Midwest Highland Cattle
Association
Minutes of the 2005 Annual Membership Meeting
Saturday,
February 19,
2005
Call to Order
The Midwest Highland Cattle Association 2005 annual meeting was held at the
Pottawatomie Inn, Angola Indiana, on Saturday, February 19, 2005. President
Eddie Mackay called the meeting to order at 12 noon. Members introduced
themselves by giving their name, location, and a sentence or two about their
farm.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes of the 2004
annual meeting were distributed for review by the members. A motion to
accept the minutes as presented was made by Larry Schmahl and seconded by
Tom Snyder. Motion carried.
Treasurer’s Report
The treasurer’s report
listing receipts, disbursements and current balances was presented by
Association Secretary/Treasurer Tom Allan. Jim Pugh questioned whether funds
could be invested in a manner that would generate a greater return. Former
treasurer Mary Van Antwerp said that when she had looked into it, interest
rates were approximately the same on passbook savings as on one-year
certificates, so there was no advantage. Gina Sheets agreed. A motion to
accept the Treasurer’s Report as presented was made by Jim Pugh and seconded
by Tom Snyder. Motion carried.
President’s Report
Association President
Eddie Mackay reported it was a challenging year for him personally,
recovering from a series of cancer surgeries, but that the Midwest and AHCA
had a very busy and notable year.
·
The Central Bull Test
and Heifer Sale in New York netted an excellent showing for Valerie See,
taking the top spot and highest sale price.
·
At the AHCA convention
in Fort Collins, Colorado, Midwest members were elected to several important
posts in the national organization – President, Vice President and Director.
·
Junior member Abby
Snyder gave a presentation to the AHCA Board of Directors, updating them on
her 4-year project in conjunction with Ohio State University researching
market factors that influence beef buyers in favor of Highland beef.
Luncheon
The meeting was recessed
while members enjoyed the buffet luncheon in the dining room, giving an
opportunity to get renew old acquaintances and meet new members.
AHCA Report
Tom Snyder, MWHCA’s
elected representative to AHCA, gave a summary of the AHCA Board meeting in
Fort Collins.
·
Decisions of the AHCA
Board will be published in the Bagpipe
·
Jim Pugh reported that
the AHCA Board heard from the Ethics Committee that a problem has surfaced
for several families who purchased cattle from a breeder who had been
expelled from AHCA and MWHCA in 1998 due to allegations of pedigree
improprieties. The Board resolved that in order to register animals
purchased from that breeder, DNA test results must be submitted for the sire
and dam as well as for the animal for which registration is requested.
·
Eddie Mackay read an
informational bulletin from AHCA reminding members that a 1998 legal
agreement between AHCA and former members Glenn and Carol Bluhm resulted in
their lifetime expulsion from AHCA and a prohibition of their participation
in any AHCA sanctioned event. The AHCA board restated its resolve to
continue to enforce the terms of that agreement.
·
Tom reported that Eddie
Mackay has been appointed to head up an AHCA committee to engage in
long-term planning for the national association.
·
Eddie reminded MWHCA
members that animal registrations may now be done online at the AHCA web
site. The AHCA web site can now be used for a variety of regular business
activities. Eddie urged MWHCA members to purchase advertising on the AHCA
web site to help support the increased utility of the site.
·
Tom reported that the
AHCA Foundation has put together a good scholarship program.
·
Tom gave a preview of
highlights planned for the 2005 Annual Convention in New Hampshire. Pitcher
Mountain Farm and Black Watch Farm are bringing in several excellent chefs
and wait staffs to commemorate Pitcher Mountain’s 50th
anniversary.
·
Jim Pugh gave a preview
of the 2nd International Gathering of Highland Breeders from
around the world. The Gathering will take place in Sheridan, Wyoming. A
highlight is a planned visit to the world’s largest black and red Angus
farm.
·
Tom reported that the
Research Committee is continuing to collect herd data from Highland
breeders, and is supporting the market research project of Hannah Snyder.
AHCA International Show
Jim Pugh asked for the appointment of a committee to take over scheduling
and operation of the AHCA International Show in November. The AHCA
International has turned into a really big show in the six years that he and
Suzanne have run it.
Valerie See offered to
coordinate the show and find a site. She said that Stanley Pugh (no relation
to Jim) offered to help. How and when Jim and Suzanne will hand over
responsibility for the show remains to be worked out.
Continuing Education
Maury Kaerchner, MSU
Cooperative Extension Agent for St Joseph County, Michigan, presented the
continuing education portion of the annual meeting.
 |
AI - A 2-day artificial insemination
school will be held in Manchester, Michigan in March for breeders
interested in becoming AI technicians. There is a substantial fee. |
|
Free newsletter – Maury offers a free
newsletter called “Cattle Call” for beef farmers. Drop an e-mail to
kaercher@msu.edu
. |
|
Free Integrated Resource Management (IRM)
data: Our goal is to give our consumers a pleasant and safe eating
experience. To help accomplish that, Maury offers the IRM Red Book for
record keeping and the IRM Blue Book giving measurements and benchmarks.
To get on the mailing list for the IRM Red Book or IRM Blue Book, drop
an e-mail to
kaercher@msu.edu . |
|
Cow/Calf Seminar – St. Joseph County
Cooperative Extension will be offering a free cow/calf seminar in March. |
|
Hay and grazing – a new hay sellers
list is coming online as well as a grazing list. For details contact
Maury at
kaercher@msu.edu . |
|
Canadian beef – What impact does
reopening the Canadian border have on US beef producers? A group of
American farmers went to Canada to see how safe their cattle industry
is. Then they came back and to see how science is keeping our cattle
industry safe. As a result, the National Cattlemen’s Association is
recommending that American borders be open to Canadian beef, and that we
work together to get Japanese and Korean borders opened to beef from
both countries. |
|
American beef processors lost money
when the border was closed to Canadian beef. In the past, a good share
of Canada’s beef cattle was sent to US packing plants for processing.
When the US closed its borders to Canadian cattle, Canada was forced to
build sufficient capacity to slaughter and process their own beef,
putting US packing plants out of business. Even with the border open,
the packing business will never come back. |
|
Mandatory identification – to establish
complete safety in the beef industry, every animal must be traceable
throughout its lifetime, regardless of county, state or national
borders. The result will be some type of mandatory system that quickly
identifies each individual beef animal, the premise from which it
originates, and its present location. |
|
Bovine TB – other states’ treatment of
Michigan beef has been a problem for Michigan breeders, but we are
making progress in isolating the TB problem in Michigan and in working
with those states to assure them that Michigan cattle will not be a
problem to them. |
AHCA Points Show at
Centreville, Michigan
Eddie reported that the number of entries for the AHCA Points Show at
Centreville, Michigan, in September has increased steadily each year. This
is an excellent venue for introducing Highlands to a lot of people. Last
year approximately 50 Highland Cattle were shown. The Fair Board pays
premiums from first to ninth place, practically guaranteeing that each
exhibitor will win some money. 400,000 pay to attend the fair, resulting in
a tent continuously full of people for an entire week and practically
guaranteeing that exhibitors will sell animals if they have any for sale.
Valerie See is working
with the Centreville Fair Board to coordinate the needs of both the fair and
the Highland breeders who exhibit there. To date the Fair’s management has
been very supportive of Highland breeders by first judging the fair’s
classes and then reassembling the classes according to AHCA guidelines for
judging again.
Beef Expo
Eddie reported that the
Beef Expo at Michigan State University in early April has traditionally been
a good venue for introducing Highland cattle to those raising other breeds.
Larry Alber has usually helped Eddie set up the exhibit at the Beef Expo.
This year Eddie will be unable to attend the Beef Expo. It is available if
anyone else would like to take over showing Highlands at that venue.
Web Site
Dave Van Antwerp
presented a written report on the web site. The number of different visitors
increased again this year. For several months the Midwest Highland Cattle
Association web site has placed in Google’s top 5. The MWHCA ad in Hobby
Farm Magazine made a visible difference in the number of visitors to the web
site.
Hobby Farmer Magazine Ad
Larry Alber showed a copy of Hobby Farmer Magazine and the MWHCA classified
liner ad. He asked if the association should continue the ad. The membership
by acclamation directed renewal of the ad for another year, and suggested
advertising in another farm magazine too.
Highland Handout
Larry Alber suggested
designing and printing a new Midwest Highland handout for shows and fairs.
People ask many questions about the animals – it would be nice to have a
piece of literature to give them. Larry suggested including both photos and
text, and posting the handout on the web site. A motion to authorize $350
for printing the handout was made by Larry Schmahl, with a second by Jim
Smith. The motion carried.
Welcome to Valerie See
as President of MWHCA
Eddie Mackay concluded
his term as President with the thanks of the board and membership. Valerie
See assumed the Presidency and ran the remainder of the meeting.
Election of Officers
|
President-Elect. The
nominating committee presented Dean Dykstra of Bountiful Joy Farm in
Sheridan, Michigan as candidate for the office of President-Elect for a
two-year term. There being no other nominations by mail or from the
floor, a motion to close nominations was made by Larry Schmahl and
seconded by Doug Cooper. Motion carried. |
|
Director. The
nominating committee presented Bill Dotson of Highland Valley Farm in
Cambridge, Ohio as candidate for the office of Director for a
two-year-term. There being no other nominations by mail or from the
floor, a motion to close nominations was made by Larry Schmahl and
seconded by Mary Van Antwerp. Motion carried. |
|
Richard Muntz made a
motion directing the Secretary to cast a unanimous ballot for the slate.
The motion was seconded by Larry Schmahl. Motion carried.
|
|
Valerie See
congratulated and welcomed Dean Dykstra to the Board of Directors as
President-Elect. |
|
Valerie See
congratulated and welcomed Bill Dotson to the Board of Directors as
Director. |
Market Research Project
Abby Snyder gave a
PowerPoint presentation summarizing the results of the second year of her
four-year research project marketing Highland beef. Abby is a high school
student working with Ohio State University in cooperation with the American
Highland Cattle Association. The members applauded Abby for this ambitious
project!
Summer Highland
Barbecues
|
April 23 - Eddie
announced that a barbecue would be held at the farm of AHCA member Tom
Dykstra at Zeeland, Michigan on April 23, with a silent auction for a
large part of Tom’s Highland herd. |
|
July 30 - Doug
Cooper of Heritage Hill Highlands in Owosso, Michigan will host a
barbecue on July 30, with the opportunity to view his excellent cattle
handling facilities. |
|
September - Bill
Dotson of Highland Valley Farm in Cambridge, Ohio will host a barbecue
in September or early October, with an opportunity to view his herd of
50 Highlands and perhaps taste Highland beef prepared by a master chef
who buys his beef from Bill. |
2006 Annual Meeting Date
Valerie surveyed the
members present to find out if they like the meeting place and date. There
being a positive response from the members, Valerie directed Dave Van
Antwerp, meeting coordinator, to reserve the same room for next year’s
meeting on Saturday, February 18.
Submitted for the
Association by
Tom Allan,
Secretary/Treasurer
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| 2005 Annual
Meeting |
Educational Program |
