Beef Cow/calf workshop Slated Near Athens On August 19th

While Wisconsin is known as “America’s Dairyland”, interest in raising beef cattle is on the rise.  A recent USDA census showed that a majority of cow/calf operations have less than 50 head of cattle, but raise nearly one third of the US calf crop annually.  With a plentiful supply out-of- use dairy farm operations and pasture land available, many who work off the farm or have retired from dairying find raising beef cattle a natural fit for their available facilities.

 

A UW-Extension Beef Cow/Calf producer meeting is being offered to producers of all sizes and the agriculture professionals who service their operations.  The evening’s agenda will include a farm tour, meal, and speakers.  Speaker topics will include preventing and managing parasites, body condition scoring, and weaning.  Attendees of the meeting will qualify for one continuing education credit for Beef Quality Assurance recertification.  The meeting will be held at Geerts Farm, located at 2182 HWY A Athens, WI, Registration fee is $25 on August 19th.

 

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.