News Update
December 29, 2014
U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance® Launches How-to Video Series about Farming and Ranching
1,200 cows milked, 50,000 eggs gathered, clean barns for 7,000 pigs — one day’s work for America’s farmers! People can now learn how they do it through U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance’s® (USFRA®) new online “How To Farm” video series that launched Dec. 29 on USFRA’s website, www.fooddialogues.com.
Hosted by blogger Kelly Snyder (www.ReDefinedMom.com), USFRA’s online video series illustrates different farming practices. The educational videos, which range between two to four minutes, highlight the daily activities of farmers and ranchers across the nation who grow and raise our food. The first four videos give viewers an up-close look at just how farmers grow and raise food, including:
How To Milk 1,200 Cows (filmed with Brian Rexing at New Generation Dairy in Indiana)
How To Care for 7,000 Pigs (filmed with Art Braundmeier at The Maschhoffs in Illinois)
How To Use Trash to Help Crops Grow (filmed on Len Corzine’s farm in Illinois)
How To Gather 50,000 Eggs a Day (filmed with Ron Campbell at Opal Foods in Missouri)
“People know what farmers generally do, but not exactly how they do it. The opportunity to spend time on a farm alongside a farmer is not one that most people get,” said Randy Krotz, CEO of USFRA. “This new online video series brings the farm to your living room, office, kitchen, classroom, mobile device — anywhere you are. Americans have so many questions about food production and the first videos in this series can help address some of those by showing just how farmers are growing and raising food.”
The Redefined Mom, aka Kelly Snyder, a blogger mom of two based in Kansas City, visited four Midwest farms to learn just how farmers and ranchers do what they do every day — and why. The videos also highlight new technology used on farms and ranches today and address common misconceptions about food production.
Where to watch
USFRA’s online video series is available on YouTube, and in the “Videos” section of USFRA’s www.fooddialogues.com website in the “How To Farm” section.
MCA Cattlemen’s College Features Industry Hot Topics
The 47th Annual Missouri Cattle Industry Convention and Trade Show is quickly approaching. The annual event will be Jan. 2-4, 2015, at Tan-Tar-A Resort, Lake of the Ozarks. The Missouri Catttlemen’s Association (MCA), in partnership with Zoetis, will host its annual Cattlemen’s College on Jan. 3, 2015. MCA President-elect Janet Akers said this year’s educational seminars bring something for everyone.
“This year’s Cattlemen’s College will feature a diverse group of presenters speaking about hot topics in the industry,” said Akers. “Youth and adults will have plenty of opportunities to gather information.”
Cattlemen’s College begins Jan. 3 at 8 a.m. and concludes at noon, followed by hands-on sessions.
The Cattlemen’s College lineup includes:
Keeping My Family in Business (8:15 a.m. and repeats at 9:15 a.m.)
- Dennis Axman and Louis Shuntich, Pinnacle Insurance and Financial Services — This presentation will focus on transitioning the family farm to the next generation.
- Scott Brown, University of Missouri (MU) — Brown will dive into the cattle markets and give his take on the economic opportunities and challenges for the Missouri cattle industry.
- Nancy Grathwohl Heter, Zoetis — Heter will discuss new beef genetic technologies and explain how they can assist Missouri cattle producers.
- Brett Crosby, Custom Ag Solutions — Crosby will walk through options available to make the most of a strong cattle market.
Policy Matters (10:15 a.m. and repeats at 11:15 a.m.)
- Colin Woodall, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) — Woodall will discuss federal regulatory and legislative issues and explain what the Nov. 4 elections mean for cattle producers.
- Joe Koenen, MU Extension — Koenen will explain Missouri’s complicated fence laws and discuss what landowners really need to know.
- Kurt Schaefer, State Senator — Sen. Schaefer is also an attorney and will give his take on what Amendment One really means now that the amendment is in Missouri’s Constitution.
- Craig Payne, MU Extension — Payne will discuss new rules for antibiotics used for livestock that will go into effect in the near future.
Hands-On Sessions (1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.)
- Meat Cutting and Cooking Demonstration by Bridget Wasser, NCBA, and John Love, ToadSuck Grill
- Beef Quality Assurance Training by Payne
- Working Dog Demonstration by Bob Salmon and Larry Birch
- Show Me Quality Assurance Training for youth by Heather Smith, MU
Governor to Host Beef Summit
Governor Jay Nixon will convene a beef summit to discuss opportunities to maximize the potential of Missouri’s cattle industry on Jan. 5, 2015, at MU Reynolds Alumni Center in Columbia. The summit will be an all day event, running from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
According to the news release distributed by the governor’s office, Missouri consistently ranks in the top three cattle states in the nation due to superior breeding and genetics programs. Topics at the summit will include the feasibility of building and operating a large-scale packing plant in Missouri and expanding the number of in-state feeding facilities. According to the news release, that would allow Missouri to capture about $1.7 billion a year in revenue, now realized by farmers and businesses in surrounding states further down the beef supply chain. The release also stated that the construction and operation of new processing and feeding facilities could also create thousands of jobs in cattle and livestock-related industries, helping revitalize the rural economy.
The governor is reportedly seeking input from agricultural industry leaders to ensure the continued success of Missouri agriculture. MCA Executive Vice President Mike Deering urges cattlemen and cattlewomen to attend the summit. He said it is paramount that Nixon hears from cattle producers.
Red Meat Club Announced 2015 Friend of the National Western Honoree
The Red Meat Club of Denver has announced that the Friend of the National Western and Red Meat Industry award will be presented in 2015 to Carnahan Ranches Inc. of Kiowa, Colo. The award will be presented at the Red Meat Club’s annual dinner promoting the red meat and livestock industry, which is set for Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015, at the National Western Club.
While Carnahan Ranches traces its Elbert County, Colo., roots to an 1862 homestead and has a distinguished record as a commercial producer, they are being recognized by the Red Meat Club for their remarkable history as a National Western exhibitor, which traces back to the very first Stock Show in 1906. Having missed only the war year of 1943 when there was no show, 2014 will mark an incredible 108 years of support.
In the inaugural 1906 Stock Show, family patriarch Jacob Dietrich and his son-in-law Allen L. Carnahan showed two-year-old bulls. Both were actively involved in the organization and leadership of that first Stock Show, and in 1907 took third place in the two-year-old steers division; the family still possesses that ribbon today.
“The good Lord willing, Carnahan Ranches is dedicated to continuing to show each year at the National Western Stock Show into the distant future,” says Charlie Carnahan, who, together with wife Jane and the assistance of Christopher and Ashley Carnahan, currently manages the family-run business. Charlie and four other fourth-generation Carnahans comprise the board of directors of Carnahan Ranches.
The featured speakers for the 2015 Red Meat Club dinner are John and Leann Saunders of Castle Rock, Colo., who serve as CEO, president and co-founders of IMI Global. Founded 20 years ago, IMI Global is the industry’s leading and most-trusted resource for third-party verification of food production practices. The company supports more than 10,000 farmers, ranchers, processors, retailers and restaurants with a wide variety of verification programs that provide for product traceability, source verification, non-hormone treated cattle, organic and grass-fed programs, and humane handling standards. IMI Global connects consumers to the sources of the food they purchase through their retail and restaurant labeling program and will present on the latest in consumer demands trends that are shaping the red meat industry.
The Red Meat Club dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person and may be purchased by calling 303-299-5556 or by emailing ahall@nationalwestern.com.
For more information, please view the full release here.
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