Saskatchewan Beef Symposium Prepares Producers for Industry Future

Source: Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food

This will be about as complete an overview of what’s in store for the beef sector in the province as anyone can access.

The Saskatchewan Beef Symposium that will take place on February 8 and 9 in Saskatoon will prepare producers for the future of the beef industry, explains Saskatchewan Beef Industry Chair John McKinnon.

“The event is the creation of four groups in the province charged with beef research, extension and development activities: the University of Saskatchewan, the Western Beef Development Centre, Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food (SAF), and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

“We got together to put on a symposium that focuses on issues that are relevant to producers, specifically where the industry will develop in terms of value-added beef production, as well as where the current research focuses of these groups are—how they impact beef producers.”

The Saskatchewan Beef Symposium takes place every two years. It is open to beef producers and industry representatives who seek to increase their knowledge on a number of issues.

“Among these, we are focusing on the development of the ethanol industry in Saskatchewan. This is an area where we see significant growth, particularly in how it integrates with cattle feeding operations,” notes McKinnon.

To address this issue, the ethanol session will feature Lionel LaBelle, the President of the Saskatchewan Ethanol Council; a representative from Husky Energy; Keith Rueve of Pound-Maker Agventures Ltd; and Vern Racz, Director of the Prairie Feed Resource Centre at the University of Saskatchewan.

“The Pound-Maker people are talking about the integration of cattle and ethanol,” explains McKinnon. “The people from Husky are talking about what their plans are going to be, how they will interact with the cattle industry in Western Canada, as well as with the Saskatchewan Ethanol Council.”

“There will be emphasis on the conventional stand-alone ethanol plant, but also on the integrated ethanol/cattle approach, to be more specific. It has huge potential for the livestock industry,” says SAF Livestock Development Specialist Bryan Doig.

“On one hand, we have the feedlots utilizing spent grains that are produced at the ethanol plant as a by-product. The integrated concept means that, instead of the stand-alone ethanol plant that is just producing ethanol and distiller’s dry grain, what we have is an ethanol plant that is connected to a feedlot, so all of the wet grain and solubles that are by-products of ethanol production are utilized as livestock feed, without having unnecessary costs like extra drying,” Doig explains.

This covers just one of five sessions, emphasizes McKinnon.

“We have a very interesting session looking at value-added beef production in the province, where we get producer groups such as Natural Valley Farms and Prairie Heritage Beef Producers breaking new ground. They will be talking about their plans to take control of their market and elaborate on how they will go directly to consumers with their product.”

Other sessions will focus on the production of superior beef carcasses, and the Kyoto Accord and how it affects Saskatchewan beef producers. There will also be a session on alternative management ideas for grazing and wintering your beef cows.

Larry Thomas, Associate Editor of the Canadian Cattleman Magazine, will deliver the keynote address on Wednesday, February 8. The theme will be “The Canadian Beef Producer Reality Show—Challenges from Within.”

The symposium brochure is available online at www.wbdc.sk.ca.

For more information, contact:

John McKinnon
Saskatchewan Beef Industry Chair
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-4137

or

Murray Feist
Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food
Ruminant Nutrition Specialist
(306) 694-3938