Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
This is the event of the year for stock growers who have chosen to integrate grazing activities into the heart of their operation.
The Western Canadian Grazing Conference will be held at Saskatoon’s Radisson Hotel from December 7 to 9, 2005, and conference Chair Ross MacDonald promises a rack of sessions loaded with useful information.
“This is a coming together of Alberta and Saskatchewan graziers,” MacDonald says. “The event alternates between the two provinces, so it has to feature some leading edge presentations. This year, we are bringing in a couple of keynote speakers from Colorado with very impressive credentials.”
Kit Pharo grew up on a ranch in eastern Colorado. In the early 1980s, he had an opportunity to lease and manage a ranch of his own. His initial goal was to show everyone how to wean bigger calves and succeed at ranching. Fortunately, that was a very short-term goal. He soon discovered that bigger calves did not necessarily generate bigger profits. Pharo has devoted the past 20 years to creating a very efficient and profitable cow/calf operation.
“He has sought out and learned from some of the most profitable ranches in North America how to increase profits while improving the land,” MacDonald says. “It has nothing to do with weaning bigger calves. His approach is about focusing on animals that fit the environment in which you operate. It is all about functionality—things like calving ease and reducing costs. It is about forage tested genetics.”
The other Colorado keynote speaker is Dr. Gary Smith of Colorado State University. MacDonald has high hopes for the value this researcher will bring to the conference.
“Dr. Smith has won both the Distinguished Research Award and the Distinguished Teaching Award from the American Society of Animal Science and from the American Meat Science Association. He is a world meat trade expert who has a fantastic ability to make world meat market information relevant for primary producers. His presentation is bound to be thought-provoking for all conference participants.”
The conference includes a trade show and sessions on watering systems, reducing costs with non-traditional feeds, and custom grazing.
The Thursday evening address will feature Ted Perrin, winner of the 2004 Environmental Stewardship Award and a well-known rancher whose family has a long association with the legendary Matador Ranch.
To find out more about the Western Canadian Grazing Conference, visit: http://www.skstockgrowers.com
For more information, contact:
Ross MacDonaldConference Chair
Western Canadian Grazing Conference
(306) 757-8523
http://www.skstockgrowers.com
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