Source: UNIV OF IDAHO submitted to NRP
BEEF 101: PACIFIC NORTHWEST BEGINNING RANCHER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1031260
Grant No.
2023-49400-40889
Cumulative Award Amt.
$479,098.00
Proposal No.
2023-04861
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 15, 2023
Project End Date
Sep 14, 2026
Grant Year
2023
Program Code
[BFRDA]- Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, Standard
Recipient Organization
UNIV OF IDAHO
875 PERIMETER DRIVE
MOSCOW,ID 83844-9803
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
PROJECT SUMMARYInstructions:The summary is limited to 250 words. The names and affiliated organizations of all Project Directors/Principal Investigators (PD/PI) should be listed inaddition to the title of the project. The summary should be a self-contained, specific description of the activity to be undertaken and should focus on: overallproject goal(s) and supporting objectives; plans to accomplish project goal(s); and relevance of the project to the goals of the program. The importance of aconcise, informative Project Summary cannot be overemphasized.Title: Beef 101: Pacific Northwest Beginning Rancher Development ProgramPD: Bass, Phillip D. Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Colle, Michael J. Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Van Buren, Jessie B. Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Christensen, Lauren Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Small, Meranda Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Cochran, Audra Institution: University of IdahoCO-PD: Wilder, Brett Institution: University of IdahoThe long-term goal of the project is to provide beginning cattle ranchers in the Pacific Northwestwith educational workshops to enable them to successfully operate and increase the number oflivestock operations in the region to support the supply of beef. The objectives are to 1) Increaseoperational knowledge of beginning and underrepresented cattle ranchers through hands-onworkshops on topics including animal health and husbandry, range and forest management,livestock evaluation, meat processing, and food safety, 2) Provide financial education includingmarketing, record keeping, and risk management to ensure the profitability of operations andsustainability of the business, and 3) Develop producer networking opportunities, form mentoringrelationships, and aid in communications across generations, leadership skills, and successionplanning. Activities to achieve the project's goals include developing and hosting a series of shortcourses consisting of two- or three-day workshops. Topics will include: 1) Beef Quality Assuranceand Animal Health, 2) Livestock Evaluation and The Final Product, 3) Cattle and Natural ResourceManagement, 4) Marketing, Risk Management, and Finance, and 5) Land Succession,Communicating across Generations, and Leadership Skills. Each short course will provideattendees with opportunities for hands-on experience, expert advice, and discussion with otherparticipants. Attendees will gain a better understanding of all aspects of the cattle industry to beable to implement positive changes in their operation or gain the confidence and resources neededto start an operation.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
3073310106050%
3073320310050%
Goals / Objectives
The long-term goal of the project is to enable beginning cattle ranchers in the Pacific Northwestto successfully operate and increase the number of livestock operations. Supporting objectivesinclude:Objective 1. Increase operational knowledge of beginning and underrepresented cattle ranchersthrough hands-on workshops on topics including animal health and husbandry, range and forestmanagement, livestock evaluation, meat processing, and food safety.Objective 2. Provide financial education including marketing, record keeping, and riskmanagement to ensure the profitability of operations and sustainability of the business.Objective 3. Develop rancher networking opportunities, form mentoring relationships, and aid incommunications across generations, leadership skills, and succession planning.
Project Methods
Knowledge level before and after workshops will be assessed using simple surveys.Evaluate changes in ranching behaviors using farm and ranch business assessments.Assess and survey business and ranching efforts before and after trainings by using on-going consultations.

Progress 09/15/24 to 09/14/25

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience of the Beef 101: Pacific Northwest Beginning Rancher Development program included people who had interest in developing, or have a current, ranch or beef production operation who were in their early careers of beef production. Personell who attended the program were from Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Montana, and as far away as Texas (intent to move to Idaho in the near future). Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Workshops and presentations continue throughout the Pacific Northwest region. Focus on animal health, meat animal quality, and natural resource utilization have helped to grow understanding of beef production among the beginning farmers and ranchers of the region. Improvements of beef quality assurance have been reported by participants. Calving courses have been presented all over Idaho using the calf birthing model. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Workshops, presentations, and hands-on visits to farms have been the means of communicating to the target audience. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?More two-day workshops have been planned. Moreover, Beef Quality Assurance training will continue during many of the winter beef schools in the region.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Two workshops were conducted in 2025. One workshop accomodated over 40 young beef producers. The other focused on a smaller set of 18 who are specialized in feedyard operations. The first workshop focused on beef cattle breeding, selection and health. Cattle producers responded with feedback on how they are going to improve their cattle selection in order to improve operational profits. Cattle health procedures also focused on calving dystocia. Utilization of the birthing model helped producers learn about better chain placement and movement of calves in the uterus. These improvements will produce safer handling and more live calves. Workshop two helped feedyard operators learn more about final product. Their improvement of understanding will grow their profits by focusing on better livestock handling to minimize product loss later on at the packing house.

Publications


    Progress 09/15/23 to 09/14/24

    Outputs
    Target Audience:Target audience of the Beef 101: Pacific Northwest Beginning Rancher Development program included people who had interest in developing, or have a current, ranch or beef production operation who were in their early careers of beef production. Personell who attended the program were from Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Montana, and as far away as Texas (intent to move to Idaho in the near future). Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Multiple one day events, as well as the two 2.5 day events have engaged several farmers and ranchers throughout the northwest US. Professional development included finanacial planning and risk management, beef quality assurance training, forage and soil analyses, beef cattle slaughter and butchery and live animal health and evaluation. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been disseminated through the Idaho Farm Bureau, Idaho Cattle Association, and University of Idaho communications. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The plan is to conduct another round of introductory farming and ranching workshops as well as institute a follow-up series of workshops to expand on what participants have already learned as well as bring in leadership coaches to help farmers and ranchers become better managers of human resources.

    Impacts
    What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1 and 2 were accomplished in 2024. 52 participants were engaged in workshops to improve their cattle ranching abilities through livestock operation improvements and understanding of financial tasks to manage a beef cattle operation.

    Publications

    • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: https://www.uidaho.edu/cals/beef/extension/beef101