MSGA holds annual convention

Staff and wire report

Montana Stockgrowers Association had a busy week last week during its 138th Annual Convention and Trade Show in Billings.

On the final day of convention, attendees finalized policy, elected the 2023 board of directors, and had multiple activities including a general session, a trade show, stockgrowers colleges, the Presidents Lunch and the Grand Finale Banquet. 

Thursday, the association held the Opening General Session, Stockgrowers Colleges, Northern Ag Network and Best of Beef Lunch, Tax, Finance and Ag Policy Committee, and the Trade Show Celebration Dinner. 

Last Wednesday, the first day of the convention and trade show, meetings were held for the Montana Stockgrowers Foundation, Montana Public Lands Council, Montana Association of State Grazing Districts and the Young Stockgrowers.

The organization’s leadership was announced during Friday’s Grand Finale Banquet. The board of directors consists of 13 members, two directors from each of the five districts and three elected officers. MSGA directors volunteer their time to travel to industry issues and meetings to ensure representation of Montana’s ranching families.

Representatives from the Montana CattleWomen and Young Stockgrowers also hold seats on the MSGA board.

Election results announced Friday include:

Newly elected directors:

• John Grande of Martinsdale, president;

• Lesley Robinson of Dodson, first vice president, and

• Turk Stovall of Billings, second vice president.

Returning board officers and directors:

• Dana Darlington of Big Sandy, North Central District;

• Rich Roth of Big Sandy, North Central District;

• Lon Reukauf of Terry, Northeastern District;

• Keith Dynneson of Sidney, Northeastern District;

• Todd Olsen of Lewistown, South Central District;

• Dusty Hahn of Townsend, South Central District;

• Monty Lesh of Miles City, Southeastern District;

• Bob Sitz of Harrison, Western District;

• John Hagenbarth of Glen, Western District;

• Devin Murnin of Billings, Young Stockgrowers chair;  

• Ian Glennie of Judith Gap, Young Stockgrowers vice chair, and

• Suze Bohleen, Montana Cattlewomen president.

One of the highlights of the 2022 Annual Convention and Trade Show was the prizes awarded to MSGA members. This year, MSGA raffled and auctioned multiple prizes over the course of the convention. Recipients included:

• Nutra-Lix Handcrafted Saddle: Todd Olson

• Agri-Best Feeds One Ton of SweetPro Feed: Perri Jacobs 

• Agri-Best Feeds One Pallet of Redmond Natural Trace Mineral: Lane Nordlund 

• Massey Ferguson Tractor: Richard Dunbar 

• Producer Partnership 27 Tons of Hay Auction: Yellowstone Cattle Feeders

• Western Ranch Supply $500 Gift Certificate: Alan Ferrington 

• C250 Cancrete Waterer: John Grande 

• CandB Operations Toolbox: Lesley Robinson

• CandB Operations Battery Charger: Dynneson Ranch and Feedlot 

• Mountain West Ags One Ton of Protein Blocks: Dennis Descheemaeker

MSGA thanked its sponsors who donated these items. Proceeds from the auctions will support educational programs and opportunities for members in the coming year.

Thursday, the day started with the Opening General Session, sponsored by Montana Livestock Ag Credit, where members heard updates from the Montana Stockgrowers Association leadership, Montana Public Land Council, Public Land Council, Montana Stockgrowers Foundation, Montana Cattlewomen, American National Cattlewomen and Montana Beef Council.

Keynote speaker Troy Applehans of CattleFax, sponsored by Yellowstone Cattle Feeders, gave attendees a look at the future cattle markets, noting optimism in the cattle markets in the next year.

The morning was then filled with Stockgrowers Colleges, where attendees were able to dive deeper into topics ranging from financial planning to rangeland solutions. Each session gave attendees an inside look on a different topic in the beef industry. 

The Northern Ag Network Best of Beef Lunch, sponsored by Northwest Farm Credit Services, opened with remarks from Montana State University Waded Cruzado.

Todd Olson of Lewistown, was drawn as the winner of the Nutra-Lix saddle raffle and awards were then presented to the Steer of Merit and Cattle Drive winners. To close, attendees heard from Ethan Lane, vice president of government affairs at National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, about the political climate on Capitol Hill, the Farm Bill and the legislative outlook for 2023.

MSGA members continued policy discussion during the Tax, Finance and Ag Policy Committee along with updates from the Montana Department of Agriculture and the Rancher Stewardship Alliance.

Members voted to pass policy to support legislation to reclassify land taken out of production agriculture practices to compensate counties for the loss of production agriculture economic activity. 

The day concluded with the Trade Show dinner, sponsored by Producer Partnership, Tractor and Equipment Supply Co. and Envu, where attendees explored the trade show and networked with other industry professionals.

Last Wednesday, MSGA members participated in policy discussion during the Land Use and Environment Committee meeting to vote on policy and receive updates from the Bureau of Land Management, Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. 

The Young Stockgrowers held their annual meeting and heard from Joe Kovanda, chief development and strategy officer at Compass Ag Insurance, who discussed how his experiences in the agriculture industry has shaped his career. 

The day wrapped up at the Young Stockgrowers Kick Off Social hosted by Hall and Hall where attendees had the chance to network with friends new and old.