Panel: Alfalfa Growers

Several growers from diverse farming operations will discuss their alfalfa operations and how they address the current economic challenges in keeping their operations profitable.

Moderator: Dr. Don Miller
Forage Technical Consultant | Mountain View Seeds

Uncovering alfalfa’s hidden yield

Take a dive into what we can do to help uncover the yield potential alfalfa has. What are some of the current management practices and stressors that are holding yields back.

Jeff Jackson & Leta Larsen
Alfalfa/Forage Specialists | CROPLAN

Advances in forage sorghum – water savings and quality

Forage sorghum uses less water and is more drought tolerant than corn when used for silage. Advancements in grain processing technology greatly improves starch availabilty. Male sterile hybrids are an alternative for those wanting high quality foreage with little grain.

Brent Bean
Director of Agronomy, United Sorghum Checkoff

Emerging diseases in bovine health-Asian Longhorned Tick, New World Screwworm, and others 

Learn more about emerging threats to cattle health, including the Asian Longhorned Tick and New World Screwworm. Identification, prevention, and control strategies will be discussed.

Rosslyn Biggs, DVM
Director of the Center for Rural Veterinary Medicine | Beef Cattle Extension Specialist Oklahoma State University

How to pick the best alfalfa variety for your production needs 

The presentation will identify which alfalfa traits have the greatest impact on stand life, forage yield and quality. Alfalfa Producers can use this knowledge in a variety selection to increase the profitability of their alfalfa production.

Dr. Don Miller
Forage Technical Consultant | Mountain View Seeds

Panel: The toolbox to manage Chinch bugs

Managing chinch bug infestations in sorghum production can be a pest. This panel discussion covers the farmer’s toolbox to manage chinch bug at the field gate from field agronomy to emerging tolerant genetics.

Moderator: Sarah Sexton-Bowser
Director, Center for Sorghum Improvement

Livestock risk management and insurance options

The goal of this session is to help livestock producers decide whether existing insurance options are a good fit for their risk management needs. We will begin with an overview of livestock and forage risk management strategies, followed by an overview of insurance options. Next, examples of Livestock Risk Protection (price insurance) and Forage Insurance will be discussed.

Dr. Jennifer Ifft
Professor and Flinchbaugh Agricultural Policy Chair, Kansas State University

Defending grasslands with satellites, strategy, and stewardship   

Attend this session to learn how new technologies are enabling large-scale monitoring of the woody encroachment threat in Great Plains grasslands. Armed with data and an improved understanding of grassland vulnerability, participants will step away with better strategies to combat this serious threat. Join the collective effort known as the Great Plains Grassland Initiative (GPGI), a rancher-driven, science-informed, and agency-supported effort, to conserve the last remaining iconic grassland regions in the Great Plains biome.

Doug Spencer
State Grazing Specialist, USDA-NRCS

Industry Keynote: Drought-resilient alfalfa varieties and deficit irrigation management strategies

Drought and limited irrigation resources regularly reduce alfalfa production throughout the Great Plains and western regions of the U.S. Ian Ray will discuss development of drought-resilient alfalfa varieties selected to recover from prolonged periods of drought stress, and which generate high yields when adequate irrigation is available. If you have limited water resources, irrigation management strategies that can be used on those new varieties will also be discussed.

Ian Ray
Emeritus Professor of Agronomy (retired), New Mexico State University

Moving the fences back in HRW wheat breeding for a better consumer experience

Consumers are looking for cleaner and healthier ingredients across the grocery store including the bread aisle. Innovation in the baking sector can be bolstered by innovation in wheat breeding programs. Two such examples will be provided such that HRW flour can serve as an all-natural additive ingredient to commodity bread flour. These include recent development of “Ox” wheat varieties with highly unique and value-generating dough strength profiles, and pigmented-bran varieties with certain phytochemicals known to confer numerous human health benefits when otherwise present in fruits and vegetables.

Brett Carver
Regents Professor, Wheat Breeding and Genetics, Oklahoma State University

Where to cut inputs without yield loss

With tight economies we have to be tight with our budgets. There are many places that we can become more efficient on our inputs with out the loss of yield. But there are inputs we should not take for granted. This session will walk through concepts of where there is some input “fat” to trim, and those not to skip on.

Brian Arnall
Precision Nutrient Management Specialist

Diverse forages and the opportunities they bring using regenerative management  

Utilizing a mix of warm and cool season grasses, native forbs, cover crops, introduced grazing crops and stockpiled forages, a livestock producer has abundant grazing opportunities throughout the year. Most producers have a dominant forage around which they need to build their grazing system. Identifying other forage sources, adding livestock enterprises, and extending grazing seasons can help spread risk and create opportunities for innovative management. Regenerative management offers an opportunity to diversify your grazing.

Steve Swaffar
Regenerative Ranching Advisor at Noble Research Institute

Using DNA to make sound breeding decisions

My take-away is to not be intimidated with DNA results. In most cases DNA is hard to interpret and knowing what to do with the results can be challenging. I want to talk about learning what to do with the results.

Cody Jorgensen
Partner at Jorgensen Land & Cattle

HB4 Wheat – A rare opportunity for the US wheat industry 

This session will review the current regulatory status of HB4 wheat in the United States and globally. We will discuss steps being taken in the industry to integrate the trait into adapted genetics, market considerations for domestic and international buyers of wheat, and timelines for eventual commercialization.

Brad Erker
Executive Director, Colorado Wheat

Dusti Gallagher
President/CEO, Heartland Plant Innovations

Peter Laudeman

Keynote: Five Steps Toward Your Farm’s Future

Nearly two thirds of U.S. farms and ranches haven’t put the tools in place to ensure their operation makes it to the next generation in tact. How can you and the other key stakeholders of your farm take five steps toward the future? This session presents a five-step process for farm transition planning with concrete actions you can take right now to give the next generation the very best chance of success as it takes the reins. We will discuss how to conduct an inventory of assets and stakeholders, how to have “the talk” with everyone involved, how to identify key obstacles and opportunities as your business transitions, what essential tools need to be part of your estate planning, and how to evaluate, revise, and keep moving forward with all your transition plans.

Dr. Shannon L. Ferrell
Professor of Agricultural Law – Oklahoma State University Department of Agricultural Economics

Panel: Farm marketing and grain storage dynamics in an everchanging environment

Ken Erickson
Managing Member and Strategic Adviser, Polaris Analytics and Consulting

Guy Allen
Senior Economist, IGP Institute, Kansas State University

Scott Sartor
Founder/CEO of Croptell

Renewables, wind rights or fence law topic 

Dr. Shannon L. Ferrell
Professor of Agricultural Law – Oklahoma State University Department of Agricultural Economics

Farm Bill and Agricultural policy update 

Dr. Jennifer Ifft
Professor and Flinchbaugh Agricultural Policy Chair, Kansas State University

Cropland livestock integration and soil health impacts

We will talk about our experiances with integrating livestock into our cropland and the short term and long term impacts on soil health.

Bryan Jorgensen
Chief Agronomy Operations Officer, Jorgensen Land & Cattle

Panel: Cover crops

Keith Berns
Innovator in Cover Crops & Soil Health

Scotty Herriman
Owner/Operator of Herriman Farms and 2024 OK
Leopold Conservation Award Recipient