Kentucky has the largest beef cow herd east of the Mississippi and the eighth largest nationally, with approximately 1 million beef cows.  Beef cattle provide our primary means of converting Kentucky's 7 million acres of pasture and forage into useful products.

In Estill County, there are several young cattlemen that are grazing stocker cattle in partnership with a cattle buyer in another county. These cattlemen have requested educational sessions on stocker cattle production and marketing. In response, the UK Cooperative Extension agent for agriculture & natural resources in Estill County contacted University of Kentucky beef specialist to request a series of stocker cattle meetings for Estill, Clark, and surrounding counties. The beef specialist had some funding available and collaborated to offer a Master Stocker Series for producers in our Extension District. The program consisted of six two-hour classroom sessions with topics Nutrition Programs for Stocker Calves, New Developments in Forages, Taking Advantage of Farm Resources, Confinement Building Considerations, Preventative Herd Health, and Financial Risk Management. Each session was taught by UK specialists with facilitation from host ANR agents. Sessions were rotated between Estill and Clark County Extension offices. Each participant received a binder notebook, publications, handouts, a farm gate sign, and a hat. A total of 12 producers enrolled with an average attendance of 9. 

A post survey indicated that 62.5% felt the program was very effective while 37.5% rated the series as somewhat effective. One hundred percent of those surveyed have made use of the handout materials. When asked about how the program would add to the value of their stocker operation, 67% felt they could increase revenues $5-10 per head. One producer commented…”Thank you so much for this opportunity. This has been a great program offered to local cattlemen and women and I have benefited greatly from every session.”