Midwest cattle farmers and stakeholders gathered in Dubuque last week for the annual Driftless Region Beef Conference, where local producers talked about major factors facing the sector, such as plans to transition farms from one generation to the next. About 500 people attended the conference, hosted by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach at Grand River Center on Thursday and Friday. Sessions by national experts in the beef field were diverse but centered generally on the theme of bolstering the country’s collective, depleted herd. Extension programs have staff available and publications devoted to the increasing demand for help transitioning farms from one generation to the next, as funded through the federal Farm Bill.
