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Hundreds of cowpoke ride into Smithers

The 90th B.C. Cattlemen’s AGM with a technology theme is in Smithers May 31 - June 2.
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Photo by Keeley Dancey-Coles at Broken Wire Farms in Smithers.

By Cassidy Muir

The B.C. Cattlemen’s Association is preparing for its 90th annual general meeting from May 31 - June 2.

The theme of this year’s convention, which will take place at the Smithers Civic Centre and new arena, is Ranching in the Age of Technology. According to Becky Everett, the association’s executive assistant, local committees choose the new theme of the meeting every year. She said the Skeena Regional Cattlemen’s Association will be playing host to around 300 attendees from across the province.

A companion tour will give members from out of town the chance to experience Smithers’ unique local business scene, including an opportunity to explore the award-winning downtown Main Street.

June 2 will be an education day, with presentations and forums featuring various researchers and innovators. Representatives will include Christine Su, co-founder and CEO of the ranch planning company PastureMap, and Sean McGrath, manager of Round Rock Ranching in Alberta. They will address changing technology in Canada’s beef cattle industry and what the future might hold for B.C. ranchers.

Canadian researchers will have the chance to present their work, such as Dr. Rickey Yada from the faculty of land and food systems at the University of British Columbia, Geneve Jasper from the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture, and Dr. Bart Lardner from the University of Saskatchewan, a professor of animal science and member of the Sustainable Beef Systems Research Group.

“I will be discussing some prior and newer initiatives we have researched at [the Forage and Cow-Calf Research Unit],” Lardner said. “My research program for the past 20 years has focused on beef and cow-calf forage management.”

Lardner also said he will be introducing new research projects that he and his team are just beginning to set in motion.

Other subjects of discussion will include present forage updates and preparing the cattle industry for the next generation of farmers.

Attendees will have the opportunity to connect and engage with presenters and researchers on their various projects.

Based in the city of Kamloops, the B.C. Cattlemen’s Association was formed in 1929, and since then has represented those working in B.C.’s still-thriving beef industry. They currently have over 1,000 members, who make up a large fraction of the province’s cattle herders.

“The beef cattle industry has always played a major role in the agriculture industry in Western Canada and British Columbia,” Dr. Lardner said.

Member registration will open on May 31 at 5 p.m., followed by a trade show that is open to the public until the afternoon of June 2.