West Virginia cattle farmers can beef up their herd and their farm’s bottom line with the West Virginia University Extension Service’s Mountaineer Cattlemen’s College — a conference that gives producers tools for success through education and connections with industry leaders and each other.

The event takes place Friday, Dec. 4 through Saturday, Dec. 5, with social events taking place on Friday and educational programming taking place on Saturday. Cost for both days is $80. A Friday-only ticket can be purchased for $15 and a Saturday-only ticket is available for $70.

Designed with convenience in mind, the conference replaces the annual beef short course. Organizers condensed the educational sessions to one day and moved the conference to a central location — Stonewall Resort in Roanoke.

Kevin Shaffer, WVU Extension Service livestock production specialist, said that producers can still expect to learn and interact with multiple, high-quality educational sources, including experts from the WVU Extension Service, Ohio State University, Virginia Tech and the American Angus Association.

“It’s an opportunity for cattlemen, and cattlewomen, to increase their knowledge of current and emerging production trends, how to operate sustainably and profitably, and develop a relationship with other producers and industry leaders,” said Shaffer. “It’s a convenient, one-stop shop for the state’s beef producers — whether seasoned or novice, large-scale or small-scale.”

In addition to a general session, there will be breakout sessions to allow producers to learn about topics that they can specifically benefit from, including nutrition, reproduction, herd health and genetics.

The schedule, more information and registration are available at bit.ly/1XUW5Sd.

The WVU Extension Service serves as an outreach division of West Virginia University. Extension has offices in all 55 counties, which provide citizens with knowledge in areas such as 4-H and youth development, agriculture, family and consumer sciences, health, leadership development and community and economic development.

To learn more about WVU Extension programs, visit www.ext.wvu.edu, or contact your local office of the WVU Extension Service.

-WVU-

zl/11/18/15

CONTACT: Cassie Thomas, WVU Extension Service
304.293.8735, Cassie.Thomas@mail.wvu.edu

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