yard,
but two, um, calves may come inand you're wanting to get them
(07:41):
um, you know, from a certain somany pounds is so many pounds in
a very efficient manner.
So that's it's kind of a waythat we can um two, maybe we may
not have gotten as much rain inone area and we can kind of move
things back and forth.
Um so yeah, it's just kind ofpart of our overall operation,
(08:02):
if that makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (08:03):
Yeah, and and some of the things that I think kind
of differentiate, like a like agrow yard is often the younger
animals, the calves, right?
And then the feed yard is maybewhere it where you would finish
an animal, right?
And they go to the maybe thatmight be sometimes most tricky.
And then I and then I think umit's an important understand
too.
It's uh when you guys areweaning those calves and keeping
(08:24):
a closer eye on them.
I always to to you know go tothe goal of the podcast of
knowing the work and the effortthat goes in when there's calves
in the grow yard, Sarah can'tleave town.
I mean Jimmy can't leave town.
And it's not happening.
Yeah, you hear the calvesbawling in the background of
every phone call.
Yeah.
Because that's because it's it'sa place where you're keeping
(08:45):
track of maybe maybe they wouldhave been high maintenance on a
ranch, right?
So now they're closer together,you can keep them safe and and
uh get them growing and and uhum right in a controlled
environment.
SPEAKER_00 (08:57):
Yeah, and a misconception, I think, um,
about whether be a grow yard orfeed yard is maybe level of
care.
And then also like we'recertified natural, source
verified, you know, all thesethings.
And so all of our feed labels umare audited.
Um and so there's a lot ofdifferent types of ways to, you
(09:20):
know, feed um beef, if thatmakes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (09:24):
Yeah, absolutely.
And the and the level of care isextremely high.
Yes, very much so.
Well, and I think that kind ofis a good segue into what is
your role in the operation orsome of the things you have to
do on a day-to-day basis.
SPEAKER_00 (09:36):
Yeah.
So um I'm not reading anything,so I don't have readers, but I
sit behind a computer every day.
So hence the need for thereaders.
Um, when Jimmy and I firststarted, we just ran, you know,
a few pairs, um, maybe a bull ortwo.
And then whenever we're like,okay, this is gonna be our
(09:56):
full-time, you know, um gig, um,we got to the point where we had
to be a lot more deliberateabout our numbers.
Um, I actually have a backgroundin marketing and NPR, which I
enjoy, you know, using some ofthat um with a beef council.
But I went back and tookaccounting classes and, you
(10:19):
know, we pay attention to profitand loss statements, uh, budget
versus actuals, you know, thatsort of thing.
And then also with our umoperation, we also have a truck
and that we run mainly our hay,um, but then also as far as if
we sell calves, we may, youknow, use that instead of
contracting out, um, take careof all of that compliance items
(10:43):
and then billing, um, and thenalso with our IMI, you know, uh
certifications.
So I handle all those auditstoo.
So it's not as romantic, youknow, as being horseback, but um
it's it's a very important partof our operation.
And even Jimmy, you know, he'syes, he's outside more, but um,
(11:08):
there's just a lot of piecesthat that you have to do that
you may not want to do, but wejust tell our kids, but you you
still have to do it.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:17):
Yeah, absolutely.
I think I think it's really neathow you've even taught us.
I, you know, I I work a jobbehind the computer.
That's that's my full-time job,and you know more about uh
accounting and stuff than I'llever know.
And uh I think it's it's it'sjust a you know interesting part
of ranching, that you are arancher and you have to sit in
an office all the time, right?
(11:38):
And and that doesn't make youany less of a rancher.
Um some days it probably makesyou more of a rancher because
you you've helped the businesscontinue.
But uh I always think that'swell that's interesting.
SPEAKER_00 (11:47):
And two, um, with ranching, I I think another
misconception is just how savvyranchers are, how savvy beef
producers are.
Um, because if you're not, youknow, if you may not end up, you
know, it's just you have to payattention to your PCQs, if that
makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (12:07):
So absolutely the margins are margins are so thin
that you have to be you have tobe careful and and paying
attention.
So even though you are, youknow, working in an office, um,
can we talk about the land andhow the environment uh impacts
how you guys ranch?
SPEAKER_00 (12:22):
Yeah, most definitely.
At least in our part of NewMexico, and and I think as a
whole, um we're ranchers arestewards of the land anyway, but
uh taking into account rainfall,uh maybe I don't know what the
right term was, topography, youknow, uh mountain ranges or
(12:42):
hills, whatever, we have to be alot more particular on how we
utilize our land.
Um we rotational graze, uh, notnecessarily I don't know if
prescribes the right word, butwe'll pay attention to, okay, we
may need to rotate two weeksearlier here or there, but
that's something that wedefinitely, you know, take into
(13:03):
account.
Um we're pretty traditional asfar as everything's done
horseback, you know, of course,uh feed trucks and that sort of
thing.
But um, you know, some placesthat you have to be, it's easier
to be horseback than otherwise.
SPEAKER_01 (13:19):
So absolutely.
Uh so just at the very base ofranching in New Mexico, I was
explaining to someone recentlyand I didn't realize how you
know, simple of an idea it mightbe, but how unknown of a thing
it is.
So when you're ranching in NewMexico, you are waiting for
native grasses and naturalrainfall to grow in order to
(13:42):
feed those cattles.
And so that goes back to why youhave the grow yard to have more
predictability in certain times.
Um but I think that's just animportant background.
At the very basis of it, arancher is hoping for rain so
that native grasses can come.
And when you do rotationalgrazing, that means, you know,
there was less rain here, sothose those that's that two
(14:04):
weeks early, right?
Or anything like that.
And I just wanted to say thatbecause uh just at its
simplicity, it's it's natural,natural rainfall and native
grasses, and and uh, you know,it's not like you're running out
on horseback throwing seeds outhoping necessarily, right?
Yeah.
It's uh it's hoping that thethat you've cared for the land
enough and rescue it enough forgrass to come again the next
(14:27):
year.
SPEAKER_00 (14:27):
Yeah, and and two, the sheer monster scale, but as
far as stalking rates in NewMexico, um, yeah, you you're
depending on natural tendenciesand and characteristics of your
of your land.
Um, at least in our area,there's a lot more um warm
weather grasses than coolweather.
And so that's something thatwe'll take, you know, take into
(14:50):
account.
Um it helps as far as uh haythat we may not sell to dairy or
you know, other ranches, thatsort of thing.
It um it that allows us maybe anavenue we'll feed it, you know,
out on the ranch or that sort ofthing, if we can't sell it for a
premium otherwise.
SPEAKER_01 (15:11):
So, what is something you are looking for to
know when you can move on to thenext pasture?
SPEAKER_00 (15:17):
Certain things like we really don't want much uh
trampling, you know, aroundwaters, um, that sort of thing.
We'll pay attention to that.
Um, sometimes, quite frankly, asfar as on um cow patties, you
know, certain characteristicswith that.
Um, but two, based upon say thetime of the year, um, there's
(15:39):
certain grasses that we, youknow, notice they may be a
little lower than than they needto be, um, you know, that sort
of thing.
There may be, and I I've been toum, you know, regenerative
grazing classes and courses andthat sort of thing, and it's
great, but at least for ouroperation, it's more of a
hands-on than, you know, um aformula, if that makes sense.
SPEAKER_01 (16:04):
Yeah, and you you mentioned stocking rate, and
stocking rate would mean howmany head of cattle per acre.
SPEAKER_00 (16:11):
Yeah, or or animal unit.
Yeah.
Like as far as bull might bemore than than that, but yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (16:16):
Right, right.
So, so in um New Mexico, I thinkI heard Dr.
(16:53):
Wentzel say recently that it waslike 50 and upwards of 70 acres
per animal unit um in NewMexico.
Exactly.
And then where it's really dry,it might be a hundred acres.
Um, and and that's you know, thecomparisons to, you know, if you
go in the Midwest, they mighthave they all they almost have
multiple animals in one acre,right?
(17:15):
Because their grass is so lushand the humidity and the rain
and all of that.
So because New Mexico is so dryand arid and and all the things
that we are, um that stocking,right?
So you have to have, you know,if you want to have 50 uh
animals, which I'm not gonna beable to do that math while we're
on the podcast, I'm gonna getembarrassed.
Yeah, uh, but you know, if youhave one animal for 50 acres, so
(17:39):
you have to buy 50 acres to haveone animal.
Yeah.
Just imagine if you want to buy50, right?
Exactly.
Um, or have the opportunity to.
So yeah, that's a reallyimportant part of New Mexico's
landscape.
Um what would you say is one ofthe biggest challenges you face
in your ranch?
SPEAKER_00 (17:55):
Um, for us, I say starting out, you know, we're
purchased or built everythingthat we've that we have is just
the cost, the sheer cost of allof your input.
Um especially nowadays with theway cat you know, beef prices,
cattle prices are.
(18:16):
Um I've heard a lot of commentson social media about all those
rich ranchers.
And that's not necess that it'snot necessarily it's not the
case because your input costsare are so um high that you
really have to pay attention tothat and make sure that, okay,
yes, did I really make thisamount because all of the cost
(18:39):
that it took um you know to getto that point?
SPEAKER_01 (18:43):
Yeah, absolutely.
We're we talked about it a longtime in the last podcast about
you know, everything costs moremoney nowadays.
Everything.
The the feed truck costs moremoney.
The horse that you were just intalking country about that.
Yeah.
Horses are expensive nowadays.
Everything has, you know, ahigher price tag.
And so when you see cattleprices go more up, or even if
(19:05):
you see it at the grocery storethat beef is more expensive.
SPEAKER_00 (19:07):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:08):
If you think about life being more expensive and
everything we have to go, all ofthe inputs into it, we even were
working on kind of a comparisonof of what the inflation is.
Well the price of beef nowversus 10 years and the but the
price of your coffee cup for twoyears ago and all of the things
(19:28):
that that have increased inprice.
And so we understand, you know,nobody wants super expensive
groceries.
We hope everyone can feed theirfamilies in in an affordable
way.
And we have to understandeverything is expensive now.
SPEAKER_00 (19:41):
Oh yeah.
And and even uh New Mexico, asfar as real estate, you know,
ranch real estate, you know,that sort of thing.
Um a lot of people will buy andflip things, which is great.
And that that's a wonderful wayum, you know, to make money and
that sort of thing.
But for people that are wantingto utilize um the land to, you
(20:05):
know, raise animal or long term,it it's created some
difficulties on, you know,getting man.
Um and another viable option isleasing, leasing land, which a
lot of the places that we have,we've got that as well.
So it's just it's kind of paid,it's forced us to pay attention
to our P's and Q's once again.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (20:23):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
And if we go back to the thelingo or the jargon of the
stocking rate and the animalunits, nowadays you like.
Look at you hope you can get, Ithink, from what you can land
under$15,000 an animal unit.
And if it's$10,000 an animalunit, you're getting a good
price.
Yeah.
But most things are priced at$20,000 and more per animal unit
(20:47):
right now.
Yeah.
And so yeah, you have, again,just more, more high input
costs.
SPEAKER_00 (20:51):
Yeah, no, it is.
And and for us, what we've seen,at least recently, is uh as far
as the price of land on beingable to cash flow it.
You know, say if you have to geta loan on doing that, um,
farmland, we're still able tocash flow that.
So maybe we invest in that,which we can then use, you know,
(21:14):
to put our calves out or steersout on wheat or, you know, that
sort of thing.
That's, you know, part of ouroverall operation.
But it it's important to realizethat, well, maybe you can't buy
this, but you can buy this, oryou can lease this.
There's a lot of options forpeople wanting to, you know,
start out.
SPEAKER_01 (21:32):
So as long as you uh are adaptable, right?
Yes.
Oh, exactly.
Yeah.
Um, what is something thatyou're excited about in your
operation right now, orsomething that that makes you
makes you proud?
SPEAKER_00 (21:46):
Um the past few years, uh, I mean, this year, of
course, yes, it's great.
Cattle prices were werewonderful.
Um we Ford contracted out, sowe're able to, which means um
you essentially have a contractat a certain price.
And so they will honor that, youknow, however many months out
(22:08):
whenever you uh ship out yourcalves.
So that was great.
But the past few years were, youknow, a little tough.
But one of the joys, I don'tknow if joys, yeah, one of the
rewarding things about ranching,um, and sp you know, I think in
New Mexico too, is just family.
Um, I work with my husband everysingle day, which isn't the
(22:30):
easiest, but now I know we canget through anything.
I mean, truly.
And um it's yeah, so I I I thinkit's that.
I we're looking forward tobrighter days and and uh you
know, our kids are gettingolder, they're able to help
more.
So I think one of the things I'mmost excited about is just uh
(22:55):
growth and and including ourlittle, you know, cowboy and
cowgirl that that help out onthe on the daily.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (23:02):
That's definitely something to be proud of.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
Uh what is the best piece ofadvice you've ever received?
SPEAKER_00 (23:14):
I'm trying to think.
My my dad was very particularabout his books.
Um and so I I think that'sprobably it.
I don't have like a great quoteto say, but um, yeah, I I think
it's just paying attention tothe bottom line, paying
(23:34):
attention to your numbers.
Um and two, uh, we make somepeople may see things that Jimmy
(24:01):
and I are doing being like, whatin the world are they doing?
But it's a calculated risk.
Um and so I think you can kindof step out and try some
different things if the numberswork.
So yeah, I think just payingattention to your numbers, um,
regardless of how big or littleyou might be, um, if the numbers
(24:24):
work, then you're in it for thelong term.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (24:28):
That's I great advice, right?
And obviously uh something thatyou learned well, right?
Yeah, because that's that'ssomething you guys work on
really hard.
Can you give an example of howyou care for your cattle to
ensure their health andwell-being?
Maybe an example, somethingdifferent than we've already
talked about.
SPEAKER_00 (24:43):
Yeah.
We don't really take vacations.
Yeah.
You know, um, everything rotatesaround, okay, we have this
window between, you know,calving and this window between,
say, Hayes and and and that.
So, um, so yeah, they're ourpriority.
Uh, they eat before we do mostof the time.
(25:06):
Um, sometimes that's you know,later nights, that sort of
thing, but they're they're ournumber one priority um as far as
that goes.
But also one of the things, youknow, as part of our um, you
know, all natural program, andyou know, as far as that goes,
is we've we pay attention tothem.
(25:28):
I mean, we know them uh as I g Idon't know, like the back of our
hand as far as you know, payingattention to that.
Well, and do you want to talkany more about some of the
certifications you have?
SPEAKER_01 (25:39):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (25:40):
Yeah.
So there's um it's I I think youyou'll have a like a third party
audit company or certificationcompany.
We use IMI.
Um our auditors actually grew upon a ranch not far from us, so
it's it's neat as far as shereally knows what she's you know
(26:01):
checking out.
Um, but there's differentcertifications that you can get.
Um for us, it was a financialdecision because you can get a
little bit more of a premium,you know, on that as far as uh
price per pound.
But uh we've got all natural,which basically means that
there's um the food that we feedthem is has to meet certain, you
(26:28):
know, certifications, that sortof thing.
Um and then also there they willreceive um you know
vaccinations, but anytime, saythat they were sick, of course,
you know, I'm a mom.
When my child is sick, I I giveit medicine, you know.
I mean, of course, why would Inot not do that?
(26:51):
Right.
But um when you do that, itit'll kick it out to a more
traditional route.
And so what we do is we'llusually um contract out calves
that are um I say traditional oryou know more traditional, and
then we'll have our all naturalfor that.
Um one thing that's prettyinteresting is uh source
(27:12):
verified.
So, you know, I mean uh it's anEID tag for people that that
don't know, um, kind of likealmost like a barcode reader.
And so essentially what thatdoes is it guarantees that you
know kind of where it's beenfrom point A to point B for
that.
SPEAKER_01 (27:28):
So well, and those the E ID, I think it stands for
just electronic identification.
Yeah.
Um and those are now mandatoryum nationwide, but you were
doing that prior.
SPEAKER_00 (27:40):
Prior, yeah.
As far as a um, you know, justit for us, like I said, it was a
financial decision on that.
But yeah, I think we've beendoing it about uh this may be
our fourth year, I think.
SPEAKER_01 (27:54):
Yeah.
And they just recentlyimplemented it that if an animal
moves across state lines, theyhave to have that um so that
they can know where they camefrom and I think an attempt to
um understand when outbreakshappen, when disease happens,
things like that, right?
For for that.
But I I'm I'm not as familiarwith that.
(28:16):
We'd have to ask the livestockboard and cattle growers more
about that if we go if we go toofar into it.
What is your favorite part ofyour job?
SPEAKER_00 (28:25):
Um, no two-day, no, you know, two days are ever the
same.
Um I think for us we're marriedto our operation, but it allows
us some, you know, someflexibility.
Um, there's always something newto learn.
We're always um, I would love tosay that we don't talk shop at
(28:46):
at night, but we do.
So we kind of, you know, umsleepy and and breathe all of
all of that.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (28:56):
Is there anything else that you would want someone
um especially if it was a youknow consumer, all they know is
they get their beef at thegrocery store.
What do you hope they learnabout ranching or hope they know
about uh the beef industry?
SPEAKER_00 (29:10):
Yeah.
I I don't know, I'm almostthinking that is it in the US
like 95% of the operations are ffamily owned?
SPEAKER_01 (29:19):
Yeah.
Um maybe even higher, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (29:21):
Yeah.
And so um, and actually the uhas far as um size of herds, that
sort of thing, is a lot smallerthan what people think.
So whenever you're choosing topurchase, you know, beef, it's
there's a story, you know,behind it.
Um and a family um that hasbenefited from it, um, at least
(29:45):
in our operation.
There's a little boy and littlegirl that learned some life
lessons in raising and uh yeah,raising your beef.
So we uh and and two, I wantpeople to know that it it's
safe.
Um I yes, we do retain, youknow, some beefs to process
(30:08):
ourselves, but like especiallywhen I don't have time to
defrost something or don't wantto mess with it, like I buy my
beef the same place that y'allwould, and I feed it to my
family.
Um so yeah, there's just a lotof lot of options out there.
And but to the story behind it,I think it's important to know.
(30:29):
And and uh that's one of thereasons I appreciate you with a
podcast is what behind theburger.
Okay, this is a story behindwhat you eat, what you consume.
Um, and I think it makes peoplea little more educated in their
food choices.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:44):
Yeah, absolutely.
And and if you're, you know,curious for the story, or we
just hope you're curious for thestory, it's here we are.
Yeah.
Don't we won't uh at least weare we are putting it out there.
SPEAKER_02 (30:54):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:55):
Um, well, why do you do what you do?
What makes you keep going?
SPEAKER_00 (31:01):
Um I think Jimmy and I'm gonna say the exact same
thing.
It's family.
You know, we're we're providinga future for my son and my
daughter.
Um and I would hope that theyboth want to come back home.
Um, which is, you know,essentially I came back home.
(31:22):
But at the very least, there'slife lessons that they learn on
the daily that we're providingfor them.
Um, and it's a blessing to beable to w some days, I may not
say it, but it's a blessing towork with my husband.
Um, I think there's a closenessthat that we get to, you know,
(31:43):
have that not many, you know,may have.
And then two, just um for me,it's it's almost a spiritual
thing, you know.
Um as a believer, I think we'retasked to care for God's
creation.
And that's something that umthat I'm honored, you know, that
our family gets to do.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:02):
What a what a wonderful answer and what a what
an impactful statement.
Uh what is a piece of adviceyou'd give someone that might
want to follow in yourfootsteps?
SPEAKER_00 (32:15):
Yeah.
You can you can do it.
I mean, truly.
Like, yes, our family um has along history in ranching in New
Mexico and you know, that sortof thing, but we just didn't
have the flexibility to inheritsomething.
So it it can be done.
(32:36):
Um, and there's uh is it SilesPastures?
Sile.
Sile pastures.
I just think they are thecoolest ever.
SPEAKER_01 (32:45):
On was he a chef?
Yeah, he was a chef and uh Ithink trained all over the
world, and then he's a chef inlike Hollywood.
SPEAKER_00 (32:52):
Yeah, and you know, I you can do it.
I I truly think that if yourgoal is to um have some part in
the you know beef production inNew Mexico that it is possible.
Um I think uh Beef Council is,you know, we've got the
directory and education as faras sponsoring educational
(33:15):
aspects.
Um, and then two, you know,there's a lot of other
organizations in New Mexico thatand two, just quite frankly,
people are willing to help.
I think that's one of the thingsthat I appreciate about the
ranching community in New Mexicois whether it's in your local
community, as far as someone's,you know, willing to at the drop
of the hat help.
(33:37):
Maybe you've got issues withcalving or you need, you know,
test something, or I don't know,a fire, and you've got to move
things, you know, really fast.
But it it's uh everyone'swilling to help.
So just don't be afraid to askfor help too.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (33:52):
Absolutely.
I think I think you and Jimmy, Ithink uh C Lai Pastures, and I
think there's a lot of othergreat examples of uh folks that
that have decided they wanted toranch and now they've done it.
Right.
Just doing it and just buildingand growing.
Um so I think that's that'sreally neat and really special
that as we go through this thisyou know podcaster task of of
(34:15):
talking to ranchers, we now havelearned about so many of them.
SPEAKER_00 (34:18):
And two, um, there's a place for everyone as far as
your place, um, may not bespecifically like on the
production side of it, you know,raising cow calf or having a
grow yard or having a feed yard.
Um it's been really interesting.
Like we've through the beefcouncil, we've been able to um
(34:40):
assist whether it be a meatscience, you know, which is so
interesting, you know, all ofthe things that they can do with
that aspect.
So it's, you know, um, it's youcan find your place, I guess, in
in the production cycle orscience aspect of it.
SPEAKER_01 (34:59):
Oh, absolutely.
I try and when we talk to highschoolers and college kids, a
lot of times I think theconversation with an 18-year-old
is the same.
It's like, I don't know what I'mgonna do, or what what can I do?
And and I always try andexplain, especially in the beef
industry, the possibilities areendless.
We have a registered dietitianon staff, we have a marketing
expert on staff, we can, youknow, and then we work with food
(35:19):
scientists and meat cutters andwe have accounts and all of
these things that if you want tobe involved in the beef
industry, come one, come all.
We've got well and jobs.
SPEAKER_00 (35:28):
I mean, we even have nutritionists for our cattle.
Right.
So um whether it be um making upa specific ration or mineral
pack or on, you know, say bulkfeed on the the ranch side, it
it's it's it's a calculateddecision, if that makes sense.
And there's specialists thatwill definitely, you know,
assist you with that.
SPEAKER_01 (35:49):
So absolutely.
And and if you're a you know, acollege kid or even a high
school kid and there's an agthere's an agriculture class at
your school, I I wholeheartedlysay sign up.
Um I grew up, you know, showingfor each and and having horses,
but I didn't understand, youknow, agriculture necessarily or
commercial agriculture until Iwent to college and I figured
(36:11):
out I could take a uh beefmanagement class and have a
class about cows, and it's like,what?
How is this a thing?
And then and then, you know, mymy love and hope to work in the
industry grew from there.
And so if there's a class, youneed an elective, sign up for
animal science class, yeah.
Sign up for, you know, the theag uh agriculture class or FFA
program at your high school.
(36:32):
Um if you have any interest andjust in and at least at least if
it stops at that class, you havea a bit of information about
where your food comes from.
SPEAKER_00 (36:41):
Exactly.
Yeah.
I think with anything, as far asbeing educated isn't a bad
thing.
You know, yeah.
And and make your decision asfar as whether be what you eat,
what you decide to be when yougrow up.
Um, I still, you know, I'm notsure what what my decision is,
but um at least you're educatedand then you proceed
(37:01):
accordingly.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (37:02):
Yep.
Always good to uh get moreinformation.
Uh so we I like to say this ismy my favorite question and last
question.
Um, what is your current?
I kind of edited it a littlebit.
What is your current favoriteway to eat beef or favorite
recipe?
SPEAKER_00 (37:17):
Yeah.
So as we're um coming up toChristmas, um, my family, my
dad's family in Italian.
So we always have uh homemadespaghetti meatballs, sauce, that
sort of thing um for ChristmasEve.
And they've done that for Idon't know.
I mean a hundred, I don't know,a hundred years, whatever.
(37:40):
And so that's special.
So yes, I love making homemademeatballs.
Um and I I think with beef orwith preparing it, whether you
choose to serve it, you know,just a family meal or you're
having a party or something,there's something sacred about
sharing a meal together.
(38:01):
And for us, at least, beef's,you know, usually on the plate
too.
So yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (38:06):
Absolutely.
There is definitely somethingspecial in how uh you can
connect over a meal.
And I always feel special whenyou have beef.
We know it's high quality.
Yes.
You you know that you uh broughtyour guests the best thing and
and uh you know, and then I'malso paid to do that.
So yeah, exactly.
Uh well I appreciate your time.
Thank you for joining thepodcast.
(38:26):
Thank you for always being uhwilling to tell your story.
Yeah.
And lastly, you know, thank youfor what you do to help feed the
world.
SPEAKER_00 (38:33):
Yeah, no, it's our pleasure.
And um, I think Jimmy said it,but truly, I think yeah, he's on
on Facebook.
I am or or um LinkedIn or all ofthat.
But like, ask questions andwe're open book.
I don't we may not knoweverything, but we sure know who
to ask or happy to help.
So yeah.
(38:54):
Thank you for that.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (38:56):
Awesome.
Well, thank you again.
Yeah, thank you.
Behind the Burger is a podcastproduced by the New Mexico Beef
Council with the goal of tellingthe stories of the cattlemen and
cattlewomen of the New Mexicobeef industry.
Thank you for joining us fortoday's episode.
If you would like moreinformation, please visit
nmbeef.com.
Whether it be a burger, a steak,or another beef dish, we hope
(39:17):
you are enjoying beef at yournext meal.
Host
Carollann Romo
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