The Alabama Cattlemen’s Association recently hosted an impactful weekend for participants in the Young Cattlemen’s Leadership Program (YCLP), offering valuable exposure to real-world cattle operations, custom meat processing, and leadership development. We spoke with Michael Smith of the Alabama Cattlemen’s to learn more about the experience and what attendees took away from this enriching event.
“We actually had just an incredible weekend. So we began our Friday session at the Gulf Coast Cattlemen’s Conference that we at the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association partner with our extension folks.”
The weekend began at the Gulf Coast Cattlemen’s Conference, where attendees learned about current hot topics in the cattle industry, followed by a hands-on experience at a custom meat processing facility.
“So we began the day with a conference there, just learning kind of about current hot topics in the cattle industry. And we traveled to Atmore, Alabama to Luker’s Custom Meats, which is a relatively new custom processor there in Atmore. And we got a tour of that, just kind of some good information on what to bring, maybe the ideal weights to bring for some custom cuts.”
One of the weekend’s highlights was a tour hosted by a YCLP alum.
“We followed that up. In Alabama, we have a YCLP council. So that is made up of alumni of the program. And one of those council members, Christopher Bell, he hosted this at his operation. He’s got a pretty diverse cattle operations. He’s doing some cow-calf stuff and also some stocker work as well.”
Attendees enjoyed a dinner sponsored by the Monroe County Cattlemen’s Association, followed by leadership instruction from Auburn University’s Dr. Adam Kletzer.
“And we concluded the evening on Friday with an educational lesson by Dr. Adam Kletzer from Auburn University. His primary focus of instruction is on leadership. So we’re trying to provide the class with some good leadership training as well.”
Saturday’s session took place at Murder Creek Cattle Company in Old Texas, Alabama.
“This is a pretty cutting-edge facility and a training center there that Mr. J.J. Watson and his wife, Lisa Watson, are operating there. A ton of genetic and reproductive technology that they do there, and they provide instruction for students really all over the world.”
Audio Reporting by Dale Sandlin for Southeast AgNet.