This year, the 24th annual Cattlemen’s College will be held Jan. 31 – Feb. 1, just prior to the 2017 Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show in Nashville, Tennessee. The event features sessions that include the latest research and information presented by experts in the field.

“Cattlemen’s College gives every participant an opportunity to learn something new that can improve their farm or ranch,” according to Josh White, executive director of producer education for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which coordinates the program.

“The sessions at this year’s event, presented by experts in the field, will serve as a way for attendees to gain the edge needed to keep up in the beef industry’s ever-changing landscape.”

A highlight and bonus for this year’s Cattlemen’s College are concurrent informative sessions on Jan. 31, which will provide the latest genetic information for cattle operations, helping identify ways to improve fertility and build more productive herds and cattle.

The following day, attendees may choose from five curriculum tracks that may have the most significant impact on their operations: “Here’s the beef,” managing grazing for soil health and animal performance, production efficiency and profit, healthy business strategies, and breeding cattle with staying power.

Even though many sessions will be concurrent, it doesn’t mean attendees will have to miss what is taking place down the hall. All Cattlemen’s College sessions will be recorded and available for viewing by attendees a few weeks after the event.

Session speakers at the college include some of the leading experts in the fields of soil health, calf management, heifer development, family ranching, genetics, beef taste, sustainability, alternative income sources, managing forages, cattle feeding, cow efficiency and more.

After a full morning of programs, the college will conclude with a lunch on Feb. 1.

“For education and profit-building advice in the cattle industry, Cattlemen’s College is definitely the cattleman’s number one resource,” says White. “The stimulating and thought-provoking sessions our expert instructors will present will certainly help generate high returns for any cattle producer’s operation and do it in an interactive, highly understandable way.”

More than a thousand producers attended last year’s Cattlemen’s College in San Diego, California, and because of its location even more attendees are expected in Nashville for the 2017 event. Price for the 2017 Cattlemen’s College is $250, $130 for students. For more information on the 24th Annual Cattlemen’s College, go online (www.beefusa.org). 

—NCBA news release

The challenge: Meeting consumer expectations

Consumers love beef but, for their purchases, many want more than the great food they put on their plates. They want additional information about the product, including that the beef they buy was raised responsibly. Above all, they want transparency in the process that brings beef to the table.

Consumer expectations for transparency, especially for information on the management practices and other elements of the beef supply chain, will be the topic when Cameron Bruett, head of corporate affairs for JBSA USA, gives the keynote speech at the Cattlemen’s College General Session on Feb. 1.

Among other things, Bruett will address evolving expectations of domestic and international consumers and how producers can balance input costs related to those expectations. Bruett will also share his insights about the challenge from other proteins in an increasingly competitive global protein marketplace.