SUbmit your farm’s drought conditions to cmor
Conditions are dry across Alabama, and the Alabama State Climate Office needs your “boots on the ground” data to ensure your area’s drought status is accurately represented on the U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) Map. These maps, not drawn by demographers in Alabama, are crucial for producers because some USDA relief funding is contingent upon the USDM. Start capturing that data now to avoid being up against deadlines this fall! Submit feedback through the Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) software now by visiting https://tinyurl.com/CMOR-2024
As we look in the face of drought, we encourage producers in need of hay— or those who have ample hay to sell— to visit the Alabama Hay Listing webpage housed by our friends at the Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries. The hay listing webpage provides Alabama cattle producers a platform to search for hay to purchase or for hay producers to list hay for sale. Through the listings, farmers who have hay available for sale can list available bales under a variety of categories including type, size, quality and quantity available. Farmers in need of hay can search using those categories within their region. Alabama Hay Listing » agi.alabama.gov/alabama-hay-listings/
Fall Youth Field Days, Coming Up!
The Alabama Junior Cattlemen’s Association will be hosting two field days in September, brought to you by the Alabama Beef Checkoff Program. Youth ages 9-18 will have the opportunity to attend a program in Troy on September 11 and in Cullman on September 25. Both events will feature a cattle judging clinic, where attendees will learn about evaluating live cattle as well as EPD’s, terminology, and oral reasons. Attend the one closest to you! Registration for both dates is available here.
AUBURN FOOTBALL FAMILY DINNER
Football season is finally here in Alabama! The Auburn Tigers Football team kicked off the season in the best way possible – with BEEF! Cattlemen from the Elmore County Cattlemen’s Association, the Montgomery County Cattlemen’s Association and the Lee County Cattlemen’s Association gathered on campus to grill up steaks for the annual Auburn Football Family Dinner August 3rd. Good luck to all our Alabama athletes as they take to the field this fall!
Membership Report
As of today, the ACA is home to 10,165 members. THANK YOU for helping us go Over the Top in the 2024 membership year! That number is still growing, however, as renewals are beginning to roll in from our third and final mail out of the year.
As we head into county annual meeting season, here’s a few reminders for our grassroots leaders. Send the date, time, and location information for your upcoming meeting to ACA Director of Membership Jessica Kennedy as soon as possible. In order to make it in the magazine, we need it in office no later than the 10th of the previous month, but the sooner the better! If you would like a postcard invitation sent out to your membership through our office, those requests must be made two weeks prior to the preferred send date. Contact Jessica for all your county meeting needs!
AG MEDIA SUMMIT
Alabama Cattleman Magazine Managing Editor Nicky Godwin and ACA Director of Consumer Outreach Josie Jones enjoyed attending the Ag Media Summit in Kansas City, Missouri, August 4-6! Highlights of the conference for our staffers included networking with other agriculture advocacy professionals and attending educational sessions covering practical communication skills to reach today’s consumers.
Junior Cattlemen Board MEETING
Earlier in August, the AJCA Board of Directors met to recap the 18th Annual AJCA Round-Up and plan fall events. This meeting was in conjunction with a visit from Tennessee Junior Cattlemen members, where both groups learned about the beef industry in Alabama and ACA through several interactive activities, as well as a tour of The MOOseum and Alabama State Capitol.
YCLP Class XI Completes Second Session of the Year
The Young Cattlemen’s Leadership Program (YCLP) held its second session of the year August 16-17. The group went to the Sand Mountain Research and Extension Center for an overview of the facility as well as a talk on winter grazing from Kent Stanford. Jarrod Eubanks from the Alabama Department of Ag and Industries provided led a session on understanding market reports as well feeder cattle grading, and Dr. Adam Cletzer from Auburn University’s College of Agriculture led a leadership workshop. The session closed with class members participating in mock county board meetings— where they learned about conducting a meeting— and planned an annual meeting and fundraiser. Thanks to our speakers and hosts for working with this group!
Gator Delivered
Each year— thanks to generous support from our friends at TriGreen Equipment, SunSouth LLC and John Deere— we have the unique opportunity to award a John Deere Gator to one lucky winner as part of our membership recruitment incentives. To qualify for the prize drawing, you must join the ACA as a new member or recruit a new member!
The 2023 winner, drawn at the 2024 ACA Convention & Trade Show, was Jonathan Underwood, a recruiter from the Colbert County Cattlemen’s Association! Pictured left to right are TriGreen Equipment reps Kelsey Faivre & Boyd Trulove; Ben Gotcher, Colbert County president; Underwood; and ACA Regional Vice President Junior Riner.
Congrats, Jonathan, and special thanks to our longtime partners for their generous support of this membership prize!
BBQ HILL BRISKET CLASS
The Alabama Beef Checkoff Program and Bama-Q TV partnered to host a Brisket Class at BBQ Hill in Pike Road, August 17th. The sold-out class was taught by award-winning pitmasters from across the US, who encouraged Alabama consumers to step outside of their comfort zone and cook this delicious beef product with their new skills.
Bainbridge Block Party
Join us and our friends from the Alabama Poultry & Egg Association, the Alabama Forestry Association and Sweet Grown Alabama as we host an afternoon block party filled with food and fun on Bainbridge Street Wednesday, Sept. 12 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.! This event will feature a Sweet Grown Alabama farmer’s market, tours of The MOOseum, burgers and chicken wings and a host of agricultural vendors and is a celebration of Alabama’s agricultural trade organizations housed on Bainbridge Street in downtown Montgomery. We’ll see you there!
2025 Convention- Save the Date!
Make plans to join us for the 82nd annual ACA Convention & Trade Show February 21-22, 2025 at the BJCC in Birmingham, AL. In addition to vast networking opportunities, banquets featuring delicious beef meals and the Alabama beef industry’s largest trade show, the event will provide educational workshops, youth competitions and industry meetings. Be on the lookout for registration, lodging and schedule information to release in November!
BIRMINGHAM BARON’S GAME
Beef was the name of the game for the August 23rd Birmingham Baron’s home game against the Biloxi Shuckers!
Cowboy hats were seen throughout the ballpark as members of the Jefferson County Cattlemen’s Association promoted beef by serving over 500 ribeye samples to fans. The ACA was also highlighted on the field when 2024 ACA President Dr. Terry Slaten threw the first pitch of the game.
BEEF 101
The Fall Beef 101 program kicked off on August 26th in Auburn! Students from Geneva County Schools joined Alabama CattleWomen’s Association groups from Geneva County and Baldwin County for a fun day packed with beef education. Attendees learned about pasture to plate beef production, beef animal health and participated in a carcass fabrication demonstration.
The Fall Beef 101 sessions are completely booked at this time, but there will be availability again in the spring. Anyone interested in attending the program can contact Josie Jones at josie@bamabeef.org.
“BEEF TIPS” at AU
Beef was at the center of the plate for Golden State Foods employees August 14th at the Beef Tips event hosted by the College of Agriculture at Auburn University!
ACA Director of Consumer Outreach Josie Jones joined beef producers Dr. Misty Edmondson and Jason Edmondson to teach the beef industry overview, hot topics in beef production and day in the life of a cattle producer educational sessions. Attendees also learned about carcass grading, food safety, meat carcass fabrication and beef packaging.
OCTOBER BEEF MONTH
October is Beef Month in Alabama, and the festivities are quickly approaching! This year marks 60 years of Beef Month, so we want to celebrate BIG across the state. The county associations are encouraged to begin considering how they can promote beef consumption this October in their communities. If ideas or promotional items are needed, please contact ACA Director of Consumer Outreach Josie Jones at josie@bamabeef.org for assistance.
BLACK VULTURE DEPREDATION SUB-PERMIT
Livestock producers experiencing depredation from black vultures may now apply for a no cost Black Vulture Depredation Sub-Permit through the Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries. All approved applicants will be allowed to take up to three black vultures as long as the statewide take number has not exceeded 500. If 500 vultures are harvested in the state, applicants will receive an email notifying them that no more vultures may be taken during the permit period. For more information, visit agi.alabama.gov.
CATTLE CONNECT PODCAST, TUNE IN TODAY!
Tune into the Cattle Connect podcast weekly on Friday mornings at 7AM. Listen is as staff discusses beef industry news, hits on a variety of educational topics and explores the many facets of the ACA! This podcast is available on Apple Podcast, Spotify, and at www.BamaBeef.org/Podcast. Tune in on your favorite streaming platform today to catch up on the first 20+ episodes and subscribe to get notifications when a new episode airs!
BAMA BEEF EVENTS CALENDAR
The Bama Beef Events Calendar (www.BamaBeef.org/Events) is filling up with county cattlemen’s, youth and Extension activities as we look toward the summer months. Check it daily to make sure you don’t miss an event near you!
Thanks for reading this month’s post! Until we post again, we want to remind you that you can stay in touch with us by following us on Facebook or Instagram.