This past January, I had the honor of attending the New York Beef Producers Annual Meeting. And although we’ve had all intentions of attending the event for the past couple of years, life always seemed to get in the way. This year, my wife and I were invited to the event to receive the “Beef Farm of Excellence Award” (which I will highlight and explain the process for achieving that distinction in detail next week). It was truly a blessing to be able to attend and I feel that much was gained, especially from a professional development standpoint. I left the meeting with a reinvigorated passion for the beef industry.
Within industries, conferences and tradeshow events exist, and agriculture is no exception; with the NYBA annual meeting as proof. There is much to gain from attending a meeting such as this, ranging from trainings to product showcases; however, there is a pinnacle of importance to them. Simply put, it’s the people… It’s networking and professional development; having real world connections, specifically in an environment where you are intentionally bringing like-minded individuals together, is an invaluable commodity. You can YouTube or google any topic that has interest to you, and you will have an overwhelming abundance of experts to explain it to you. Just punch in “rotational grazing “ and you will have Greg Judy, Will Harris, and Joel Salatin talking your ear off. What you can’t access in those videos is human connection. My Grandfather would put it this way “you got to get belly to belly”. He was alluding to having a real connection to a real person as topics in agriculture were discussed. In doing this, it fosters a deeper understanding and significance of what is being discussed, because real world examples are thought through by the crowd. This is why I counted it as a blessing to have the time to go. I saw old friends and made new ones, while mingling among the vendors of the trade show, and in line to get the perfectly cooked prime rib. It also presented the opportunity to take a step back from the tiring grind of the day-to-day requirements of maintaining a small family farm and get renewed perspective and focus.
Kevin Oschner of Kersey, Colorado is a purebred Limousin (breed of cattle) breeder and the host of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen Show gave the keynote address. He told us to approach life like an auction. Have a plan, to not overcommit on the wrong thing, be decisive and don’t let a good opportunity pass. He offered ideas of business diversity, expanding or contracting enterprises within the farm depending on the profitability or lack thereof. The inspired crowd hung to each word Mr. Oschner spoke, as he delivered his remarks. To say that Mr. Oschner was a grade A public speaker would be an understatement and disservice to his speech. The conference brought a revived inspiration for the dream of our family farm business and I’m excited as we continue to embark on our journey.
We look forward to going to the NYBPA conference next year. And hope that as our schedule allows us, we can make more industry events this year!
John VanDerwerken