By the start of 2020, the major beef cattle processors have requested that any livestock hauler delivering cattle to their facilities be certified in Beef Quality Assurance – Transportation (BQAT). Any professional hauler or farmer delivering loads of cattle directly to a processor should plan on participating in BQAT training and certification prior to delivering their first load of cattle next month. Much like producer BQA, the goal of the BQAT program is to ensure that cattle transporters are implementing good animal handling and transport practices in order to safeguard beef quality from feedyard to consumer.
To learn about upcoming in-person training opportunities contact your local extension office or Steve Boyles (boyles.4@osu.edu), OSU Extension Beef Specialist. In addition to in-person trainings that will be offered from time to time, BQAT may also be taken on-line by going to https://bqatransportation.beeflearningcenter.org/
Also, any upcoming BQA Transportation programs will be listed at the OSU Beef Team website in the Events/Programs section.
In this recent video, Dr. Boyles reviews many of the basics that are included in BQA Transportation training.