Laurie Johnson and her husband, Brandon, of Johnson Cattle run 50 cows and background those calves until sale time in December. With the goal of F1 baldies in mind, the Johnsons run Angus cows with a Hereford bull. They also run a lamb to finish operation with 50 ewes who are mostly Dorset and Rambouillet. On the side, Laurie has …

Clayton was raised on a commercial Angus cow-calf ranch near Ellsworth, Kansas. Upon graduation from Kansas State University, he worked for Reeve Cattle Company, Inc. of Garden City, Kansas. Reeve Cattle Company is a diversified family operation consisting of a feedyard, ethanol plant, and farming operation. Clayton was also employed by Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) in the supply development …

Dusty Hahn is a fifth generation cattle rancher from Townsend, Montana, which is located near the headwaters of the Missouri River in southwestern Montana. After attending college at Montana State University in Bozeman and earning a degree in agricultural operations technology, he returned to the family ranch where he works with his father, brother, cousin, uncle, and grandmother to ensure …

Cody Fry from Armstrong, Texas, manages the historic Armstrong Ranch in deep south Texas that encompasses 43,000 acres. He was raised in Bellville, Texas, and graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science in 1997. Cody completed his master’s in 1999 from Texas A&M in animal science with an emphasis in beef cattle breeding. He …

Malorie Bankhead grew up on her family’s cow-calf ranch in Livermore, California, heavily involved in the local 4-H and FFA groups. She graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communication and an emphasis in animal science. In 2009, Malorie served as the California Beef Ambassador, and in 2010 she served as a …

Shad D. Nelson received his Ph.D. in Soil Science from the University of California, Riverside. He was appointed to the faculty at Texas A&M University-Kingsville in 2001 and holds the rank of Professor and Research Scientist in the Department of Agriculture, Agribusiness and Environmental Sciences and TAMUK Citrus Center, respectively. He currently holds the position of Dean for the Dick …

David received a Bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Colorado State University (1987). He studied bear nutrition for his Master’s degree at Washington State University (1989) and ruffed grouse nutrition and ecology at Virginia Tech for his Ph.D. (1994). He lectured at Humboldt State University and held a post-doctoral research position at Utah State University before joining the Caesar Kleberg …

Neal Wilkins is the President and CEO of the East Foundation, a private operating foundation supporting wildlife conservation and other benefits of ranching and private land stewardship.  The Foundation operates 218,000 acres of private ranchland in South Texas, where it achieves its mission through research, education and outreach. Neal has over 25 years of experience leading research and conservation efforts …

Mark Kossler is the General Manager of Turner Enterprises Western Ranches in Bozeman, Montana. In this capacity, Kossler oversees the management of 16 ranches in the western U.S. consisting of approximately 1.9 million acres; 51,000 bison; and 250 employees.  All ranches raise bison commercially as well as incorporating numerous wildlife and conservation projects into their operations. Kossler graduated from the …

Erik Jacobsen is Vice-President & General Manager of Cattle Operations for AgReserves, Inc. headquartered at Deseret Ranches in St. Cloud, Florida. Erik began work at AgReserves in 1986 as a cattle foreman on Deseret Ranches of Florida and has been serving as Vice-President & General Manager since 2006.  He worked for Smithfield Foods from 1995 to 2006 in various management …

Bob McCan of Victoria, Texas, oversees the cattle operations and recreational hunting and wildlife operations for his family’s company, McFaddin Enterprises, Ltd. in Victoria, Refugio, and Bee Counties. The ranches are stocked with Victoria cattle, a commercial cross-bred of three-fourths Hereford and one fourth Brahman with a uniform Hereford coloring. McCan was born in Victoria County on October 16, 1957. …

Caroline A. Forgason graduated with a BA from University of Texas at Austin Plan II with honors in 1978. She continued her education at Columbia University School of Business where she earned her MBA in 1985. For 12 years, Forgason ranched in the Davis Mountains on the Caldwell Ranch. Forgason has served as a board member for several organizations, including …