Photo Album of Retiring Board Members

How about another photo album?  This time it’s the retiring board members.

You can see a photo album of them here: Retiring Board Members Photo Album

The link will take you to the photo album in Flickr.  You’ll be able to click on individual photos or view the set as a slide show.

Online Photo Album From Convention

There’s no picture with this post because it’s a link to an online photo album that currently has 74 pictures.  More will be added so check back again.

I uploaded a bunch of the pictures I took to an online Flickr photo album.

You can see the photo album here: 2006 Cattle Industry Convention – CBB

When you click on that link you’ll be taken to the Flickr album.  You can view the pictures individually or as a slide show.

The Passing of the Gavel

Here’s the passing of the gavel from outgoing Chairman Al Svajgr (r) to the new Chairman, Jay O’Brien (l).

Remember that each committee has it’s own page here on the blog and we have most of them updated with reports from their meetings last week.

We should have it all up to date shortly.

Interview With The New CBB Chairman – Jay O’Brien

The new Chairman of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is Jay O’Brien, from Amarillo, TX. The gavel was passed to him this morning.

I interviewed Jay after the meeting to find out his priorities.

You can listen to my interview with Jay here: O’Brien Interview (5:55 min. MP3 File)

CBB Meeting On Final Day

Here’s the Cattlemen’s Beef Board portion of the head table at the NCBA Board of Directors and CBB Meeting. A meeting that is actually still taking place here at the Cattle Indusry Convention.

In this meeting both organizations report on their activities and allow for open dialogue. It’s also where the gavel will pass from outgoing CBB Chairman Al Svajgr to incoming Chairman Jay O’Brien.

Outgoing Chairman Presented With Coat of Arms

At the Cattlemen’s Beef Board banquet it’s a tradition to present the outgoing chairman with a few mementos and gifts. COO, Monte Reese, presented Al Svajgr with a “Beef Checkoff” coat of arms to use in continuing to defend the Checkoff. Apparently Al was known as such a staunch defender and fighter for the logo and made sure it was prominently displayed everywhere.

Prior to being presented the shield we watched a short video of Al’s life in which we saw that the Beef Checkoff logo was even displayed on his baby clothes! Actually, it’s all done in fun and to show how much the industry appreciates all the hard work Al has done during his chairmanship and serving on numerous committees.

Watch A Committee In Action

When I interviewed Cattlemen’s Beef Board member Charles Miller earlier this week he thought that showing producers what a committee meeting looked like would be of interest.  If you’ve never attended or participated in one of the committee meetings going on here then you might want to check this out.

I visited the Joint Advertising Committee meeting this afternoon (Room 603) and took a short video clip you can watch.  I just used my little digital camera but I think you can get the idea.

You can watch the video here:   Joint Advertising Commitee Video (2:44 WMV File)

Trostel’s Wins Beef Backer Award

The Beef Checkoff conducts an annual restaurant awards program called the Beef Backer Award. The winners received their awards and recognition here onstage at the Friday general session.

I caught up with the Beef Backer “Innovator of the Year” Award winners from Trostel’s Greenbriar in Johnston, IA. I interviewed chef, Troy Trostel, and General Manager, Suzanne Summy.

You can listen to my interview with Troy & Suzanne here: Trostel’s Interview (3:26 min. MP3 File)

Beef From Dairy Breeds Bring Value To Market

If there were any doubts about the value beef from dairy breeds bring to the market, they were dispelled by Dr. Gary Smith, department head of animal sciences at Colorado State University, at the Dairy Producer Communications Forum luncheon during the Cattle Industry Meeting. Smith, the keynote speaker, said he doubted enough high-quality beef could be supplied to restaurants such as Morton’s without beef from Holsteins. One reason beef from Holsteins consistently scores well in tenderness, quality and taste is that 90 percent of all Holstein sires are descendents of five Holstein bulls. Few breeds can tout such consistency, says Smith.

Smith has been closely involved with the beef checkoff-funded National Beef Quality Audit program that evaluates the quality of beef and helps identify measures beef producers can take to increase quality.

You can listen to my interview with Gary here: Gary Smith Interview (7:28 min. MP3 File)

An Interview With Jim McAdams

The current president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association is Jim McAdams from Texas.

I interviewed Jim since NCBA is such a big service provider to the Beef Checkoff. He describes the types of services that are provided via contract with CBB. Additionally, Jim talks about an industrywide review effort of the Beef Checkoff that’s taking place and what they hope to accomplish.

You can listen to my interview with Jim here: Jim McAdams Interview (6:46 min. MP3 File)

CBB Members On AgriTalk

The AgriTalk show is here broadcasting live.

Yesterday’s program featured Cattlemen’s Beef Board members Jim Little (far left) from Idaho, currently Chairman of the Joint Nominating Committe and Dave Bateman (center) from Illinois, who has been nominated as the new Secretary/Treasurer.

The host of the program is Mike Adams (holding the microphone).

You can listen to the segment of the show they appeared on here: AgriTalk Program Segment (13 min. WMA File)

You can also find the complete program from their program archives here.

What The Beef Checkoff Does For Dairy Producers

Today we had a Dairy Producer Communications Forum lunch. Thanks to Linda Leydens for the following forum summary.

Gary Sharp (pictured), dairy producer and CBB board member, led the luncheon. Al Svajgr, CBB Chairman spoke about a recent co-sponsorship with the Dairy Checkoff Program at the American Farm Bureau Federation annual meeting. Monte Reese and Jay O’Brien, vice chairman of CBB were present. David Pelzer from Dairy Management attended the luncheon and talked about crisis management programs and partnerships between the two checkoff programs. Linda Leydens from Integer provided an update on dairy producer communications program work, including trade show attendance and public relations. Donna Sharp was recognized for being named Dairy Woman of the Year by the World Dairy Expo.

Dr. Gary Smith, Montfort chair and professor of animal science at Colorado State University, was the keynote speaker and he dispelled any doubts producers may have had about the value beef from dairy breeds brings to the market. Smith said he doubted enough high-quality beef could be supplied to restaurants such as Morton’s and Del Frisco’s without beef from Holsteins. One reason beef from Holsteins consistently scores well in tenderness, quality and taste is that 90 percent of all Holstein sires are descendents of five Holstein bulls. Few breeds can tout such consistency, says Smith. Smith has been closely involved with the beef checkoff-funded National Beef Quality Audit program that evaluates the quality of beef and helps identify measures beef producers can take to increase quality.

I was able to interview Gary after the meeting. You can listen to my interview with Gary here: Gary Sharp Interview (4:19 Min. MP3 File)

Get Your Healthy Beef Cookbook

One of the projects funded by the Beef Checkoff is the Healthy Beef Cookbook. The cookbook is co-authored by Chef Richard Chamberlain and Betsy Hornick, M.S., R.D.

I interviewed Richard this afternoon. In the interview he explains how he got involved in the project. He talks about the goals of the project and how well it has been received.

You can get your copy of The Healthy Beef Cookbook by visiting Beef It’s What’s For Dinner.

You can listen to my interview with Richard here: Richard Chamberlain Interview (4:23 Min. MP3 File)

Onstage With Sam Elliott

I thought this was a great picture so I thought I’d share it with you.

This is right after Sam Elliott (left) spoke this morning.

With him onstage are NCBA President Jim McAdams (middle) and Cattlemen’s Beef Board Chairman Al Svajgr (right).

Sam’s visit was a very pleasant surprise. I only wish we had the opportunity to meet him and conduct an interview.

Maybe next time.

Interview With Chairman Al Svajgr

The chairman of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board is Al Svajgr (on right), at least until Saturday. I got to interview him this morning. Al talks about the meeting here and especially the new long range plan.

Al was on stage this morning during to welcome cattlemen to the convention.  I was glad to catch him for a couple minutes in the media room afterward.  His schedule is a little tight as you can imagine.

You can listen to my interview with Al here: Al Svajgr Interview (4:24 Min. MP3 File)

“I’m Honored To Be Your Spokesman”

You’ve heard his voice for a while now and today he was the mystery guest here at the convention. He’s Sam Elliott. Sam didn’t prepare a speech. He spoke in a very genuine voice about his past, including his first memory of riding a horse. He spoke about how full circle he feels like his career has come to now be the spokesperson for the beef indusry. You can hear his unforgettable words at the end of his remarks.

You can listen to what Sam had to say here: Sam Elliott Speaks (5:22 Min. MP3 File)

If you don’t have the time to listen to Sam for his full remarks, click here to hear him utter his famous words.

A Dairy Producer Perspective On The Checkoff

There are 17 members of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board who are dairy producers and I got to meet and speak with 2 of them. I know they bring an interesting perspective to the discussions.  They are Lucinda Williams (l) and Jenny Senn (r). Lucinda is from Massachusettes and Jenny is from South Carolina. They shared with me why they are attending the convention and talk about the challenges they face in the business. 

You can listen to my interview with Lucinda and Jenny here: Lucinda/Jenny Interview (7:15 Min. MP3 File)

Interview With New Beef Board Member

New Beef Board members were sworn in today like Charles Bassett from Dixon, MO. I interviewed Charles for the weekly Missouri Beef Industry Council Report and thought you’d be interested in what he has to say.

You can listen to my interview with Charles here: Charles Bassett Interview (3 minute MP3 File)

New Board Members Sworn In Today

Thanks to Diane Henderson on the CBB staff I’ve got this orientation report for you:

Feb. 1, 2006 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture administered the oath of office to new members of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board during a special orientation session provided for them during the Cattle Industry Convention here today.The 20 new members appointed to the Board by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture last fall officially take their seats as voting members of the Board at its meeting on Saturday.In addition to the swearing in today, new Beef Board members heard from USDA, Beef Board staff, CBB legal counsel and current CBB officers Al Svajgr, Jay O’Brien and Ken Stielow about the responsibilities they have as Beef Board members and stewards of the beef checkoff, including Board structure and procedures.

New Board members who take their seats on Saturday include: Tom Jones, Arkansas; Ross Jenkins, California; Roger West, Florida; Tim. Shaw, Idaho; Terry Handke and Daniel Kerschen, Kansas; Charles Bassett, Missouri; Jim Eschliman and Lindy Whipps, Nebraska; Margie Hande, North Dakota; Bob Drake and Andrea Hutchinson, Oklahoma; Robert Bruner, Dan Dierschke, Bryant Fisher and Daryl Owen, Texas; and Bill Oliver, Virginia; Ron Allen, John O’Carroll, and David Palmer, importers.

Charles Miller Reports On The Admin Subcommittee Meeting

Charles Miller is a cattleman from Kentucky who is chairman of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board Administration Subcommittee. I sat down with him for a few minutes to discuss today’s Administration Subcommittee meeting which took place early this morning. Charles gives an overview of the recommendations his subcommitte has made to the Executive Committee. He also describes how the process works.

You can listen to my interview with Charles here:  Charles Miller Interview (3MB MP3 File)