Behind the Burger

Send us Fan Mail A good cattle sale looks effortless from the seats, but the real work starts long before the first bid. From Las Cruces, we sit down with Jaden McClure of Landmark Mercantile Livestock Auction to get a grounded look at what a modern New Mexico sale barn does for ranchers, buyers, and the communities that depend on beef production. We talk about how Landmark grew from dairy supply...

Send us Fan Mail A lot of people say they want “local beef,” but almost nobody gets to see what it takes to make that real. We’re in Tierra Amarilla with Tommy Casados, co-owner and CEO of C4 Enterprises, walking through how his family ranch grew into an on-farm USDA-inspected slaughter and processing plant plus a direct-to-consumer beef brand. From cow-calf roots to building a vertically integrat...

Send us Fan Mail A working cowboy who can tell a story with a rope, a horse, and a hunk of bronze tends to notice details the rest of us miss. From the way a horse holds its ears to the unspoken rules around a chuck wagon, Curtis Fort has spent a lifetime learning what’s real, and then turning it into Western sculpture that makes people say, “I’ve been there.” We’re in Tatum, New Mexico with Curti...

Send us Fan Mail The auctioneer hums in the background at Four Corners Stockyards, and it’s the perfect soundtrack for a straight-from-the-source conversation about New Mexico beef. We’re in Kirtland with the Lantana family: Marjorie Lantana, her daughter Trina Lantana-Platero, and granddaughter Kynlie Lantana-Platero, who represent six generations of Navajo ranching rooted near Crownpoint and Far...

Send us Fan Mail A name change can be more than a new sign on the gate, it can be a promise to the community you serve. We’re in the Four Corners area with Shane Hatch, longtime auctioneer and the face behind the newly named Four Corners Stockyards, to unpack why “location” matters in agriculture and how the word stockyards better captures the full scope of what happens there. We talk about what i...

Send us Fan Mail A dried-up lake. Extra hay runs. Miles of fence to mend. And three boys learning what it means to show up anyway. From the Four Corners Stockyards in Kirtland, New Mexico, we sit down with Philene Tyler, a Navajo cattle producer from Navajo, NM, for a grounded look at family ranching and the choices that shape New Mexico beef.  Philene shares how her operation grew from multi-gene...

Send us Fan Mail A 4,000-cow dairy doesn’t run on luck. It runs on routines, trust, and the kind of leadership that keeps both animals and people steady when costs rise and markets swing. From Ruidoso, we talk with Sybrand Vander Dussen of Legend Dairy and the New Mexico dairy community about what “people first” actually looks like on a working operation, and why that mindset shows up in everythin...

Send us Fan Mail We sit down with beef economist Don Close to unpack what actually moves beef prices and why the cattle cycle changes slower than most people expect. We talk through weather, trade, risk management, and the data points that hint at herd expansion, plus the shocks that rewired the beef supply chain.  • what a beef economist does and why forecasting matters for producers and consumer...

Send us Fan Mail Most people can picture a cowboy. Far fewer understand the math, the risk, and the nonstop decisions behind a real New Mexico cattle ranch. We’re in Stanley, New Mexico, sitting in a pig barn of all places, talking with Tom Spindle from the Bill King Ranch about what it takes to keep a seven-generation operation moving forward when the weather will not cooperate and the bills keep...

Send us Fan Mail Beef doesn’t stay a great eating experience by accident, and neither does consumer trust. We’re joined by Dr. AJ Tarpoff, the beef extension veterinarian at Kansas State University, to talk about what happens behind the scenes when research, ranch reality, and the dinner plate all have to line up. We start with AJ’s unique background across the beef supply chain, from his family’s...

Send us Fan Mail Drought isn’t a rare event in the Southwest, it’s a planning assumption. From Farmington’s Stockmanship and Stewardship event, we sit down with Dean Fish, a southern Arizona rancher, Arizona Beef Council member, and longtime Extension livestock specialist, to get honest about how real ranch decisions get made when grass, water, and time are limited.  We talk about Dean’s work mana...

Send us Fan Mail The difference between “fine” beef and unforgettable beef usually isn’t a fancy cut. It’s heat, timing, and knowing what you’re looking at on the board. We’re in the kitchen at the Santa Fe School of Cooking with Chef Mica Chavez, cooking shoulder to shoulder and building a smoky New Mexico chile barbecue sauce that’s made to pair with beef, not hide it. We start with the flavor b...

Send us Fan Mail We team up with Evan and Tyler from the Meat Dudes to clear up what American Wagyu is and why labels like “Kobe” and “Wagyu burger” can mislead. We dig into genetics, sourcing, and cooking so you can buy beef with confidence and get a great result at home.  • Evan and Tyler’s path from restaurants to a Wagyu-focused butcher shop and podcast  • What Wagyu means in plain terms and h...

Send us Fan Mail A ranch can change overnight, and so can your role in it. We’re joined by Candy Baca, a sixth-generation rancher east of Las Vegas, New Mexico, who stepped in after an unexpected loss and built a direct-to-consumer beef program to keep her family operation strong. She shares what it’s like moving from a traditional cow-calf routine to selling local beef to real families who want t...

Send us Fan Mail A ranch partnership sounds simple until you price a feeder calf, hit a drought, or unload fresh cattle that have never seen a hot wire. We’re out near Fort Sumner, New Mexico with Luke and Donna Cortese and Taylor and Kayla Lee to tell the full story of how two families build a cattle operation together and why trust, fairness, and daily discipline matter more than hype. We talk t...

Send us Fan Mail A lot has to go right before a kid in New Mexico bites into a steak finger at school, and most of it happens far from the cafeteria line. From Roswell, USA Beef Packing is doing the quiet, essential work of turning cattle into safe, inspected, traceable beef that can serve communities across the state.  We sit down with Joe Madrid, owner of USA Beef Packing, and Nayely Madrid, off...

Send us Fan Mail The real story of New Mexico beef isn’t a TV montage of horses and hero shots. It’s drought math, grass management, and a daily promise that the cattle get water and care before anything else. From the New Mexico Cattle Growers office in Moriarty, we sit down with Kimberly Stone, a fifth-generation rancher from Capitan, to talk about what it takes to keep a commercial cow-calf ope...

Send us Fan Mail A fifth-generation rancher from Roswell, New Mexico, pulls back the curtain on how a family outfit survives drought, policy, and razor-thin margins without losing its soul. Bronson Corn joins Carollann Romo to share the decisions that kept their herd intact—building a cow-focused feed yard as a drought tool, rotating entire ranches through pens to rest brittle grasslands, and acce...

Send us Fan Mail We sit down with Tom Paterson, rancher and new president of New Mexico Cattle Growers, to talk stewardship, drought strategy, and how data and design make cattle calmer and beef better. From policy wins to local processing, we share a clear path to resilient ranching. • law-to-ranch journey and Spur Ranch origins • role and scope of New Mexico Cattle Growers • drought, culling dec...

Send us Fan Mail We trace how a ranch family in Curry County built a vertically integrated beef business, from wheat pasture yearlings to a fresh meat counter known for prime cuts, green chile brats, and face-to-face service. We compare grocery and direct beef, tackle pricing myths, and share what’s next, including USDA inspection and expanded local delivery. • Family ranch roots and multi-state c...

Send us Fan Mail Start with 12 cows, add three counties of scattered leases, mix in a veterinarian, a range scientist, and two determined brothers, and you get a modern ranch story that’s as practical as it is inspiring. We sit down with Jim and Jovani Armendariz to trace their family’s path from their parents’ arrival in America to a 300-cow operation known for turning bare ground into healthy gr...

Send us Fan Mail Hard truths, open pastures, and a lot of heart—Heidi Humphries invites us into her family’s Black Angus cow‑calf ranch outside Tucumcari, New Mexico, and shows what real stewardship looks like. We dig into the daily choices that keep cattle healthy and a multi‑generation operation moving forward: adapting to arid grasslands, rotating pastures with intention, fixing water lines aft...

Send us Fan Mail 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 ever...

Send us Fan Mail Curiosity, service, and straight talk drive this deep dive with New Mexico rancher and board member Boe Lopez, who opens up about life on the range and the work behind a trustworthy beef supply. We trace his path from a family operation rooted in generations of grit to leadership roles that demand tough decisions, transparency, and constant learning. Along the way, Boe breaks down...

Send us Fan Mail We sit down at Corralitos Ranch with fourth-generation cattleman Ross Foster to explore drought planning, water work, herd temperament, and the real meaning of stewardship on public and private lands. Grit meets grace as we follow the choices that make cattle calm, grass recover, and families keep going. • family history and purpose of the Las Cruces ranch  • drought, wind and the...