The Acoma Cattle Growers Association (ACGA) has been in existence for more than 50 years. The cattle association is made up of 25 individual members and their families who belong to the Acoma Pueblo tribe. Acoma Pueblo is best known for their “Sky City” community and pottery. Sky City is one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the United States. Ranching has been the livelihood of the Acoma Pueblo people for generations. The Pueblo of Acoma is located approximately 50 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico. ACGA ranch property lies just east of Continental Divide. The ranch land consists of over 650 square miles of blue gramma and juniper at lower elevations and blue gramma, pine, and pinon at higher elevations. Each year the property averages at least 10” of precipitation, most of this occurring in the late summer months and more in the higher elevations.
The ACGA breed has evolved over the years based on our ranching experience, the ever changing environmental conditions and market demand. During the first few decades the association began raising Hereford cattle which was very prominent in New Mexico at the time. The Hereford breed possessed many positive characteristics but were not optimal for our ranching environment. Due to this issue the association introduced quality Beef Master Bulls into the herd to produce a Hereford-Beef Master cross. This cross produced healthier calves increasing the herd. The successful breed of the Hereford-Beef Master cross, lead the association to continue this type of breed for over 15 years. Today ACGA has very few Hereford cows and is phasing in Black Angus bulls to produce a Beef Master -Black Angus cross. This cross has proven to be an optimal choice as this breed withstands the adverse range and climate conditions of our ranch lands. Each year the ACGA ranch produces an average of over 400 calves per year.
The ACGA is proactively involved in the practice of range and cattle management. Care is taken in assuring cattle are on a vaccination schedule. The cattle are continuously rotated to preserve the rangelands. We ensure that our rangelands are monitored on a weekly basis. We continue to improve our ranchlands with very limited resources. Range land management also includes repairing and building new fence lines, extending sources of water where needed, improving the infrastructure, and maintaining ranch lands by thinning the brush/trees to gain improved forage.
