This year marks the 38th anniversary of National Ag Day on March 15, an event which will be celebrated in classrooms and communities across the country as well as in the nation’s Capitol.
The Agriculture Council of America (ACA) has three major Washington DC events planned this year – Coffee with the Secretary, the Mix-and-Mingle Luncheon, and the National Celebration of Agriculture Dinner. John Deere will once again partner with ACA, as well as Successful Farming and DTN-The Progressive Farmer, to sponsor the DC events.
The events honor National Agriculture Week and mark a nationwide effort to tell the true story of American agriculture and remind citizens that agriculture is a part of all of us. A number of producers, agricultural associations, corporations, students and government organizations involved in agriculture are expected to participate.
In addition to public service announcements and other educational programs, ACA and partners will sponsor students to attend the Washington D.C. events. Representatives from FFA, 4H, AFA, the Consortium, and Student NAMA will visit with legislators, participate in a mix-and-mingle luncheon, and attend special events throughout the day.
The winners of the National Ag Day Essay Contest will also attend the events. High school students around the country have submitted written or video essays about the importance of agriculture with the theme “American Agriculture: Your Food. Your Farmer.” One winner in each category – written and video – will receive $1,000 and round-trip airfare to Washington, D.C., for recognition during the Celebration of Ag Dinner. The Ag Day Essay Contest is sponsored by CHS Inc., the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal, National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB), National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA), Country Living Association and McCormick Company.
Bill Donald, a third generation, pony-tailed Montana rancher, was officially elected as president of the NCBA. Bill says putting the long range plan into motion is the organization’s first order of business this year. “We’re going to have an executive committee meeting in about three weeks and make sure our strategic plan is aligned with the long range plan and then we’re going to get to work and get that implemented,” he said. Like anything else, meeting the goals of the plan will require funding, and Bill says NCBA is prepared to meet that challenge. “We passed a resolution to increase total revenue, both checkoff and non-checkoff, to have $150 million annually. That’s about double from where it is right now.”
J.D. Alexander, cattle feeder/farmer from Nebraska, moved up from vice president to NCBA president-elect at the conclusion of the business meeting. J.D. says the cattle industry is in a good position right now as far as profitability is concerned. “We’re very optimistic and from the CattleFax information at the convention, our market is still on the right track and doing well,” he said, adding that NCBA’s top priority will continue to be looking out for producer interests on the national level. 
Scott George, a dairy and beef producer from Wyoming was elected as the new vice president for NCBA, switching over from 
They say that nothing is sure in life except death and taxes, so you should be prepared for a combination of both in the end. 
Another sure thing for agricultural producers in this day and age is environmental regulations and one of the latest is the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) plan to implement the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) rule. 
The 
Scott has switched hats now as he was elected to be vice president of NCBA. The new chairman of the Federation is David Dick, a cow-calf producer from Sedalia, Missouri. 
The last business conducted during the Board of Directors meeting of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board was the electing of new officers. The nominating committee announced their slate and a vote passed their nominations.
At the Cattle Industry Convention a lot of work gets done but there are social enjoyment opportunities. At this year’s convention that included the Cowboy Comedy Club and comedian Larry The Cable Guy. Larry was funny I don’t care who you are. He got ‘r done.
The now, just past, Chairman of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is Dan Dierschke, Texas, pictured being interviewed in the media room at the Cattle Industry Convention. One of the officer duties is to be available to the media during the summer meeting and annual convention. Hopefully, it’s a mostly enjoyable task!
During the CBB Update Session at the Cattle Industry Convention Tom Ramey, CEO, gave his management report. He started out by saying that as a new year begins with new members coming onto the board, he can’t imagine any that will work any harder than those he’s had the honor to serve this past year. Tom says that some CEO’s are drivers of change in their organization and forces to be reckoned with. He, however, sees himself as a servant leader, serving all beef producers across the country. He believes he’s put together a professional staff that he’s extremely proud of and thinks producers should be too.