Doing What Has To Be Done
Los Ojos, New Mexico · By Sue and Tony Norris
Situated in the high country of northern New Mexico, in the lush Chama Valley a few 
miles outside the quiet village of Los Ojos, is the ranch of Antonio and Molly Manzanares. They are the owners and operators of Shepherd’s Lamb, which produces certified organic, grass-fed meat and wool. With a flock of more than a thousand head of Navajo Churro and Rambouillet sheep and four children, you’d expect the couple to be busy, but that’s just part of the story. Seeking to maintain an agricultural base in their ancestral lands, they have had to “do what had to be done,” according to Antonio. “What had to be done” has included social activism, establishing local businesses and cooperatives, serving on county boards, and developing direct markets for their products.
Native New Mexicans, Antonio’s grandfather raised sheep and Molly’s father is a cattle rancher. After obtaining a degree in psychology from the University of New Mexico, Antonio returned home and married Molly. The couple attempted cattle ranching, but found it unrewarding; they then gravitated toward sheep. “Sheep are better producers,” observes Antonio. They ranched at several places around the Chama Valley before inheriting the ranch where they live now. Antonio and Molly have worked side by side with their children, two of whom are now away at college “learning to think.” Two employees and several sheep dogs round out the operation.
In talking about their life and accomplishments, Molly and Antonio are plainspoken and direct, refusing to glamorize the hard work of sustainable ranching and the obstacles they face. “We realize that this is part of a bigger struggle that is going on throughout the West. We know we are not isolated. But it is hard. It is tough to maintain the energy to keep it going. It is really, really hard.”
Land ownership in this part of New Mexico is complicated, to say the least. Spanish land grants were established four centuries ago, and property rights and traditional uses became points of serious conflicts in the 1960s. Antonio was a teenager then, but remembers that his grandfather was passionate about the cause. This passion for remaining on ancestral lands and preserving the culture underlies Antonio’s every action, although he modestly claims that he and Molly “are just trying to make a living.” At times he has found it necessary to take a strong stand.
Several other factors currently threaten agriculture and ranching in the area. “Living in a beautiful place can be a curse,” observes Antonio, pointing to second-home developments and gated communities that have sprouted up around nearby Lake Heron, a project of the San Juan Compact, which distributes water throughout the state. Other lands previously used for grazing were bought by The Nature Conservancy and sold to the state, and are now used primarily by hunters. And the Jicarilla Apache tribe has bought up several large ranches with revenues from gas and oil. “There is a certain justice to that,” admits Antonio. Nevertheless, those pastures have been taken out of circulation for the locals.
Now the Manzanares graze their sheep near Tres Piedras in spring, then move them through the Carson National Forest to summer range near Canjilon, which can take almost a week. The sheep and camp have to be moved weekly to secure fresh pasture and conserve the land. Then the Manzanares bring the sheep to the ranch while the ewes are taken to the fall pasture and the lambs to Chama. Careful selection of grazing lands is necessary since Shepherd’s Lamb is certified organic and grass-fed, and free of hormones and antibiotics. Their sustainable management system is based on traditional methods, and evolved using common sense, intuition, and some book learning. “We developed our own system of grazing, and of management, and of herding,” says Antonio. “And it is a key thing that we still herd. So we still have control. We have some control of where the flock goes, what it eats, how long it stays there, and how we use the country.”
As the region’s agricultural base has slowly slipped away, Antonio and Molly have looked for other ways to “keep the young people on the land.” In 1989, along with Maria Varela and Rachel Brown, they founded Ganados del Valle, a nonprofit agricultural and economic development corporation whose mission was to ensure the continuation of sheep-herding as a way of life by making it economically viable.
The most prominent result of their efforts was the establishment of Tierra Wools, a thriving cooperative of weavers who craft beautiful handwoven tapestries, blankets, and apparel to be sold worldwide. Molly is a master weaver who has served on the board and as general manager. Much of the wool used comes from the Manzanares’ own flock, providing an important market. Tierra Wools now supports seventeen worker-owners and employs twenty-five others. Walking through the shop, one is bombarded with earthy smells and rich textures and colors, many derived from natural dyes from local plants. And one is reminded of the enchanting beauty and rich tradition of northern New Mexico. The legacy of Ganados and Tierra Wools, notes Antonio, has been to teach skills to local people, allowing them to succeed in businesses and stay in the area.
With Lyle McNeal of Utah State University, Antonio and Ganados have also helped establish a breeding program to restore Navajo Churro sheep, a hardy breed suited to the Colorado Plateau. With nearly 40 percent of their flock now Churros, the Manzanares have one of the largest Churro flocks in the country.
Developing and servicing markets for their sumptuous grass-fed lamb has become the most time-consuming aspect of the Manzanares’ operation. In summer, Antonio and Molly’s days are filled with a daunting number of activities. Yet servicing niche markets is the only way they believe they can survive amid the worldwide agribusiness market. They are members of the New Mexico Organic Livestock Co-op, a handful of producers who market to restaurants, specialty stores, and farmers markets throughout the state. They put close to 100,000 miles a year on their vehicles, transporting sheep to Zentiram Industries in El Rito, the only certified organic plant in New Mexico, as well as taking the meat to Los Alamos, Taos, and Santa Fe farmers markets weekly.
Antonio and Molly also maintain a direct-sales business with more than 1,300 customers. “People like to have a connection with the farmer and rancher,” notes Antonio. “So much has come out about food safety issues. People like knowing where their food comes from and that it is raised organically.” Of course, direct marketing means that record-keeping and book work consume many of his precious evening hours even as he remains actively engaged with the community.
Despite the backbreaking work and the toll on their health, changing land tenure, changing climate, government bureaucracy, uncertain markets, and struggles with powerful outside forces, Molly and Antonio think the life they’ve chosen is worth it. When asked what she considers their greatest accomplishment, Molly replies, “We have been able to raise four children on this land, and they’ve turned out OK.” Antonio adds, “we are still here, and still together.” Although they don’t think of themselves as heroic, they are proud of their success in “making a living,” and demonstrating a more sustainable way of life that benefits their community.
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