Dieticians "Meat" their Neighbors, Get a Closer Look at Beef Production

By Celeste Laurent/Farm to Fork

60 dietitians experienced beef long before it reaches the grocery store when they toured four Warren County cattle farms on April 21 at the Kentucky Beef Council’s “Meat Your Neighbor” Tour.

The tour was a workshop option for participants at the Kentucky Dietetics Association Food and Nutrition Conference being held in Bowling Green. Almost all tour participants were dietitians or nutrition professionals though some local guests attended as well.

“Our goal was to tell our beef and dairy stories. Dietitians are health influencers, thus they interact with other consumers on a regular basis and we want them to be able to share their experiences on the farms with their clientele,” said Alison Smith, Director of Marketing for the Kentucky Beef Council.

As a writer for the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association’s Cow Country News, I was invited to attend the event and accompany the tour’s participants to the four local farms.

Student employee Josh Lichlyter shows dieticians a copy of the medical records kept on WKU's beef cattle. (Celeste Laurent/Farm to Fork)

Tour stops included the WKU Beef Unit, Chaney’s Dairy Barn, Pleasant Hill Farms and Green Valley Cattle Company. At each stop, the farmers showed the dietitians around their farms and discussed how they raised their cattle.

At their first stop of the day, participants visited the WKU Beef Unit. Student workers were present to discuss the every day tasks of the university farm and the unique learning environment it presents for WKU Agriculture Department students.

“Our facilities are state of the art so students won’t get hurt and can learn to work with cattle safely,” explained student employee Nathan Dekemper of Jasper, Ind.

“We keep medical records on every animal at the farm. This helps us keep them healthy and the beef safe and its good practice for us when we run our own farms someday,” said beef unit employee Josh Lichlyter of Duff, Ind.

Dietician Lisa Roberson was one of many on the "Meat Your Neighbor Tour" to get to know "Miss Glimmer," a Jersey dairy cow the Chaney family uses for demonstrations. (Celeste Laurent/Farm to Fork)

Next on the agenda was a lunch stop and tour at Chaney’s Dairy Barn.

Participants watched as Carl Chaney milked a cow, discussed the daily routine of dairy farming and the challenges facing family farmers.

“If it wasn’t for the ice cream store I would have had to sell my cows last year. I don’t want to do that, but when you’re losing $5000 a week you don’t have much choice,” Chaney said.

Following the presentation they were able to pet both a milking cow and a young calf and lunch was served at the Dairy Barn.

From Chaney’s the dietitians traveled to Pleasant Hill Farms registered Angus farm where owner Gill Cowles spoke about raising purebred cattle.

Gill Cowles discusses different breeds of cattle at his purebred Angus farm in Rockfield. (Celeste Laurent/Farm to Fork)

“Obviously I like Angus cattle the best, that’s what I raise; but every breed is unique and has something to offer” said Cowles.

Cowles discussed the different types of beef marketing programs but emphasized that each shopper is different and should choose the beef that best fits their lifestyle.

“Beef’s the single greatest source of protein we’ve got. Its up to us to work together and teach people that,” said Cowles.

Billy Ray Smith of Green Valley Cattle Company discussed the importance of forages to raising cattle on his 5th generation beef cattle farm. (Celeste Laurent/Farm to Fork)

The farm visits rounded out with a stop at Green Valley Cattle Company. Owner Billy Ray Smith emphasized the importance of forages on a Kentucky cattle farm.

“We’re in the cattle business which really means we’re in the grass business,” Smith explained, “People think that cattle aren’t being fed grass and put on pastures anymore and that isn’t true. They’re out in a field almost their entire lives.”

For participants the tour was an eye opening experience.

“I just buy beef and milk and never think about all the work that goes into it,” said Brittany Eaton, a dietitian with the health department in Somerset, Ky.

“I’m a city boy so any time I go to a farm I learn. I like the taste of food, I like to cook food, so I like to see where it comes from,” said Rich Patterson with the WKU Hospitality Management Nutrition and Dietetics.

According to Smith, the most meaningful part of the tour was the opportunity to interact one-on-one with beef producers.

“We are proud of what we produce every day; it is not only a livelihood but a love for the land and the animals,” said Smith.