What's Going On Wednesday: June 22, 2016

It's officially summertime in Alabama. 

Even though it's felt like it for two months now, the pop-up thunderstorms, high humidity and ridiculous heat indexes have verified its arrival. We hope our cattlemen are staying cool out in the hay fields and while keeping up with everyday tasks on the farm. We urge you to remember to dangers of the Sun and high heat, so don't push it out there! Grad your cowboy hat, water cooler and take a quick breather while you find out what's going on this week at the ACA. 

Executive Committee and ACF Joint Meeting

Tuesday was an eventful day for the ACA staff, Executive Committee and Alabama Cattlemen's Foundation board as they met to discuss ACA/ACF programs Tuesday. The group gathered at Sysco Central Alabama located in Calera to meet, learn and enjoy a delicious, beefy meal prepared by Sysco's Chef James.

While at Sysco, the group of 18 ACA leaders toured the loading docks and were floored at the organization of a distribution system that is firmly dedicated to three major branches of food safety- traceability, sustainability and cold storage integrity. A system of codes and wearable technology used by Sysco ensures proper handling to guarantee safe, quality food upon delivery. As cattlemen, we appreciate the highest level of integrity used in handling our prized product. Thanks, Sysco! 

This was an important meeting as the group disucussed a few major topics relating to the ACA and ACF. The discussion points of the day were:

• Alabama Cattlemen's Foundation scholarships
• Cowboy Tag Sales
• Increasing AJCA Chapters in the state
• How to Increase Private Treaty Sale Checkoff payment
• and Membership, including the new Associate Membership

Good discussion and brainstorming will leave the ACA staff busy as we begin to take that feedback and develop programs of work. Some of those new programs of work will be announced at the August Board Meeting. 

Alabama Cattlemen's Foundation Scholarships 

One of the topics was scholarships at yesterday's meeting, and the ACF Board is proud to announce the creation of three new scholarships for the upcoming school year. Stay tuned for more information! 

The ACF Board also reflected over the past 20 years of scholarship funding by Cowboy Tag sales and voted to honor two men who helped get this tradition started. The ACF Board is pleased to say that at the 2017 Scholarship Banquet, two "Tagged for Greatness" scholarships will be given under the names of Representative Curtis Smith (Colbert County) and Senator Bobby Denton (Chilton County), the Alabama leaders who were instrumental in getting the Cowboy Tag passed into law, in appreciation of their service. 

Be on the lookout for scholarship applications to come out in October! 

AJCA Round-Up

The 10th annual AJCA Round-Up will be here before you know it! Just think, one month from today, we'll all be enjoying the events and contests at Garrett Coliseum. 

All the information you need for this year's show is available on our website, including links to registration! Don't forget, you must be a paid AJCA member in order to compete in the Round-Up. Join Today

Learn more, sign up and get ready for the 10th annual AJCA Round-Up to be held July 21-24 at Garrett Coliseum in Montgomery. We can't wait to see all our favorite Juniors, and they'll want to be there because Round-Up Coordinator Madison Tew has ordered some amazing prizes and it working daily on all the details associated with this year's show! 

BamaBeef.org - Under Construction!

The new BamaBeef.org is OFFICIALLY under construction with a completion date set for August 11. 

Get excited as this new streamlined website will offer all the user-friendly functions of a modern site with a good, old-fashioned look! The plan is for it to become your #1 resource to anything related to Alabama's Beef Cattle Industry. 

While ACA's newest webmaster Kayla Greer has been busy in online training and generating the website's content, the website design team has been working on completing the overall look of the site. We are excited to see what they've come up with as we are expecting those to hit our inbox any second. Stay tuned as training continues and we get closer to our launch date! 

Western Supermarket Meets the Beef Girl

On Thursday, ACA's Erin Beasley will be judging all seven of the Western Supermarkets stores in the Birmingham area for a current summer grilling promotion. Each store will be judged on decoration, meat case display and safety/cleanliness in the cutting room. At the end of the promotion, tonnage increase for each store will be factored into the overall winner of the promotion.

The MOOseum

The MOOseum is buzzing with activity from summer camps and day cares! We've got groups coming by to learn and play daily. 

Learn about beef cattle, sit on saddles, play in Cowboy Slim's kitchen and dress up like a rough-and-tumble cowboy for the afternoon. 

Book a tour for groups or just walk on in for individual families. We are located at 201 S. Bainbridge Street Montgomery, AL 36104. Got questions? Call 265-1867 or email Jessica.

Speaking of The MOOseum, big plans are in the works for renovation, and we mean it! Dr. Billy Powell, Erin Beasley and Kayla Greer are working this week to make renovation plans and edits. Get ready for the same, great children's center with a fresh face! 

Membership Report

The membership number of the day is 11,052 members of the ACA! We reached 11,000, and plans for 2017 Membership promotion were discussed at Tuesday's Executive Committee meeting. These plans included county officer training from the state staff at regional meetings to be held in the fall, so wait to hear more from that! We're here to help. Call us if you need anything! 

Also, Don't forget our John Deere Gator drawing sponsored by John Deere, SunSouth, Tri-Green Equipment and Snead Ag. For every new member you recruit, your name and the new member's name will go in the drawing. ACA members also have the opportunity to purchase more chances to win by calling ACA at 334-265-1867.

Junior Beef Expo

Thursday will bring a meeting to finalize plans for the 2017 Junior Beef Expo. Attending this meeting will be represenatives from the Southeastern Livestock Exposition, the Alabama Farmers Federation, Alabama FFA and Auburn University. 

Stay tuned and get excited for next year's state show! 

What's Going On Wednesday: May 25, 2016

May is quickly slipping away, and we are excited for what summertime brings with it. We've had a successful spring season at the ACA with many fun events, promotions, meetings and new faces in the office, but it's time to light up the grill and take in the Alabama heat for an exciting few months ahead.

Before we get into June, though, we've got to wrap up May! These past couple of weeks have been a great time for your state staff to play catch up and do a little housekeeping after several busy months. This week is no exception, but we're still here promoting beef, recruiting members and keeping our eye on the state cattle industry. Keep reading to find out what's going on around the ACA this week.

Membership

The membership number of the day is 10,758 members of the ACA, but we've got a deal that non-renews just can't pass up. Renew now through June 1 and be sure to include your email address in the contact information. We will host a drawing for our newest renewal memberships on June 8th for a $500 beef certificate. Yes, if you renew for only $50 today, you could get $500 back! That's a deal! 

If you aren't sure if you've renewed or not, you'll know soon. Membership Coordinator Sara Goen is working on getting statements out to those who have not yet renewed.

Don't forget our John Deere Gator drawing sponsored by John Deere, SunSouth, Tri-Green Equipment and Snead Ag. For every new member you recruit, your name and the new member's name will go in the drawing. ACA members also have the opportunity to purchase more chances to win by calling ACA at 334-265-1867.

Make Way for Madison

It comes as no surprise to us that the 10th annual AJCA Round-Up is in great hands with summer intern and Round-Up organizer Madison Tew. After only a week in the office, she's really hit the ground running and making way to a great Round-Up. 

AJCA Directors meet in the ACA
Board Room about the upcoming
10th annual Round-Up.

This week alone, she's already met with State Veterinarian Dr. Tony Frazier and Garrett Coliseum staff to discuss registration and identification rules as well as the layout and venue expectations for this year's show. If that's not enough, she also met with a few of the AJCA Directors Tuesday afternoon to review Round-Up rules, discuss ideas for awards and got some information from them to use on social media throughout this summer. Madison will put the final touches on the rules and start ordering awards today. 

The theme of this year's Round-Up is "It's A Winning Tradition" in honor of the show's tenth anniversary year. Join us July 21-24 at Garrett Coliseum in Montgomery to support the future of Alabama's livestock industry. If you're interested in getting involved, sponsoring the event or have any questions, contact Madison Tew by email or by calling (334) 265-1867. 

More information on the show will be available June 1 at BamaBeef.org. 

Beef for Father's Day

Today, the Alabama CattleWomen's Association leadership team will be joining the ACA staff at the Capitol for a "Beef for Father's Day" Proclamation signing. Gov. Robert Bentley will sign off that beef is the official meat of this upcoming Father's Day and will be presented with a platter of ribeye steaks. 

Memorial Day Ahead

Before we start celebrating Father's Day, though, we've got an important holiday coming up this weekend! The ACA office will be closed Monday, May 30 in recognition of the Memorial Day holiday. We would like to extend our thoughts and gratitude to all who mourn the loss of a loved one on foreign soil protecting American's rights.  

On the lighter side of the upcoming weekend, it's a great time for beef producers because Memorial Day weekend is the [unofficial] kickoff to summertime grilling and is the hamburger grilling holiday of the year. What will you have on the grill this weekend?
If you need some help with recipes, we've got one here you've got to try! Spicy Cheeseburger Sliders (We suggest closing them in on a delicous King's Hawaiian Roll! That's our secret to make this recipe over-the-top delicious!) 

Bama's Best Beef Final Four Announced

The two finalists for the Bama's Best Beef spring promotion have been announced! Congratulations to West End Grill of Hunstville and Deano's Grill of Jacksonville! These two are now battling it out in a Facebook photo LIKE challenge for the title of Bama's Best Beef, and right now, West End Grill's "Tot Roast" is taking the lead. 

These restaurants aren't the only ones seeing benefits from this promotion. The Alabama Cattlemen's Facebook page has gained over 300 new likes and are reaching over 100,000 people weekly at a very low advertising cost!  This is great news and encouraging to see all the positive comments about our favorite protein, beef! 

Check out the Alabama Cattlemen's Association Facebook page to participate in the contest. Find the first post on our page and LIKE the picture that looks and sounds the tastiest to you! The winner will be determined Friday evening and will later be presented with a plaque, yearlong bragging rights and an on-site media conference!

Best of luck! Check out these mouthwatering finalists: 

West End Grill's "Tot Roast"
2016 Bama's Best Beef Finalist

Deano's Grill's "Deano Burger"
2016 Bama's Best Beef Finalist

Social Media Alert!

Every December, Dr. Billy Powell meets with ACA staff for a year-end review and to set goals for the year ahead. ACA's Director of Social Media and Communications Kayla Greer set a goal last December to get the Facebook page followership to at least 8,000 "likes" by Dec. 2016. 

Well, it's an exciting day at the ACA because that goal has been reached seven months ahead of schedule! This is great news as we have the ability to tell our cattlemen's beef stories and promote beef products to over 8,000 people daily! Thanks to all who have interacted on the Facebook page- keep up the good work! Now, on to 9,000...

A Busy June Outlook

We have a busy June calendar ahead. Just to keep you informed about where you can find ACA leadership and staff, here's a list:

• June 8-9: State FFA Convention 
• The FFA Wall of Honor Luncheon will be hosted in the Cattlemen’s Building and Dr. Billy Powell, treasurer of Alabama FFA Foundation, is working to prepare financials for upcoming Board meeting. 
• The ACA is sponsoring the Ag County Agents statewide meeting in Guntersville.
• ACA is a sponsoring and Dr. Powell will be speaking at the Southern Ag Commissioners Conference in Point Clear. 
• Lastly, a final agenda for a joint meeting of the Alabama Cattlemen’s’ Foundations and ACA Executive Committee is being completed. This meeting will be held at Central Alabama Sysco in Calera. 

What's Going On Wednesday: April 20, 2016

April has been a busy month, especially for the legislative and beef promotion aspects of our association. While Dr. Powell has spent a lot of time with state senators, representatives, the ag coalition and Alabama's leaders in D.C., Erin has been busy educating chefs, food service representatives and leadership in food retail from across the state. While those have been the biggest items on this month's calendar, there's still plenty going on otherwise. Keep reading to learn what's going on around the ACA this week.

Membership

We are wrapping up membership with 10,650 members as of today and 16 "Over the Top" counties. 

Get out and get recruiting; not only will it help the state association, but it could win you some awesome prizes. Just in case you need some incentive to get out and recruit, check out these prizes:

• 5 new members – ACA cap and knife
• 15 new members – ACA shirt
• 25 new members – ACA vest
• 35 new members – ACA Red/Black jacket
• 50 new members - $250

Top Hand Club sponsored by Alabama Ag Credit and Alabama Farm Credit

Also, don't forget our John Deere Gator drawing sponsored by John Deere, SunSouth, Tri-Green Equipment, Snead Ag. For every new member you recruit, your name and the new members names go in the drawing. ACA members also have the opportunity to purchase more chances to win by calling ACA at 334-265-1867.

ACA Welcomes Sara Goen to the Team

Speaking of membership, our longtime membership coordinator Selina Knight is no longer with us on the ACA staff. She will be greatly missed, and we are so grateful for her years of dedicated service to the ACA. Happily, however, we have found Sara Goen to takeover Selina's role. 

Sara comes to the ACA with over 20 years of office experience and is ready to learn all about the ACA and its Board, members and outside contacts. Welcome Sara to the team and contact her by her email- sgoen@bamabeef.org. 

A Beefy Breakfast at the ACA

Pictured L-R Sen. Allen, APEA Director
Ray Hilburn, Bill Lipscomb, Sen. Whatley
and Erin Beasley. 

This morning, the ACA hosted 20 of Alabama's 35 senators for a breakfast in the building. On the menu was Sen. Tom Whatley's delicious homemade cinnamon rolls, Sen. Gerald Allen's southern-style homemade biscuits, beef tenderloin prepared by the Beef Girl and omelets from our friends at Alabama Poultry and Egg Association. 

Our third floor proved an asset once again as we hosted a large majority of Senate leaders for a beefy breakfast and mingling. 

Meetings, Talks and Updates

Dr. Powell has been busy this week with different speaking engagements and meetings. First, on Monday he chaired a conference call with the ACA Executive Committee and 12 RVPs to discuss wrapping up the membership year and to get an update on reaching out to our non-renewed members.  On Tuesday, he spoke to 100 members of the Montgomery Kiwanis Club about the beef cattle industry in Alabama during their lunchtime meeting. On Wednesday, after the senators breakfast, he spoke to the Leadership Jackson County group about the state cattle industry during their visit to Capitol Hill. 

Legislative Update

The Ag Coalition met Tuesday morning in the ACA Board Room to get an update as this legislative session is winding down. Dr. Powell is pleased to report that any proposed legislation that would have any effect on our industry is not anticipated to pass during this session.

To stay on top of this legislative session, Dr. Powell has spent a lot of time across the street at the Alabama State House meeting with our state's senators and representatives. 

Beef On the Highway

It's no secret that the staff, particularly Director of Checkoff Programs Erin Beasley, is always on the road. Whether we are headed to a county meeting, a beef promotional event or an educational opportunity on beef, our wheels stay spinning.

Now, we get to roll in style as the new Beef Mobile is ready to hit the highway! This beef-wrapped beauty is ready to take on the task of promoting beef all across Alabama, and we're excited to have beef back on the road since the retirement of the beloved Beef Wagon. 

Read more about the Beef Wagon and the new Beef Mobile in May's issue of the Alabama Cattleman. 

Beef 101

Hair nets and cowboy hats- talk about a
fashion statement! L-R are Larry Montgomery,
Bill Lipscomb and Randy Moody. 

Speaking of hitting the highway, ACA leadership representatives and staff have been busy with Beef 101. This week, ACA President Bill Lipscomb, RVP Randy Moody, Montgomery County President Larry Montgomery, YCLP alumni Alex Tigue, Erin Beasley and Kayla Greer spent Tuesday in Auburn at Beef 101 with Wood Fruitticher leadership, Faulkner State Culinary students and some ACES reps. Dr. Lemme from Extension and Auburn Animal Sciences Department Head Dr. Greene even stopped by for a visit. 

The group watches a carcass fabrication
demonstration led by AU Meat Lab staff,
Erin Beasley and Alex Tigue.

The group got to learn about cattle production from pasture to plate. They started with learning about the cattle industry as a whole, some vocabulary and types of operations. Then the group headed outside to participate in a live animal evaluation led by Bill Lipscomb and Alex Tigue, with Larry Montgomery and Randy Moody there to help with questions as well. The group then learned about the slaughter practice with an educational video, followed by a delicious lunch (great order, right? Slaughter video then lunch!) catered by the Auburn Collegiate Cattlemen and CattleWomen. Following lunch, the group enjoyed a tour of the meat lab and a carcass fabrication demonstration. 

They had plenty of questions answered by industry professionals. Great job, team! We've got two more Beef 101 sessions next week on Monday and Friday, and Board members are invited to attend. If you're interested, contact Erin Beasley. 

Culinary Education

Just in case Erin doesn't seem busy enough, tomorrow she's headed south to Andalusia to do a beef education program with the culinary students at Lurlene B. Wallace Community College. And yes, she will be taking the Beef Mobile, so if you see her in passing, honk at her! 

Last Call for Bama's Best Beef

We kicked off a springtime beef promotion on two weeks ago that highlights Alabama's unique beef dishes. Using the power of social media to drive the contest and by promoting it to Alabama's restaurants and chefs, we've started to receive nominations of those not-so-average beef dishes made and served right here in Alabama. We've got our eyes set on all those unconventional, yet delicious, beef dishes! 

Submit your nomination here by Monday, April 25. 

Other Tidbits from This Week:

• The SLE received the 157 premium checks in the mail to send to the Junior Beef Expo exhibitors, reflecting their placings in the show. With that, the 2016 JBE is wrapped up!
• Erin and Dr. Powell are actively participating in the Auburn Agriculture Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology Livestock Economist interview process. This position is to fill the one left vacant by Dr. Walt Prevatt. So far, three candidates have interviewed. 

What's Going On Wednesday: April 13, 2016

Beef promotion, trips to D.C. and meetings, meetings and more meetings are the theme around the Cattlemen's building this week. There's always something going on that keeps the staff busy, but we sure love working for Alabama's cattlemen. Keep reading to find out what's going on at the ACA this week. 

Trip to D.C.

ACA Executive Vice President Dr. Billy Powell, President Bill Lipscomb and President-Elect Richard Meadows are in Washington D.C. Tuesday through Thursday of this week. While there, the trio will join with 30 other state cattlemen's associations to attend the Spring Legislative Conference. This trip will provide our state cattlemen's representatives with the opportunity to go on office visits with Alabama's congressional delegation!

Membership

We are wrapping up membership with 10,624 members as of today and 16 "Over the Top" counties. A number of counties are still lagging, though. RVPs are reaching out to their assigned county presidents about plans to get in the 2400 non-renewed members. Another conference call between the RVPs will be held on Monday, April 18 to report on the results. 

Get out and get recruiting; not only will it help the state association, but it could win you some awesome prizes. Just in case you need some incentive to get out and recruit, check out these prizes:

• 5 new members – ACA cap and knife
• 15 new members – ACA shirt
• 25 new members – ACA vest
• 35 new members – ACA Red/Black jacket
• 50 new members - $250

Top Hand Club sponsored by Alabama Ag Credit and Alabama Farm Credit

Just in case you need some more incentive in your recruiting efforts, let your non-renewed friends and neighbors know this! The April Alabama Cattleman magazine is the LAST magazine you'll get if you do not renew by April 15, and you have until Friday to renew now online and you'll get a package in the mail from us with some nifty ACA gadgets and gizmos such as a hat, iWallet and other goodies. Don't miss out- renew today! 

Also, don't forget our John Deere Gator drawing sponsored by John Deere, SunSouth, Tri-Green Equipment, Snead Ag. For every new member you recruit, your name and the new members names go in the drawing. ACA members also have the opportunity to purchase more chances to win by calling ACA at 334-265-1867.

Ag Econ Interviews

Dr. Dea Cue Fields, the chair of the Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology Department at Auburn, invited ACA leadership to participate in the final interviews of the three candidates in the running to replace Dr. Walter Prevatt. All three candidates come with outstanding resumes, and we are excited and honored to be part of the process. 

ACA's Director of Checkoff Programs Erin Beasley participated in this week's round of interviews and speaks highly of the candidate. 

Bama's Best Beef 

We kicked off a springtime beef promotion on Monday that highlights Alabama's unique beef dishes. Using the power of social media to drive the contest and by promoting it to Alabama's restaurants and chefs, we've started to receive nominations of those not-so-average beef dishes made and served right here in Alabama. We've got our eyes set on all those unconventional, yet delicious, beef dishes! 

If you know of a beef dish from an Alabama restaurant that fits the bill, nominate them here.   

Beef 101

Starting today with Lawson State Culinary Arts and Moody High School FCCLA, we kicked off a busy month of Beef 101 programs. We offer this program tovarious influencer groups across the state in order to teach them about beef from “Pasture to Plate." 

We would like to invite our Board members to attend. Your role in this program is to interact with participants who are “non-cattle” folks so that they leave the program with a bright outlook on our industry.

Here are the dates and groups. We have 5 seats at each program

available at first come first serve basis. RSVP to Erin if you can attend.

Erin Beasley showing a side of beef
to Moody High School FCCLA students
at the Lambert-Powell Meat Lab in Auburn.

• April 19th- Faulkner State Culinary, Wood Fruitticher Foodservice Sales Team Leadership
• April 25th- Trenholm State Culinary
• April 29th- Jeff State Culinary, McAdory Middle School culinary students, American Culinary Federation chefs

For today's program, we were proud to have YCLP Class II alumni Alex Tigue on the team to help with carcass fabrication and the live evaluation! Great job, Alex. 

YCLP Class III

Speaking of YCLP- county presidents, applications are out now for the Young Cattlemen's Leadership Program- Class III. Send us your nominations of 20-40 year olds who work in Alabama beef cattle industry by MONDAY as the first meeting will be held May 11 in Montgomery. We look forward to another great year with Alabama's young cattle producers. Get the application

Meetings, Meetings and More Meetings

The ACA building has hosted quite a few meetings this week as well. On Monday night, Erin Beasley hosted a group from the Montgomery Dietetic Association. Youth Leadership Jackson County visited and toured the building Tuesday, and the Alabama Leadership Initiative will have a meeting here Friday morning. As usual, the Ag Coalition also met in the ACA Board on Tuesday morning as well. 

What's Going On Wednesday: February 10, 2016

WHEW! The staffers had mentally prepared for a busy first few months of 2016 but WOW, things are moving quickly. It's all good, exciting things taking place here at the ACA, so keep reading to find out #WhatsGoingOn this Wednesday around the ACA. 

Membership Update

Total membership for 2016 to date is 7,092! Help us reach our goal of 12,000 members! This month is your final opportunity to renew or join at the $30 rate. The dues increase will take effect on March 1st. 

Dates to remember for membership- Feb. 26 is the final chance for your county to go "Over the Top" by five members to qualify for the President's red coat. Congrats to Colbert and Sumter counties who have already gone "Over the Top." Steve James from Colbert County has been hard at working recruiting members, and with the help from his Board, they have gone over by 15 with 162 members! Sumter County also has a new president, Sid Nelson, and is over by eight with 94 members! Good work getting your membership up this year!

April 30 is the deadline for Top Hand Club (see prizes in the January Alabama Cattleman) and for your county to go "Over the Top" to qualify for the Priefert Squeeze Chute. April 30 is also the deadline for the Gator raffle. 

This Week's County Meetings:
Thursday, Feb. 11: Baldwin, 6pm
                               Autauga, 6pm
                               Washington
Friday, Feb. 12: Calhoun, 6pm
                           Pickens

Learn more by viewing the Cattlemen's Calendar. 

Legislative Front

ACA's lobbyist Dr. Billy Powell is monitoring the Legislative Session during the second week. In just two short weeks, over 200 bills have been introduced, and that's why it's important to have an Association representative monitoring and protecting your livelihood while you continue to invest in it. To donate to the PAC, click here.

The Ag Legislative Coalition met Tuesday in the ACA Board Room. The Coalition is watching discussions on raising fuel taxes to be sure that rural bridges and roads are a top priority.

Also on Tuesday, Dr. Powell participated in the Alabama Agribusiness Council Board meeting and Legislative Reception.

SLE Rodeo Kickoff Media Luncheon

Don Gay from Frontier Rodeo Co. as
he is interviewed by WSFA

Wednesday was a busy day as the ACA staff put on its SLE staff hat to help coordinate and operate the SLE membership meeting and the Kickoff Media Luncheon. Fifty-nine members of the Montgomery media enjoyed a delicious steak meal, got the details about the SLE Rodeo Week and heard eight-time world champion bull rider Don Gay talk about the plans to produce one of the best rodeos east of the Mississippi. We appreciate Don for flying in for today's meeting!

View more pics from the event on the SLE Rodeo Facebook Page.

ACA Convention and Trade Show

ACA officers and staff are finalizing plans for the “Iron City Beef Bash” coming up in Birmingham! It's going to be a great time of fellowship and education, so don't miss out.

If you haven't registered for the 73rd annual ACA Convention and Trade Show, then now's the time! Pre-registration, which would sign you up for meals, closes February 18.

We have a great lineup of guest speakers and a sold-out trade show for the Iron City Beef Bash Alabama Senior Senator Richard Shelby will be the keynote speaker at the legislative luncheon while Kim Stackhouse-Lawson, Ph.D., Administrator for the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, will be the general session guest speaker. Other guest speakers include USMEF's Dan Halstrom who will speak on "What Lies Ahead for the Beef Export Market," Soren Rodning, DMV, from Auburn University, nationally-recognized Extension Ag Economist Dr. Derrell Peel from Oklahoma State University and NCBA Executive Director of Producer Education Josh White. 

Our trade show is sold out with over 60 vendors including companies like Tri-Green, Priefert, Fuller Supply, Deep South Livestock, Merck, New Holland North America, Southern Silage Company, Drummonds Farms, BamaWise, Verizon Wireless and many, many more! The trade show alone is worth the trip to the Iron City!

Friday night's Rotational Grazing is going to be a great time for all with fun, fellowship and boot, scoot and boogy-in' to Tim Tyler the Piano Man! Other entertainment and a photo booth sponsored by the Southeastern Livestock Expo will be available as well!

A special thanks to this year's Convention sponsors Alabama Farm Credit/Alabama Land Credit, Alabama Farmers Cooperative. Alabama Farmers Federation, AgriLabs, Alabama CattleWomen’s Association, First South Farm Credit, Fuller Supply Company/Preifert Ranch Equipment, Morgan Stanley, ServisFirst Bank, Southeast AgNet and the Southeastern Livestock Exposition.

More information regarding this year's convention is in January's issue of the Alabama Cattleman and there will be more in February's upcoming issue. Register online or by mail today by clicking the link above. Reserve your room at the Sheraton: CLICK HERE or call 205-324-500 BEFORE Feb. 21!

(Group code: AL CATTLEMEN'S ASSOCIATION)

2016 SLE Rodeo

The 59th Annual SLE Rodeo comes bucking into town March 17-19. This is a family event you don't wanna miss because this year has all kinds of new events including a parade to kick off SLE week! Tickets are easy to buy:

• Call 1-888-2RODEO2 and order over phone
• Visit www.SLERodeo.com and order online through Ticketmaster.
• Visit the Cattlemen's building in Downtown Montgomery or the Garrett Coliseum and buy your tickets in person
• Mail in a ticket order form, which can her found here. 

You're not going to want to miss this family fun show packed with entertainment! Frontier Rodeo Company, PRCA's Stock Contractor of the Year, will be bringing their best including PRCA Saddle Bronc of the Year, Medicine Woman! In between the bucking, bulldoggin' and barrels, Pro Rodeo master comedian Lecile Harris

will entertain the crowd while celebrating 60 years in the business! Don't forget your boogie boots because following Friday and Saturday nights' performances, you'll get to go Dancin' in the Dirt to the Sweet Young'Uns (Friday) and the Wes Loper Band (Saturday). Just in case that's not enough excitement, Thursday night is First Responders Night where FREE general admission is granted to anyone who can present a first responders identification. Friday night is Ladies Night where all ladies tickets will be submitted for some juicy door prizes drawn throughout the show! Lastly, bring those battle cries to the rodeo Saturday

The Sweet Young'Uns will perform
Friday evening following the
show, and the Wes Loper Band will
party in true rodeo fashion Saturday! 

 night for College Night, where college students can receive 4 tickets for only $40 with the presentation of a valid college i.d. 

Saddle up and join in the family fun and entertainment for all ages all while enjoying America's original sport, rodeo! Visit our website for more information and a schedule of events.

Social Media Contest

You have until THIS FRIDAY to "share" this picture on the SLE Rodeo Facebook page to earn a chance to win two tickets to this year's Friday night rodeo! Don't miss out on this great opportunity! 

Click Here to Share