Colorado beef comes naturally: state's cattle ranchers making a comeback.

• Author: Smith, Kathy

It must have been a rancher who coined the phrase "labor of love." Because ranchers are faced with changing market conditions year-over-year, weather extremes, backbreaking labor, and perennial breeding challenges, you know the ranching profession is chosen for the passion it inspires in its practitioners. Yet if you've driven down state highways lately and noticed more and more cattle herds along the way, it's not a mirage. Colorado cattle ranching is growing; the state now ranks 10th overall in the beef industry. As Americans seek more nutritious, flavorful meal solutions, the demand for natural, lean beef is rising. And with stringent USDA regulations, it's safe to say, beef is back, and healthier than ever.

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How many ranchers are in the state?

Colorado beef is produced by 14,000 independent ranchers, whose herds range in size from 50 head of cattle to more than 1,000. Says Tami Arnold of the Colorado Beef Council, "While the ranchers are independent, they are all unified in the promotion of beef, preservation of the land and a desire to produce superior meat for the Colorado consumers." Given the growing demand for land, it is surprising many Colorado ranches are still multi-generational operations. While there are plenty of start-ups, too, the state's older ranches and ranching families still believe in raising cattle safely through the conservation and preservation of private, forest and BLM lands.

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Fifth-generation rancher Burt Guerrieri and wife Sandy operate Mill Creek Ranch in Gunnison. Guerrieri, a Colorado College graduate with a bachelor's degree in English, seemed an unlikely candidate for carrying on the family ranching tradition. But when Guerrieri graduated, he went back to Gunnison to help out at home--part time. That was 25 years ago.

Today, Guerrieri is actively working to make ranching better--not only for the family business but for all the state's ranchers and ranching in general. A student of alternative ranching methods and genetic improvement, Guerrieri tested small herds of cattle to be calved in June, unlike the traditional March time frame, striving for a less complicated calving season. He also cross-bred a few lines of cattle, those with exceptional traits, to produce cows with genetic balance. His innovative calving and cross-breeding theories have worked to produce naturally bred cows that produce some of the finest meat in Colorado.

Sandy Guerrieri provides the...