During the 2013 Cattle Industry Convention today NCBA held a press conference to announce the preliminary results of the Beef Industry Sustainability Assessment. Dr. Kim Stackhouse, NCBA Director of Sustainability, shared how the beef checkoff-funded assessment is a holistic look at the entire beef value chain. This is the first time any food value chain has ever documented the economic, …
Pre-Conference Tour Highlights at CIC
The opening general session and trade show may not open until later today, but that doesn’t mean cattlemen and women from across the county haven’t already put their ‘Boots on the Bay.’ The 2013 Cattle Industry Pre-Convention Agricultural Tour, sponsored by SFP, took place earlier this week in the sunny state of Florida. Participants on the tour visited the Florida …
Zimfo Bytes
Syngenta launched a landmark e-licensing platform to provide plant breeders and researchers with easy access to patented native traits from its commercial vegetable varieties. Monty’s Plant Food Company launched a redesigned website this month to enhance overall customer experience. The U.S. Department of Education has appointed a highly experienced and accomplished education professional to help develop, implement and manage policy …
NCBA Federation Div. Approves Comm. Structure
The NCBA Federation Division, which we’ve known as the Federation of State Beef Councils, is chaired by Craig Uden, fourth generation cattleman from Elwood, Nebraska. I visited with him to find out what’s on the agenda for the Federation here at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. Craig says the main issue before the Federation here is the committee restructuring. He …
2012 W. D. Farr Scholarship Recipients
During the Cattle Industry Summer Conference two graduate students, one studying animal science and the other agricultural water management, received the 2012 W.D. Farr Scholarships from the National Cattlemen’s Foundation. The $12,000 awards recognize superior achievements in academics and leadership and will allow the students to further their study in fields that benefit the cattle and beef industry. The scholarships …
NCBA Leading Forward
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association CEO, Forrest Roberts, gave a passionate speech this morning during the closing business session at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. He encouraged everyone to keep “leading forward.” I visited with him beforehand to find out what his vision is for NCBA moving ahead and he focused on three key areas, Challenge, Change and Courage. He says …
Understanding Beef Board Committee Structure
Polly Ruhland, CEO of the Beef Board, is making a point in answer to a question during the first Beef Board business session in this photo. I spoke with Polly to get a better understanding of the new committee structure that was approved during that session. Polly explains the process that led to the proposal for restructuring that was presented …
Cattle Industry Summer Conference Going Well
The President of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is J.D. Alexander. I talked to him about how the Cattle Industry Summer Conference is going. He says it’s going well in spite of challenges like the drought. There are over 700 people registered which is about normal for this meeting. When it comes to the weather related issues affecting the industry …
National Beef Quality Audit Updated
During the Cattle Industry Summer Conference the results of the 2011 Beef Checkoff funded National Beef Quality Audio were released. It shows that progress has been made but that there is still room for improvement. To learn more about it I spoke with Tom Field, Director of the Engler Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program at the University of Nebraska. He’s a fifth …
2012 Cattle Industry Summer Conference
The 2012 Cattle Industry Summer Conference is underway in Denver, CO. The opening general session is going on right now. I’ll be Beef Board Blogging once again for the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and will have stories to share here on AgWired soon. We’ve got a Beef Board Update session coming up where I’m sure I’ll get some interviews to share. …