The Ohio Beef Expo, the premier event of Ohio’s beef industry, will take place beginning Friday and run through March 19 at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, Ohio. This annual event, coordinated by the Ohio Cattlemen’s Association (OCA), includes a kickoff social, breed sales, shows and displays, an educational seminar, 3-day trade show and a highly competitive junior show.
New and exciting things to note for the 30th Ohio Beef Expo include a three-day trade show for vendors. This provides the opportunity for Expo-goers to make a day trip to Columbus and experience all aspects of the event. The youth day events, including the judging contest and Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) sessions, will move to a new day and be held on Friday, March 17.
OCA members and Expo exhibitors are invited to attend The Social, sponsored by Merial, on Thursday evening, March 16, at the Expo headquarters hotel, Crowne Plaza North. The kickoff event will auction items for OCA’s PAC fund such as a one-of-a-kind copper kettle donated by the Crawford County Cattlemen’s Association. Other items to sell in a live auction at The Social are the original painting commemorating the 30th Ohio Beef Expo Anniversary by C.J. Brown. Proceeds from the original painting will go toward a scholarship fund to be awarded to applicants through the Ohio Cattlemen’s Foundation. 30th Ohio Beef Expo prints will be available for Expo attendees to purchase in C.J. Brown Studio’s booth in the trade show, as well as the OCA membership booth. Proceeds from each print sold will also benefit the scholarship fund.
Friday, March 17 will mark the official start of the Expo with registration for the judging contest now taking place in the Voinovich building’s upper mezzanine. Contest participants will meet at 8:00 a.m. for registration. The breed shows and parades will begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Evans Cattle Company Arena (Cooper) and O’Neill buildings. At 10:00 a.m. cattlemen can attend an educational seminar “Top 6 Ways to be Successful and Profitable with Cattle in Ohio”. All cattlemen are invited to attend the session sponsored by United Producers, Inc. At noon youth are invited to attend a fitting demonstration in the Voinovich building. The online feeder cattle sale will be held on Friday at 1:30 p.m. As the sale takes place, judging contest awards will be presented at 2:30 p.m. and then youth can attend a BQA session at 3:30 p.m. before heading to the junior show welcome party at 5:30 p.m. and hearing from representatives with Weaver Leather Livestock for a cattle care demonstration. Expo attendees can also visit the trade show with over 125 vendors from 18 states that offer products and services beneficial to all cattlemen.
Saturday, March 18 will host the breed cattle sales in the Voinovich building, starting at 10:00 a.m. Prior to the first lot selling, “A Tribute to 30 years of the Ohio Beef Expo” will take place in Sale Ring 2 with Angus, Hereford, Maine-Anjou, Shorthorn and Simmental cattle selling afterward. Breed sale catalogs will be posted online at www.ohiobeefexpo.com as they become available. The junior showmanship competition will begin at noon on Saturday with over 400 participants competing for top honors in their respective divisions.
On Sunday, March 19 junior exhibitors will begin showing at 8:00 a.m. in the Evans Cattle Company Arena (Cooper). New this year, OCA will be offering 10 – $50 coupons to be used on Sunday only with any vendor in the trade show. Coupons will be awarded to individuals that share an OCA Facebook post promoting the 3-day trade show set to launch on March 1.
Download the Ohio Beef Expo app. Available for both iPhones and Androids, the Ohio Beef Expo app provides a complete list of trade show exhibitors, breed shows, seedstock sales, junior shows and educational events. The app also allows users to search for activities, view schedules, download sale catalogs and receive exclusive mobile alerts.
More than 30,000 visitors from 25 states and Canada routinely attend the Ohio Beef Expo. It is ranked as one of the top five largest events in central Ohio and is the premier location to meet Ohio’s cattle producers. Don’t miss it! Visit www.ohiobeefexpo.com for more information.