Candace Weeda of Creston, Iowa grew up on a diversified crop and commercial cattle operation. From early childhood, she and her older brother worked on the family ranch and developed a love for livestock, specifically the beef industry. Involvement in 4-H and FFA solidified Weeda’s desire to pursue a career in the agriculture industry.
Weeda graduated from Kansas State University in 2012 with a dual bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Communications and Journalism. She then took the opportunity to study agriculture in Australia and Ireland. In 2013 her education, combined with passion for the beef industry, led Candace to work for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) in Denver, Colo. as the associate director of communications. Her main responsibility was production of the television show, NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen. This role exposed Weeda to complex policy issues challenging the beef business, international market opportunities, consumer’s concerns about beef production and much more.
In 2015, Weeda was awarded the Alltech International Federation of Ag Journalists scholarship, which included a trip to study agricultural systems in New Zealand. This was yet another chance for her to learn about the beef industry from a global perspective. Weeda is a strong advocate for foreign market access to increase profitability for U.S. beef producers. Her time with NCBA gave Weeda the privilege to visit ranches all across the United States, help tell the story of ranchers and see various beef production systems. She also attended the 2015 Young Cattlemen’s Conference.
After two and a half years of living in the city, Weeda knew her place was back in the countryside in beef production. She chose to return to the family operation in February of 2016. Today their operation is a commercial cow-calf herd and runs Red Angus and Hereford cross cows. In her spare time, Candace enjoys anything outdoors, traveling and being horseback.