Cattle Trails Wheat and Stocker Cattle Conference set for July 31 in Lawton

Parts of Texas and Oklahoma are suffering under drought conditions, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist.

Producers looking for management practices to help mitigate the potential for loss under these conditions can attend the Cattle Trails Wheat and Stocker Cattle Conference on July 31 in Lawton, Oklahoma.

The annual event will provide producers in the Southwestern Oklahoma and the North and Rolling Plains regions of Texas the latest updates from AgriLife Extension and Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service experts, said Emi Kimura, AgriLife Extension agronomist at Vernon.

The conference, which alternates between Texas and Oklahoma each year, will be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Comanche County Fairgrounds Annex Building, 920 S. Sheridan St. Registration is $25 per person and includes educational materials, a noon meal and refreshments.

Producers are encouraged to preregister by contacting their local AgriLife Extension county agent, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension county educator or the Southwest Oklahoma area Extension office at 580-255-3674.

The slogan of the conference is “driving your cattle to profits,” although Kimura said the last couple of years have made it tough to generate a consistent profit due to unpredictable weather and market outlook.

“We had a very rough year for wheat grain and forage production with less than an inch of precipitation during winter to early spring,” she said. “Then a late freeze further damaged wheat grain.”

Kimura said determining ways to improve efficiency under these difficult situations will be the focus of the joint conference.

The program will begin with a wheat and cattle market outlook by Jason Johnson, AgriLife Extension economist at Stephenville, followed by a presentation on managing market risks by Brett Crosby, co-owner of Custom Ag Solutions Inc., Cowley, Wyoming.

Joe Outlaw, AgriLife Extension economist and co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University, College Station, will provide a farm bill update prior to lunch.

After lunch, the program will include a weather outlook by Gary McManus, Oklahoma state climatologist in Oklahoma City, followed by John Gilliam, Oklahoma State University veterinary clinical sciences associate professor, Stillwater, Oklahoma, who will discuss managing stocker health.

“Needless to say, this will be a very important program for our stocker operators who start to purchase their cattle in the fall,” Kimura said.

Industry sponsors also will have their products on display during the event.

For more information on the event, go to https://bit.ly/2z3i330.