| Extension
Service Plays Key Role In International Livestock
Exposition
| |
|
“When you consider this is the biggest livestock show
in the world and beef is a major enterprise in
Doug Shepherd, Hardin County Extension agent for agriculture and natural resources |
By Laura Skillman LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Nov. 24,
2004) – Every November the world’s largest purebred livestock show comes
to Louisville and members of the University of Kentucky Cooperative
Extension Service pitch in their time and talents to ensure its
success. Beef, sheep, dairy and swine
specialists help with the varying shows during the two-week event.
Agricultural Extension agents and 4-H Youth Development agents also
volunteer their time to perform a myriad of tasks needed to pull off the
North American International Livestock Exposition at the Kentucky State
Fair and Harold Workman, president
and chief executive officer of the Kentucky State Fair Board, said the
North American began in 1974 in the Kentucky Department of Agriculture and
was moved to the state fair board along with him in the mid 1980s. It
began with only a beef show. “It’s a multifaceted
livestock show that includes about nine different species of livestock,”
he said. “We started with about 2,200 entries the first year and we’re
well over 22,000 entries now. It has grown tremendously and is probably
one of two major livestock shows in the More than 200,000 people
from across the country and the world will visit the exposition. The North
American’s impact is about $15 million and it takes many people to make
the show a success. “Our staff is really a very
small piece of what it takes to put on an expo of this size,” Workman
said. “The North American staff is made up of about eight or 10 people who
work on it full time. But it takes resources from the Kentucky Department
of Agriculture and the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture to
provide a large number of volunteers who come in and produce the various
events, whether it’s the dairy show or the sheep show or beef show. There
are volunteer agents and even some of the professors that come in and
spend time producing these events and without them we could not pull it
off.” Doug Shepherd, Hardin County
Extension agent for agriculture and natural resources, has been helping
with the North American since it came to Shepherd estimates that
about half of his 40-member staff are Extension or “Both (retired) Dean Oran
Little and Dean Scott Smith believe this is an important event that
Extension needs to be a part of,” he said. “When you consider this is the
biggest livestock show in the world and beef is a major enterprise in
Shepherd said the event
offers He will be handing the role
of beef superintendent to Todd Holbrook, Lee County Extension agent for
agriculture and natural resources. When
the show returns in 2005, they will serve as co-superintendents. Holbrook first began coming
to the livestock show when he was a student at “I really like this show,”
he said. “I think it really has a lot to provide for the state, our people
and communities.” Holbrook said he also likes
the cooperative spirit from Extension, the state Department of Agriculture
and fairground staff. “The staff that has been put
together over the years is a heck of a team,” he said.
Before the beef cattle move
into UK Extension swine
specialist Richard Coffey has been assisting with the swine shows for
about 12 years and classifies the showmanship as probably the best
competition of its kind in the country. The young people are what draw him
back year after year. They enjoy the camaraderie and competitions that the
event affords them. “It is good experience for
the kids,” he said. “They tell us they enjoy the showmanship because it is
something they have to work on individually.”
-30- Writer: Laura Skillman 270-365-7541 ext. 278 Source: Doug
Shepherd, 270-765-4121; Todd Holbrook, 606-464-2759; Richard Coffey, Return to Main News page. |
