Media Releases

Location Announced for National Gelbvieh & Balancer® Show and Sale

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Lincoln, Neb. – The American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) board of directors met March 26-27, 2021, for their spring board meeting where a decision was made about the location of the 2022 National Gelbvieh and Balancer® Show and Sale. Following the AGA National Show Committee’s recommendation, the AGA board voted to hold the 2022 National Gelbvieh and Balancer Show and Sale at the Cattlemen’s Congress in Oklahoma City.

Exhibitor feedback and show accommodations were taken into consideration during this discussion. Cattlemen’s Congress will be the location of the 2022 National Gelbvieh and Balancer Show and Sale, along with a junior show and pen show.

The AGA will share more information and schedules with its membership as it becomes available.

Harbert Hired as Gelbvieh Media Productions Coordinator

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Lincoln, NE – The American Gelbvieh Association is pleased to announce the addition of Katie Harbert to the AGA staff as Gelbvieh Media Productions Coordinator. Harbert will be responsible for design, production, and ad sales of official AGA publications and will also provide design services for AGA members and the Association.
“I am so honored to join the dynamic team at AGA and utilize my skills and experiences to help grow Gelbvieh Media,” Katie shares, “I look forward to continuing to advance communication for the Association and its members. It is an exciting time to get involved in this rapidly-evolving industry.”
Harbert is originally from Kingman, Kansas, and is finishing her degree in agriculture communications and journalism at Kansas State University (KSU) where she will graduate in May 2021. During her time at KSU, Katie has served as an editor of numerous publications including the Royal Purple Yearbook, and has served as both a College of Agriculture Ambassador and president of Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow. Harbert was also awarded the 2020 Forrest Bassford Award during the 2020 Livestock Publications Council Annual Membership Meeting.
“Katie is a very talented young professional and has a wide range of skills in the field of agricultural communications,” says Megan Slater, AGA executive director. “We are excited to have her joining us at the AGA and helping us to grow the Gelbvieh and Balancer® message.”
Katie began her role with the AGA, in a part-time capacity, on January 11 and will assume a full-time role in the AGA office following graduation in May. Katie can be reached at katie@gelbvieh.org or 303-465-2333.

Gelbvieh Association Awards Commercial Producer of the Year

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Loren Fischer of Nevada, Missouri, was honored as the American Gelbvieh Association’s (AGA) 2020 Commercial Producer of the Year during the awards banquet held virtually on December 5, 2020.
The AGA Commercial Producer of the Year Award honors individuals who use Gelbvieh and Balancer® genetics in progressive commercial cattle operations and are proactive in their promotion of the Gelbvieh and Balancer breeds.
Loren and his wife, Marcy, along with their five children, own and operate Fischer Cattle Company, a diversified cattle and farming operation located in west central Missouri, near the community of Rich Hill.
Currently, Fischer Cattle Company runs about 500 commercial cows and replacement females. Like many operations in Missouri, the Fischers split their herd into two calving seasons, with 60 percent calving in the fall and 40 percent calving in the spring.
Loren shares that he has been purchasing Balancer bulls for more than six years now and appreciates the added growth and performance he has seen from implementing a crossbreeding program. He notes that introducing Balancer bulls was a smart, profitable and easy choice for him, and has allowed him to maximize hybrid vigor in his herd.
“We were looking to make a change and get away from straight Angus; we wanted to see the gains of crossbreeding,” Fischer says, “We have been really happy with our calves. Our goal, just like everybody’s goal, is to put pounds on. We have done that and seen an improvement in the disposition of our calves.”
Fischer Cattle Company raises their own replacement heifers, and the added maternal strengths the genetics provide is another area of added value that Loren has found in the incorporation of Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics into his herd.
Known for both fertility and stayability, Gelbvieh genetics help to maximize cowherd profitability through good breed back and reproductive longevity. Both traits add up to more live calves on the ground throughout the herd life of a female and translate to increased herd profitability.
The Fischers also background their calves and have retained ownership in the feedyard for the last several years, making average daily gain, along with yield and grade, important components in the operation’s profitability.
Overall, Loren says that he is pleased with the results he has been seeing from Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics. And he attributes much of his operation’s genetic improvement and success in the commercial beef industry to the breeds’ genetics.
Congratulations to Loren Fischer, Fischer Cattle Company, for winning this prestigious award.