100 Beef Cow Ownership Advantage Seminar Well Attended

CURTIS, NE, JANUARY 17, 2008:  Dr Weldon Sleight, Dean at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture (NCTA), didn't need to sugarcoat the facts to a full house attending a seminar outlining the 100-Beef Cow Ownership Program on Tuesday, January 15, 2008.  However, despite the realities of what rural Nebraska is dealing with in terms of population loss, many attendees walked away with a sense that this new program represents a tangible way to boost Nebraska's cattle industry and bring young people back home.
 
"Nebraska's situation is much like many rural communities throughout the country," stated Sleight, who shared his own personal experience of the impact on his hometown of Paris, Idaho.  "In a 30-year stretch of time from 1968 to 1998, I watched 29 businesses close, the local school consolidate and close, and many services disappear because of a lack of a succession plan.  This is happening nationwide."
 
In an audience ranging from ranchers to local bankers, Sleight was able to share the mechanics of the 100-Beef Cow Ownership program.  The program is unique in that it not only allows students hands-on instruction in beef cattle production and business planning, but also gives them access to cutting edge research through the Gudmundsen Sandhills Ranch near Whitman, Nebraska, covering 12,000 acres and home to 600 cows.  Recent research, including a study that found that feeding $8.55 of supplement during feeding resulted in cattle 101 pounds heavier at harvest, gives students an edge and will make them better equipped to manage their own herd.
 
What Sleight has developed isn't entirely new.  Through conversations with a rancher in Cherry County, Sleight learned that this rancher had started 3 ranchers using the very same concept of allowing them to own an asset.  The rancher's response to the value of the program?  "It works," shared Sleight.
 
Tuesday's meeting also provided an opportunity to debut the new NCTA 100-Beef Cow Outreach program.  Sleight shared that he had heard from many young farmers and ranchers unable to attend NCTA full time that they were interested in the ability to own 100 cows.  The new outreach program will be focused on delivering classes over the statewide distance learning network, coupled with ranch practicums at Gudmundson, and the NCTA Cow-Calf College held in May at the Curtis campus.
 
Mike Jacobsen, President at Nebraskaland National Bank in North Platte, encouraged those ranchers attending to take a NCTA graduate and make them a partner.  "You're not getting just a hired hand," stated Jacobsen.  "By owning their own cows, they not only care about their cows, but they'll also care about yours.  There's something about ownership-you're involved."
 
Jacobsen also felt that the timing was long overdue for this type of program.  "No one has been able to marry up the USDA Beginning Farmer Program and tax incentives with the farmer/rancher," added Jacobsen.  "This program has finally found a way to link all three pieces together."
 
Attorney James Fehringer from Columbus related stories of painful realities of ag transfer.  "So many times, 40 to 50-year olds end up in my office because Dad has passed away and they have no knowledge of what will happen to the place," Fehringer shared.  "By the time they reach this point in their lives, it's very difficult to begin the ownership process that should have started 20 years ago."
 
Sleight hopes to see a marked increase in interest from farmers and ranchers who view the 100-Cow program as a critical business move.  "What we would love to see is the next generation of Nebraska ranchers comprised of NCTA graduates and their families."
 
For more information about the 100-Beef Cow Ownership Program, please contact Dr. Weldon Sleight, Dean, at wsleight2@unl.edu or call 1-800-3CURTIS.