Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays is back visiting with Oklahoma State University Extension Beef Cattle Breeding Specialist, Dr. Mark Johnson for more details about the upcoming Cattlemen’s Conference set to take place on May 24-25 in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
In the late 1980s, cattle industry leaders came together and held the Blue Print for the Right Kind of Cattle Conference, which focused on building cattle that fit the industry at the time. The upcoming Cattlemen’s Conference is based around building and crafting the right kind of cattle for today and the future.
“We are going to cover a lot of topics, and we are going to have a lot of panel discussions,” Johnson said. “We have got a nationally recognized panel of speakers to come in as we talk about range management, and what is going on in the packing and consuming end of beef. As we talk about selection programs, we are going to have panel discussions on the effectiveness of selection.”
Topics covered at the Blue Print for the Right Kind of Cattle Conference, such as ‘selection for extremes’ will also be discussed at the conference.
“A variety of topics, a great panel of speakers, and interesting parts of information are going to come in that we hope each producer can take back to their operation and improve profit potential,” Johnson said.
As the cow herd has improved its genetics significantly over the years, Johnson said that will be another topic at the conference as those improved genetics have also led to a better eating experience for consumers.
“It is not a consequence that ten years ago when we were dealing with drought, we used to talk about 1.5 to 2 percent of fed cattle each week reached a quality grade of prime,” Johnson said. “Interestingly enough, in the past two to three years, we are seeing eight to 10 percent of the weekly slaughter mix actually achieving a quality grade of prime.”
There have always been many moving parts in the beef industry, Johnson said, but now is an important time to focus on those important factors and create the best product to keep the industry going strong.
“It is not one single thing that we all can aim at the bullseye and address right now, but a lot of different things are on our plate in terms of trying to make beef a better product, trying to make beef production work long-term in different parts of the country, and using all of these different genetic values we have got available to us now in the best interest of our own unique operations,” Johnson said.
The conference starts with discussion about historical perspectives of the beef industry, Johnson said, and ends with insight on where to go next in the industry with the tools available today.
“Each producer is going to be exposed to some information and have the opportunity for some discussions so that they can take back different ideas to improve the profit potential of their particular operation,” Johnson said.
To see more information and to register for Cattlemen’s Conference, click here.
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