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Flying Without GPS: The Old Way Just Doesn’t Cut It by Neal Pearson

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I want to recount something that happened to me on a recent flight to Denver. This flight originated in Watertown, South Dakota, with a stop in Pierre. Here is where things became interesting. After an additional 14 people had boarded and a little time elapsed, the captain shut down
the plane’s engines. Now having flown numerous times, not once on any of those flights did the plane’s engines ever shut off. A passenger then said, “must be saving fuel.” I thought to myself, not likely.

After a considerable amount of time, the pilot came on the intercom and told us the computer that runs the GPS system was not working, but not to worry, we will still make the flight to Denver employing Flintstone navigation. For those that don’t remember the Flintstones, and in particular Fred, I now began to worry, because Fred Flintstone had a way of getting lost on almost every adventure he ever took. The pilot’s statement of using landmarks to get to Denver seemed logical, but he forgot one thing that made this seem an impossible accomplishment; that one forgotten thing was the cloud cover. The landmarks that I presumed he was going to use were interstate highways and rivers; both of which could be seen from 30,000 feet. Having flown over this area and driven through it, I know that both landmarks run east to west. When the cloud cover cleared and I looked down, I saw as we flew over one of the rivers that we were in a perpendicular position to the river; course correction occurred. The next landmark was Interstate 80, but this splits off to I-76. Yep, we followed I-80 for a while. Soon realizing the mistake, we altered our course again. This time, we found I-76. Hurray! We’re on the right path to Denver.

Much like a plane’s GPS system is critical to fly the correct course under heavy cloud cover, the annual meeting works to steer the AGA in the correct direction for the success of the AGA membership and customers. Because, in a way, this meeting sets the GPS for the AGA
staff and AGA Board of Directors to pursue the correct course. The committee meetings, the discussion and actions taken are and always have been the guideline for the future of the AGA.

Another critical function of the annual meeting is the election of AGA Board of Directors members. By and thru, this process brings fresh ideas and ways of looking at things. So I encourage everyone to read the board candidate bios, cast your vote in person and vote for the candidates that you feel can best serve, navigate and land the AGA into the future. As the pilot pointed out, following the old way is not the best, because it is a way to get off course.

Gelbvieh Convention to be Held in Lincoln, Nebraska

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The 46th Annual American Gelbvieh Association National Convention will be held November 30 through December 2, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska. The event themed “Meeting Modern Industry Demands” is focused on improving profitability in all sectors of the beef industry. This year’s convention will be held at the Lincoln Marriott Cornhusker Hotel in the heart of Lincoln. The title sponsor for the event is GeneSeek®, a Neogen company.

The AGA convention will include events such as AGA committee meetings, the AGA annual membership meeting, kick-off reception, awards banquet, the second annual Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup and much more.

Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup is an educational symposium focused on beef industry profitability. The symposium is free to attend and is open to all producers and beef industry professionals. Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup will feature industry leading speakers from CattleFax, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Oklahoma State University. The event is being held on Thursday, December 1, starting with a free lunch at noon with the program beginning at 1:00 p.m. All are also invited to join in the Bull Pen session starting at 6:00 p.m. at Blue Blood Brewing Company in Lincoln. The Bull Pen session will allow for attendees to have casual interaction with the symposium speakers. No registration is necessary for the Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup.

Online registration for the three day convention is available by visiting  www.gelbvieh.org.

 

Juniors, Join Us in Lincoln! By Colton Spencer

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Summertime is behind us and school is up and going. The Gelbvieh industry had a jam-packed summer full of leadership events and cattle shows. Maybe for your family the best shows are yet to come or maybe your favorite show heifer has been grazing in the pasture for months now. Who knows, school might even be a time where the world slows down and you have time to think about what’s next on the agenda.

However, the American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) never stops and new events come up each month. One event that is coming up on the horizon is the 46th Annual American Gelbvieh Association National Convention. This year’s convention will be held November 30 through December 2, 2016 in Lincoln, Nebraska, at the Lincoln Marriott Cornhusker Hotel. The national convention is the time for the AGA to review the year and discussthe completion of their goals set for the breed at last year’s convention. It is also a time for the Association to create new goals and discuss areas that need improvement in our breed association through committee meetings, board meetings and educational programs. This year we are encouraging AGJA members to make the trip to Lincoln and sit in on convention meetings to learn more about the agenda for the upcoming year as well as what you can do to make a positive impact in our breed association.

A topic that may come about at this year’s convention is the use of genomics in our industry and the vast role it implies today. Genomics is the study of the entire set of genes in a living organism such as a Gelbvieh beef cow. These array of genes allow us to better determine the growth and development of our cattle. How does this benefit a producer? Genomics help clear up what was once unknown. We can now work to predict the profitability of each calf or we can trait select for certain things such as tenderness or marbling. The result is being able to help the average producer make more efficient decisions to maximize their profitability.

Genomics isn’t necessarily a requirement in today’s industry, however it is a tool that is waiting at our fingertips if we decide to use it, which is exactly what a number of AGA members have done over the past few years. Researchers have developed testing that encompasses a mass amount of genes that unveil a lot of what a breeder and buyer need to know about their cattle.

Genomics has stepped beyond just being used in the seedstock industry. It’s being used by some feedyards to gain a competitive advantage by using data to see which animals might produce higher quality meat vs the animals that will take longer to develop. This is just another example of the increased involvement of technology in today’s society. Every day research is being conducted to see how efficient we are in our methods. People are constantly looking for new ways to improve their practices. Of course, all of this is done with the same task in mind, feeding the rapidly growing population set to hit 9.5 billion by 2050. With constant advances in technology, producers are motivated that this “impossible” task will quickly become a worry of the past and our agriculture industry will continue to thrive.

The Time is Now! By Myron Edelman

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Did you attend the American Gelbvieh Association National Convention last year held in Kansas City? Did you know that convention attendance and voting at the AGA annual meeting was more than doubled last year compared to the year before? The time is now to become part of the excitement at the AGA, advance your operation and maximize the benefit of your AGA membership.

Everywhere you look, someone is talking about the general election. As a U.S. citizen, you have the right to vote on candidates and ballot initiatives that impact you. As important as that may sound, only 53.6 percent of U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote did so in the 2012 general election. The U.S. only ranks 27th in the world among more developed countries in voting percentage.

Equate the general election to the American Gelbvieh Association (AGA). The parallels include: farmers and ranchers like living in the U.S., they understand that being in the cattle business is a way of life, and know an election outcome does influence their financial wellbeing and can change the value and marketing of their product. So then it would make sense that AGA members would want to participate in the AGA National Convention to help shape the future of the Gelbvieh and Balancer® breed and vote to elect leaders of our association? After all, wouldn’t your one of 1,000 votes as an AGA member more greatly impact your livestock operation than your one of 318 million votes impact your U.S. citizenship? But here’s the bad news, while the participants doubled last year at our national convention compared to the prior year, still only about 12 percent of the AGA membership participated in the annual meeting. As you can see, we still have work to do.

The cattle breed association world is well documented for being difficult to maneuver and unify due to the wide range of size of operations, geographic diversity, goals set by each breeder for their respective operations and the purpose for being an association member. That difficulty is magnified by rapid changes in scientific advancement, weather conditions, and of course, monumental changes in cattle markets. Right now producers are grasping for every dollar available at each stage of the beef supply chain. The services available through the AGA are beneficial for identifying where those dollars can be found.

Perhaps one of the most important convention topics this year will be the presentation of a new strategic plan. Now, more than ever, the AGA has an obligation to the beef industry to provide sound science for
genetic selection, proficient management tools for members and customers as well as marketing avenues and tools, not only for AGA members but also our commercial industry customers. In the future, the AGA also needs to consider potential services for the feeder and packer sector of the industry. Over the past two years, AGA has clearly begun focusing on participating in the beef industry as a contributor of genetic, management and marketing tools at a much higher level. AGA has aligned with industry partners such as National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, CattleFax and RFD TV to broaden AGA’s demographic reach. The AGA has further developed partnerships with video auction companies and traditional sale barns to identify and highlight Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics. DNA tools for commercial ranchers, such as the Maternal Edge Female Profile, and herd management capability through $mart Select Service is now available.

The AGA, like most breeds, has made directional changes over the years. Over time leadership in any membership organization can change, which makes it difficult to stay the course. The complete support of the AGA membership will accelerate the speed at which we can grow as a viable source of genetic information and industry service. That support starts with each member participating in events like AGA National Convention. Committee meetings held at convention provide an avenue for members to learn about each segment of the AGA and allows breeders to directly address leadership regarding particular matters like breed improvement, AGA marketing, finance and national events. The annual meeting gives members a voting voice to elect the AGA Board of Directors. The staff has also worked diligently to prepare educational programs and tours relevant to all AGA stakeholders.

Just like exercising your right to vote as a U.S. citizen in the general election, the time is now for you to attend the AGA National Convention. The time is now to solidify your place in the beef industry as a seedstock supplier and shape the future of the AGA.

I cordially invite each of you to attend the 46th Annual AGA National Convention and annual meeting.