Message from the President

Home isn’t where the connections are made…

But association meetings, county fairs and the local grocery super center are!

Over the past month, we met with Idaho State Parks and Recreation on efforts to address the challenges of increasing recreation use in the state. We held a District 2 informational meeting in Emmett and Idaho Cattle Association leadership participated in the NCBA business meeting in Reno. We also attended the Owyhee County Cattleman’s summer meeting in Silver City and the Public Lands Council meeting in Cody - all representing your association. I am struck by, and always appreciate, the number of people who somehow find time to participate in directing our industry beyond their individual operations.

As I told the Owyhee group, “I left my ranch working like a clock to come here. It’s a broken clock, but even so, it’s still right twice a day.” It’s hard to leave home, but our perspective can get awfully narrow if we never get away.

The winners of the 2021 Environmental Stewardship award were announced during the NCBA meeting. The program has been in existence for thirty years. Idaho has had one regional winner and one overall winner in those thirty years. I believe if we all put some thought to it, there are ranches around us that deserve to be nominated. NCBA membership is not required. The application can be found online. I think we could have a winner in 2023.

Fall is on its way and fair season is coming to a close. The Eastern and Western Idaho State Fairs, as well as Twin Falls and Latah County fairs, are the Final Four. Fairs give us a good reason to go to town and catch up with folks. They also give us an opportunity to see people we wouldn’t otherwise see outside of a WalMart Super Center.

Since this is our feeder issue, I want to take my hat off to all of the burgeoning feeders across the state who feed market animals in 4-H and FFA. Many hours are spent over the course of these projects. The culminating activity is the market animal sale at their county fair. I was asked to be one of the bid callers for the Bingham County sale. Arnold Callison, who serves as one of your District 5 Representatives, was the auctioneer for the four and a half hour marathon. He volunteers his time at county fairs all around the region and attends 2-3 sales per week during fair season. I’m sure the slate of buyers looked the same as your county: family, friends, and those all-important businesses that step up to support the kids and make a contribution toward their education. The time spent and the effort put forth has a ripple effect that carries for generations.

I’m sure the slate of buyers looked the same as your county: family, friends, and those all-important businesses that step up to support the kids and make a contribution toward their education.

BY MARK PRATT ICA President

AARON GOLLADAY