Ranchers Investing in Ranchers
It started in the 1980s with a simple but powerful belief. If ranchers invest in research and education, the entire industry benefits.
Rooted in that belief, the Livestock Memorial Research Fund, an arm of the California Cattlemen’s Association, has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to promote scientific and educational projects, while also awarding more than 150,000 dollars in graduate scholarships for students in ag related fields.
Their signature projects have included working to develop three important vaccines to address serious problems cattlemen encounter. The first, approved in late 2020, prevents epizootic bovine abortion, a tick borne disease that once caused calf losses of 10% to 40% in some areas. Today, those losses have dropped to between 5% and 10%. “That was truly a home run for the industry,” said Tom Talbot, a rancher and veterinarian in Bishop.
With two additional vaccines in development and ongoing scholarship support, the Fund continues investing in the future of California ranching.
To learn more about the Livestock Memorial Research Fund, visit https://farmcreditalliance.com/research-fund-drives-vaccine-breakthroughs-for-cattlemen/
