Cattleman U Live Event Brought Education and Workshops to attendees
After months of planning the KRose Company team hosted the first-ever Cattleman U Live Event in Bozeman, Montana this summer! This event was designed to bring together people from all different backgrounds, experiences and places and come together to learn more about our industry. Over July 22nd-25th we had the chance to learn alongside people from five states and hear from many speakers, visit leaders in the industry and watch live demonstrations. Everyone left with a new friend and copious amounts of knowledge to take back and try for themselves. It is our goal to create a space where people can ask questions, learn more and create connections to help them be better than they were yesterday. As cattle producers, we need to challenge ourselves to continue trying new things and jumping on new opportunities when they present themselves.
Cattle Industry Event Educational Content
We started the conference off with John Youngberg from the Montana Farm Bureau. John shared insight on policies and what the farm bureau does for you. We then had the chance to hear from Paul Martin and Michael Carroll with Imogene Ingredients. Paul shared with us the stories from his years of experience and Michael presented the science behind the Farmatan product. Overall it was a very informative talk that left many people with something to consider using within their own operations. After the conclusion of their presentation, Les Rispens from the United States Department of Agriculture: Farm Services Agency talked about all of the programs they have to offer. Many of our attendees found immense value in his talk as they were unaware of many of the options available for them. Here is a link to the USDA programs and services tab, we encourage you to take a look at the different programs they have to see if one is a good fit for your operation! Mackenzie Johnston presented next and shared her insight on where the cattle industry could go in the future without some proactive movements. Mackenzie’s talk got everyone in the room thinking about how we can make a change in our industry. Our last speaker of the afternoon was Shelby Shaw with the NILE Merit Heifer Program. Shelby shed light on a program that gives youth around the country the opportunity to join the cattle industry. The NILE Merit Heifer Program awards heifers to youth members after they fill out an extensive application. They then get the change to raise the heifer and present it at The NILE the following year. You can learn more about this one-of-a-kind program here!
Following dinner on Thursday we got the chance to hear from Luke Kovarik of Kovarik Cattle Company about heifer development. Luke presented ideas on how to be more successful when starting heifers and some choices that you can make to get there. He was a huge hit that night and received many questions from the audience during his presentation and after. We could see a community beginning to form when many people weren’t ready for the first day to conclude. People were starting to create those lifelong connections with other people who were progressive and wanted to be better as well. Throughout the event we saw many people exchanging contact information not only with attendees but with our sponsors and speakers as well. No matter if you were a first-generation or third, everyone was able to meet someone who could help them.
Ranching for Profit Workshop with Ranch Management Consultants
Friday was our whole day of Ranching for Profit! This day was also streamed live for people that were unable to attend in person. Dallas Mount shared valuable information about how to take your operation and turn it into a business. This day was eye opening for many in attendance and showed them strategies to become more profitable. It is easy to say what your neighbor is doing wrong but it is hard to figure out what you are. Dallas facilitated tough conversations about many topics surrounding cattle operations. Although we like to think of our lifestyle as a hobby we must first think of it as a business. During his presentation we learned how to categorize costs, how to determine the gross margin per head and how to understand when to cut costs if they don’t have value. By the end of the day all attendees left with something they could take back home and have a conversation with their families about. It is hard to make changes all at once but by continuing to learn and having the tough conversations we can make our operations more profitable in the long run.
Bozeman Tours with Cutting Edge Beef Operations
We started day three by jumping on the bus and heading to our first tour stop of the day: Amsterdam Meats. Saturday was all about focusing on operations that are doing what they do well. Amsterdam Meats owned by the Feddes family is an example of a value-added business. They raise cattle locally but recently purchased the processing facility to have the capabilities of processing their meat right there. They are now able to process their own beef products and do a variety of other animals including bison, pork, lambs and goats. Amsterdam Meats is state inspected to allow them to sell directly to businesses in the community! Our attendees had a great time touring the facility and learning about a unique value-added business.
The next stop on our tour was Churchill Cattle Company. Churchill Cattle Company is also a Trans Ova Satellite. Trans Ova Genetics is a leader in the industry of reproductive technologies. Dale Venhuizen showed us around their facilities and shared with us about the process of collecting embryos and more. We even got to see five calves that all had the same mother but were raised by recip cows. It was a great opportunity to learn more about some of the technology available within the cattle industry.
Our lunch stop was a little different and provided everyone the chance to learn about a different agricultural industry. For lunch we stopped by Gallatin Valley Malt Company and were given a tour of their malt process. While lunch was being cooked members also enjoyed beers from local brewers that were made using the malt grown by Gallatin Valley. Everyone enjoyed the tour and had the chance to learn about a part of agriculture we don’t think a lot about. While at the malt company we also had the chance to hear from some more speakers.
Our first speaker of the afternoon was Dr. John Patterson who is partnered with MultiMin USA. He talked about his years of experience in cattle nutrition and why it is important to have a nutrition plan. Mike Holley, a very experienced cattleman, shared his insight on feedlots and his secrets from years of being in the industry. There were many questions asked and a lot of insight gained. We then learned more about the cattle market from Matt Arendt who works on Catching Up with the Cattle Market. He shared about what cattle buyers are looking for and the different types of cattle sold. Nutrition is a very important topic that Danielle Peterson with Purina also covered in her presentation. Danielle discussed the importance of finding a product rotation that works best for you and your cattle. You have to understand their needs and what they prefer to make sure you have a balance product that they are all actually consuming. Our last speaker at this stop was Dr. Randie Culbertson with American Simmental Association. Dr. Culbertson talked about genetics and understanding how large of a role they play in your operation. Members were given a lot of information to digest and start thinking about how they run things now and what they can do differently in the future.
Our last stop of the day was Sitz Angus. We toured multiple different areas of their operations and got to learn not only the history of the operation but the history of the land as well. Many connections were formed at this stop as the Sitz family shared their insight. We had dinner while there and got to hear from Brittany Koop with the United States Department of Agriculture: Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). Brittany shed light on all of the reports that are created by the AMS department and what goes into creating them. We were able to learn how to utilize those reports and what they can tell us. At the end of the day we were all tired but created so many new friends and connections, as well as learned great ways to utilize the opportunities we have.
Live Cattle Handling Demonstrations
The last day of Cattleman U Live was live demos! John Rose facilitated a very personal conversation about how we can use stock dogs within our operations to lessen some of the stress of cattle handling. Everyone was able to share their level of experience with working dogs and what their plans are for the future. John gave practical and applicable tips on how you want your dogs to work and how you can learn to work with them. It takes a good dog but it also takes a person willing to learn.
After that we had our last presentation with Curt Pate. Curt shared his knowledge of how to work with cattle in a way that is better for both you and your cattle. One of the main takeaways from his presentation was that working cattle should be enjoyable and if it isn’t you aren’t doing it right. He showed everyone ways to utilize cattles natural flight zones and tendencies in your favor. Curt actually worked some cattle for the group which was very beneficial in taking what he said and seeing it in action. Everyone can be a cattleman but not everyone is going to be a stockman. We wrapped up our presentations there and everyone said farewell.
Stay Tuned for More Educational Opportunities for Ranchers
Cattleman U Live was full of applicable knowledge and the foundation of many turning points in people’s approach to running their operations. Everyone left with something that they could do as soon as they got home and people who supported them in those new decisions. We are thankful for cattlemen and women who want to continue to learn more just like us. Cattleman U and Cattleman U Live were created to foster connections and the transferring of knowledge from one cattleman to the next.
Want to see all the fun? Check out the event scrapbook video!
We are blessed to be a small part of so many people’s journeys within this amazing industry. We look forward to seeing some of you at the next Cattleman U Live!
Want to be notified when the next date is announced and access more education? Sign up for updates by joining the Cattleman U Waitlist at CattlemanU.com.