The 41st edition of the Northwest Florida Beef Cattle Conference & Trade Show was truly a special event that was held in Marianna, Florida on February 11th.  There were five educational presentations provided by UF/IFAS Extension Faculty, along with a trade show with 20 booths with representatives who provided information about products and services for cattle producers.  The event concluded with wonderful grilled steak lunch prepared by the Jackson County Cattlemen’s Association’s famous “Cooking Crew,” and the Jackson County Extension Staff.

Many of the participants at the event were interested in copies of the presentations that were provided, so this article provides access to the information that was shared at the conference.  The focus of the 2026 Beef Cattle Conference was “Don’t Get Sloppy! Managing Your Ranch Well.”  The main idea was to focus on the key concepts that can boost efficient production to take full advantage of a high market in 2026.  (Use the blue text links to view each presentation).

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Managing Well in a High Market

 

Hannah Baker, UF/IFAS Cattle & Forage Economics Specialized Agent, shared a summary of recent data from multiple reports that show the U.S. cattle herd inventory has not increased significantly, and the positive impact that will likely have on cattle prices in 2026 and 2027.  She also shared that input prices are expected are expected to remain elevated, so it will still be very important for ranchers to continue to manage costs efficiently in 2026.

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1 – Baker Managing Well in a High Market

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Managing Your Cow Herd Well

 

 

Dr. Todd Thrift, UF/IFAS Cow-Calf Extension Specialist, was the keynote speaker who shared a discussion of the Do’s and Don’ts of cow-calf herd management.  He shared quite a few reminders of the key points of herd management.  His presentation tied in very well with the overall theme of the event, which was “Don’t Get Sloppy.”  He encouraged ranchers to take advantage of the opportunities that 2026 will provide.

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2 – Thrift Managing Your Cow Herd Well

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Managing Pastures Well

 

Dr. Marcelo Wallau, UF/IFAS Forage Specialist, discussed managing pasture well.  Key areas of management he discussed were: What is good pasture management?, Fertilization strategies, Pasture renovation, and Diversifying forage species.  Cost management for cow-calf ranches is highly dependent on productive forages.

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3-Wallau Managing Pastures Well

 

 

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Pasture Weed Management Update

 

Dr Brent Sellers, UF/IFAS Pasture Weed Specialist, provided on overview of the 14 herbicides labeled in Florida for pasture use.  He discussed two troublesome grass weeds: smutgrass and Australian Beardgrass.  Smutgrass treatments can be frustrating, as demonstrated in the photo above, you want to have 1/4′ of rain after treatment, but not too much.

4 – Sellers Weed Control in Pastures

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Record Keeping for Ranch Analysis & Benchmarks

Doug Mayo, UF/IFAS Extension Jackson County, discussed record keeping systems for cow-calf ranchers.  In the image above you can see the primary categories of records that he recommends maintaining.  But, record keeping is just buys work if you don’t use them for end of year analysis.  Once you know your production, income, and expenses, you can set benchmarks or targets to aim for to improve the overall profitability of your operation.

5- Mayo Record Keeping for Ranch Analysis & Benchmarks

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If you have further questions, be sure to contact your local county extension agricultural agent, so we can get the best information to help you manage your cattle ranch well in 2026.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In addition to the presentations, there was a Trade Show of 20 businesses and organizations that provide goods and services to support cattle production in the Tri-State Region. The following were a few photos from the Trade Show.

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Special thanks to the sponsors that made this meeting possible. I have contact information for every one of the representatives in the Trade Show, so let me know if you would like to make contact with any of the following organization representatives.–

I would also like to thank the Jackson County Cattlemen’s “Cooking Crew” for marinating and grilling the steaks for lunch, and the UF/IFAS Extension Jackson County Staff that prepared the sides and fresh strawberries and served the crowd in less than 20 minutes.

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Mark your calendar and make plans to attend the 42nd annual Beef Cattle Conference & Trade Show.  We will review your suggestions on this year’s exit surveys and build another strong lineup of speakers and sponsors for next year’s event.

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Wednesday, February 10, 2027!