The long-running BEEF 509 program, hosted by the Ohio Cattlemen’s Foundation (OCF), will be back in 2023. This educational opportunity will be held on Feb. 25 and March 4 and will be co-hosted by the Ohio State University (OSU) Meat Science Extension and sponsored by the Ohio Beef Council (OBC).
BEEF 509 is an educational program designed to teach cattle producers about the food side of their business and how to utilize best management practices to improve beef quality and enhance profitability while learning about value within the beef chain.
It is designed for beef cattle producers, allied industry personnel including chefs and beef salespersons, veterinarians, teachers, Extension personnel and college students to learn more about the value of beef. Program participants learn about the importance of producing a more consistent and high-quality beef product through a series of hands-on lessons presented by various meat science faculty, staff and graduate students.
Participants are divided into teams, taught live animal evaluation, grid pricing systems, allowed to select live cattle through an “auction-like” setting and then follow those cattle through harvest, grading and a hands-on cutting session which provides participants with the opportunity to experience first-hand the differences encountered in carcass composition. The resulting information is then evaluated in terms of the value differences calculated between animals and how that translates back to value differences in the live animals that are not typically relayed to the producer under a traditional beef marketing scenario.
Topics for the event will include live cattle evaluation, beef harvesting procedures & innovations, carcass aging, grid pricing, beef industry updates, taste panel & shear force evaluation, genetic & environmental carcass merit factors, beef carcass grading & fabrication, live carcass & boxed-beef valuations and a Beef Quality Assurance certification will be earned.
A maximum of 30 program spaces will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. BEEF 509 will be held on consecutive Saturdays and it will be critical to attend each Saturday as participants will be assigned to teams that will work together for both days of the program. The live animal evaluation, grid pricing discussion and auction will take place on the first Saturday. Carcass grading and fabrication are among the activities planned for the second Saturday.
The program will run from approximately 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. each Saturday and will take place at the OSU Animal Sciences Building located at 2029 Fyffe Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210. Registration is $175 per person and the deadline to register is Jan. 5, 2023.
For more information or to register for BEEF 509 visit www.ohiocattle.org/foundation or contact the OCF office at 614-873-6736.