The Northwest Oklahoma Beef Conference is slated for Thursday, October 29th, at the Chisholm Trail Expo Center located at 111 West Purdue on the Garfield County Fairgrounds beginning at 8:00 am. This conference will provide Oklahoma Beef producers with the latest industry insights coupled with research-based information on several key beef management topics.
Dr. Derrell Peel, OSU Extension Beef Marketing Specialist, will begin the program by discussing the current outlook for the beef cattle markets and how these factors will affect our production practices in the coming year. Dr. Chris Richards, OSU Extension Beef Specialist, will follow with a presentation titled “Producers and Global Impacts of Going Natural”. Richards will key in on proven technologies that are crucial in the beef industry to feed the ever-expanding global population.
The popularity of Teff grass increased in Oklahoma as an excellent high producing and drought tolerant forage resource. Brian Pugh, Northeast Area Extension Agronomist will discuss his experience with Teff grass in both haying and grazing trials at OSU.
The program will culminate with two keynote presentations. The first will be given by Dr. Rick Funston, Professor and Beef Specialist at the University of Nebraska. Dr. Funston specializes in heifer development and the effects of fetal programming on postnatal calf performance. At this year’s event, Dr. Funston will discuss his experience in developing heifers with low input costs while enhancing fertility. During a time when Oklahoma beef producers are expanding herds at a higher rate compared to other areas of the country, Dr. Funston’s principles offer an opportunity to replace or add females to the herd at a reduced cost.
The program will conclude with a presentation by Mark Greene, Lead Resource Conservationist, USDA NRCS, in Springfield, Missouri. Green has provided countless educational demonstrations for producers in the Kansas and Missouri area, and he is well known for his cowboy humor and expertise from years of experience in the industry. Through his entertaining presentation, Green will provide fresh ideas on electric fence products, the pros and cons of various material used in fencing construction, and installation techniques to improve the profitability of the grazing enterprise. With slim margins in the upcoming winter grazing season, small changes in management to increase grazing efficiency could help producers increase profitability.
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