By Blake Jackson
The University of Missouri Extension will host a four-day Livestock Bus Tour starting September 23, offering participants a unique opportunity to explore livestock operations across northwestern Missouri, northeastern Kansas, and southwestern Nebraska.
Organized by MU Extension livestock field specialists, the tour kicks off at the Hickory County MU Extension Center in Hermitage, Missouri.
Focused mainly on cattle operations, the tour will also include a stop that explores co-grazing practices involving sheep, goats, and cattle. “The feedlot is an important sector of the cattle industry,” says Patrick Davis, MU Extension livestock field specialist. “Understanding factors that influence feedlot performance is helpful to cattle producers to produce calves that will perform better in the feedlot.”
Davis notes that better-performing calves can command premium prices depending on how they are marketed. The group is tentatively scheduled to visit the UNL Klosterman Feedlot Innovation Center near Mead, Nebraska, and Briggs Cattle Co., a commercial feedyard in Seward, Nebraska.
Davis also highlights the value of small cattle slaughter facilities: “Small cattle slaughter facilities are becoming an important part of the Missouri cattle industry.” To provide insight into this sector, the group plans to tour Hertzog Meat Co. near Butler, Missouri.
The tour will also stop at Shannon Creek Ranch near Olsburg, Kansas, to learn about co-species grazing. “Co-species grazing has potential to improve cattle operation profitability,” says Davis. This operation manages goats, sheep, and cattle together and offers a practical look at managing multiple species on shared pasture.
Participants will visit several seedstock operations raising Angus, Hereford, Red Angus, Gelbvieh, Simmental, Beefmaster, and Charolais cattle.
Scheduled stops include Lacy Red Angus in Drexel, Missouri; Jensen Simmentals in Osawatomie, Kansas; Nextgen Cattle Co. in Paxico, Kansas; Overmiller Red Angus and Gelbvieh in Smith Center, Kansas; Benoit Angus in Ebson, Kansas; and Valley Creek Ranch in Fairbury, Nebraska. The tour will also include a visit to the American Hereford Association in Kansas City, Missouri.
The cost is $500 per person, covering hotel and bus fees. To register, mail payment by September 1 to the Hickory County MU Extension Center or call 417-745-6767. For more details, contact Patrick Davis at 417-276-3313 or davismp@missouri.edu.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-digitalvision
Categories: Missouri, Livestock, Beef Cattle, Dairy Cattle