Stan Butt, Sr. Executive Director Columbia, Tennessee Tennessee Dairy Producers Association
What are your new responsibilities?
My new responsibilities include building on the foundation that the Tennessee dairy producers began when they were organized in 2009, securing funding and making the TDPA a representative voice for the dairy producers in Tennessee.
I will also be helping promote the dairy industry and encouraging the next generation to consider it as a viable industry. I'll represent the association at industry meetings across the state as a liaison at the general assembly when proposed bills affect the Tennessee dairy industry and the many related industries and companies involved in it.
What territory will you cover?
My territory will cover the state of Tennessee.
Please describe your agricultural background.
My ag background includes growing up in the rural town of Portland, Tennessee, where I learned to hand milk at an early age when most farms produced grade B milk for cheese production.
I have been involved in beef cattle cow/calf operations, purebred registered cattle, hay production, tobacco farming, wheat and grain production and raising sheep and goats.
What previous positions have you held?
In the mid-eighties I worked as field editor for Southern Beef Producer and became the first editor and publisher for TCA Cattle Business, the official publication for the newly formed Tennessee Cattleman's Association in 1987.
During that time, I also served as president of the local County Cattlemen's Association. Most recently, I held the position of CEO, CFO, and executive director of the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders and Exhibitors Association (TWHBEA), the International Breed Registry of the Tennessee Walking Horse.
While with the TWHBEA, I served on NAIS Task Force, was an active member of the National Pedigreed Livestock Council and was a member of the US Livestock Genetics Export Group.
What goals would you like to accomplish while in this position?
My goal is to work to establish the Tennessee Dairy Producers Association as a voice for all dairy producers across the state in matters of education, communication and representation. PD