In today’s world, your recruitment should have three components: continuous marketing of your ranch/farm business, recruitment materials and a recruitment blitz.

Most rural landowners could raise beef on their properties by slapping together a fence, building a shelter, gathering feed requirements and ensuring a constant water supply – if that was all it took. These isolated actions will never on their own drive positive results.

What do these three things have in common? Most farmers and ranchers would tell you that they miss the “good old days.” You know, the days when a man’s word was much more trustworthy than any piece of paper.

President Donald Trump’s platform includes proposed changes to income taxes, renewable fuels policy and the farm bill, which could have substantial implications for agribusiness producers, processors, cooperatives and related businesses.

Agriculture has been one of the most dangerous industries for decades. That's why a team of researchers and safety experts have developed the Feedyard 15 Program, a free safety training curriculum available for cattle feedyard operations.

Sometimes a business owner or manager may be confused by the change in behavior of an employee who is usually productive and pays close attention to details. They could see employees fail to work at their normal pace, make unusual mistakes, do low-quality work or spend too much time talking.

Employee performance is important to the success of any business. The company provides a fair and livable wage and expects a certain and appropriate level of effort and outcome in return.

For years, cattle feeders have relied on the “cattle crush spread” as a hedging strategy. This involves buying feeder cattle and corn while selling fat cattle. The idea has been to manage costs and stabilize returns.

Another year has come and gone, and now it's 2025! A common process for many of us is to set goals or resolutions to strive for in the new year. A new year is a new beginning – a time to reflect on what has worked so far and what may need some adjustments.

I felt I needed to discuss the role a small producer plays in the beef industry’s economic impact, both directly and indirectly, in shaping the future of the beef business and the industries that support it – and, maybe more importantly, how the small producer provides a social and cultural fabric for many Americans.