Workshop Will Help Beef Producers Plan for Successful Breeding Season

By Erika Lundy-Woolfolk

Feed costs and reproductive inefficiency are the two largest expenses in a beef cow enterprise. To help beef producers gear up for a successful breeding season, the Iowa Beef Center at Iowa State University, ISU Extension and Outreach Shelby County, and Farm Service Cooperative are partnering on a breeding season workshop focused on nutrition set for April 29 in west central Iowa. The program will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at St. Boniface Parish Hall, 305 Duren St., Westphalia, with a meal served at 5:30 p.m.

Erika-Lundy Woolfolk, ISU extension beef specialist for southwest Iowa, is coordinating the workshop and said attendees will benefit from the variety of topics addressed.

“Nutrition is one of the most important factors that must be managed well in order to reach calf crop goals,” she said. “The workshop will include both classroom and hands-on learning opportunities focused on the importance of nutrition leading up to and through the breeding season.”

The program features the following presentation topics, as well as a Q&A session with presenters and local representatives:

• Nutrition’s role in reproduction
• Livestock risk protection options
• Utilizing ration formulation software (BRaNDS) to assess beef diets

In addition to Lundy-Woolfolk, presenters are Tim Christensen, ISU Extension and Outreach farm management specialist, Dan Hosch with Zinpro, and Noah Sellner with Nelson Farm Supply.

The workshop is offered at no cost to attendees, and thanks to sponsorship from Farm Service Cooperative the evening meal is also provided at no charge. Please RSVP no later than April 23 by calling Shelby County Extension at 712-755-3104 or emailing dlascot@iastate.edu.