President, AgResource Company
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 1:10 p.m.
Global Market Update
Dan Basse serves as president of AgResource Company, a domestic and international agricultural research firm located in Chicago. A commodity economist since 1979, Dan forecasts domestic and world agricultural price trends and provides information and research to farmers, elevators, soy and corn processors, wheat millers, food companies, trading companies, importers, exporters and meat packers. Raised on a dairy/grain farm in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Dan has a keen sense of production agriculture and graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Madison with a master’s in agriculture economics. In 1988 Dan founded AgResource Company to serve the market research needs of the world agricultural community, often holding global conferences in Canada, Switzerland and Brazil.
Meat Director, Roche Bros Supermarkets
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2:00 p.m.
What Your Ultimate Customer Wants
Frank Vitale’s love for the meat business earned him the title meat director in 1993 for Roche Bros Supermarkets, but he’s been part of the business since 1978. The 16 Massachusetts grocery stores are known for offering high-quality meat departments, bringing in customers from their marketing area and beyond. Frank values having a variety of high-quality products alongside great customer service to build a loyal base of return consumers. When he’s not serving the meat department, Frank enjoys spending time with his wife, celebrating 47 years together this year.
President/CEO, SQV Inc.
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2:00 p.m.
What Your Ultimate Customer Wants
Service. Quality. Value. That’s what SQV Inc. stands for and the core values Dale Zimmerman and his staff strive to uphold every day. Under the SQV umbrella are two Bismark, N.D., restaurants where beef steals the show. Peacock Alley received the 2012 National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Beef Innovator of the Year award, while 40 Steak and Seafood earned the 2018 Certified Angus Beef ® Steakhouse of the Year award. Dale learned the value the beef industry offers to various businesses during his time as executive vice president for Natuzzi, the world’s largest leather furniture manufacturer in Italy.
President, Lombardi Brothers Meats
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2:00 p.m.
What Your Ultimate Customer Wants
Lombardi Brothers Meats is owned and operated by Victoria Philips and her husband Vance. The fourth generation to work in the meat industry, Victoria provides knowledgeable leadership and expertise when assuring quality and excellent customer service to the Colorado company’s sophisticated clientele. The Philips bought sole ownership of Lombardi Brothers in 2010, moving their family west to run the company full time. Victoria grew up in a LeMars, Iowa, where her father owned Harker’s Meats until 1986. From 2006 to 2008, she and her brother had the opportunity to purchase Harker’s Meats back and worked together as a family until it was sold again. Victoria has three children, Peter, Maggie and Grant, and was a stay-at-home mom for many years in between the meat business acquisitions. Her daughter has worked for Lombardi for five years, making her the fifth generation to work in the meat industry and hopefully many more generations in the future.
Head of Corporate Communications, JBS USA
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 3:20 p.m.
Packer Perspective
Nikki Richardson leads Corporate Communications for JBS USA. With nearly 15 years of experience in public relations and corporate communications, Nikki is responsible for managing the internal and external communications efforts of the company, including reputation management, crisis communications, media relations, thought leadership, digital strategy and content creation. Previously, she led several food industry accounts at a public relations, crisis communications and social media marketing firm in Dallas, Texas. She has also served as the senior director of issues and reputation management at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, where she focused on proactively telling farmer and rancher stories to key stakeholders and reactively protecting the reputation of cattle producers and the beef industry. Nikki has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications from Oklahoma State University, a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Colorado and is accredited in public relations by the Public Relations Society of America. She, her husband Michael and daughter Joy Rose live in Northern Colorado.
Head of Cattle Procurement, JBS USA
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 3:20 p.m.
Packer Perspective
Getting the right cattle, for the right plant, at the right time--that’s the job Steve Williams and his team of cattle buyers do every day for JBS USA. Steve grew up on a farm and ranch near Gould, Oklahoma, and attended Oklahoma State University. After graduating with a double major in animal science and ag business, Steve began his career as a cattle buyer in the Texas panhandle. He worked on the procurement team in various roles and then saw the other side of the supply chain, managing distribution centers across the country, before returning to fill the role of Head of Cattle Procurement in 2010.
Head, Department of Animal Science, Colorado State University
Tuesday, Aug. 24, 6:40 p.m.
Where Science is Taking Us
Keith Belk is head of the Department of Animal Science for Colorado State University, as well as an adjunct professor in the Colorado School of Public Health. His research extends beyond beef quality and safety into live animal development and international marketing of red meats and quality management systems. He has served as a professor, holder of the Ken and Myra Monfort Endowed Chair in Meat Science and director of the Center for Meat Safety and Quality at CSU. Keith earned B.S. and M.S. degrees from CSU and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. His career started as a buyer for Safeway, Inc. and then an international marketing specialist for the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. He returned to CSU in 1995, where he has authored or co-authored 252 refereed scientific journal articles, shared over 530 presentations, generated more than $22 million in extramural research funding and been the primary inventor on two patents. He served as the state meat extension specialist between 1995 and 2000, on the editorial board for the Journal of Animal Science in 1997-2000, on the board of directors for the American Meat Science Association (AMSA) between 2003-2005, and as president of AMSA in 2009-2010.
Director of the Sustainable Livestock Systems Collaborative and a Professor of Animal Science, Colorado State University
Wednesday, Aug. 25, 8:05 a.m.
What To Do About Evolving Demands
Kim Stackhouse-Lawson is director of the Sustainable Livestock Systems Collaborative and a professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University. The Sustainable Livestock Systems Collaborative was launched to assist the animal agriculture supply chain find solutions to feed 12.3 billion people by 2100 by promoting animal health and addressing environmental challenges, all in an economically sustainable way. Prior to her time at CSU, Kim was the Director of Sustainability for JBS USA where she was responsible for coordinating the North American sustainability program, inclusive of the company’s beef, pork, poultry, case ready, transportation and branded product business. She also served as the Executive Director of Global Sustainability at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association where she developed the industry’s sustainability program and is a past Chair of U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef. Kim received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis and was a postdoctoral fellow at Kansas State University. She was most recently awarded as the 2018 Distinguished Young Alumni by the UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. She and her husband, Spencer have two sons, Weston and Callan.
Strategic and Product Lead, Performance Livestock Analytics
Wednesday, Aug. 25, 8:50 a.m.
Precision Livestock: Technology that Creates Solutions
Justin Sexten, Ph.D., is the strategic and product lead for Performance Livestock Analytics, a part of Zoetis. His background helps bridge the customer success, sales and development teams, ensuring practical, innovative solutions for producers. Justin has served as director of supply development for the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, where he led the education and research efforts with cattle ranchers, academia and allied industry. He was also the State Extension Beef Nutrition Specialist at the University of Missouri with a research focus on forage-use efficiency. He continues to operate a small stocker operation and consulting nutrition business. Raised on a diversified livestock and row-crop farm near Washington Court House, Ohio, Justin earned his animal science degree from the University of Kentucky and his master’s and doctorate degrees in ruminant nutrition from the University of Illinois. Justin, his wife Julie, and their three daughters reside in Columbia, MO.
Meat Scientist, Certified Angus Beef LLC
Wednesday, Aug. 25, 9:55 a.m.
Beyond Marbling
As the corporate meat scientist for the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, Dr. Daniel Clark engages and educates partners about beef quality and meat science at The Culinary Center and meat labs across the country. He also focuses on beef innovation and supports marketing efforts to help drive sales of the very best Angus beef.
The Illinois native received his bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees in animal science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He then journeyed to Wooster, Ohio, where he resides with his wife, Diana, and their daughter, Idamarie, to complete his post-doctoral research at The Ohio State University (OSU). Before joining the Certified Angus Beef ® brand team, Daniel also worked at OSU as an assistant professor, where he taught meat science classes, researched livestock production and meat quality, and developed a food-safety certificate program.
Daniel’s interest in cattle began on his family’s farm, and through participation in 4-H, FFA and Angus cattle shows. It wasn’t until he started participating in collegiate meat judging competitions that his passion for meat science was sparked. When he’s not in a meat lab, he enjoys spending time with family, whether they are gardening, traveling or simply relaxing at home.
Director of Packing, Certified Angus Beef LLC
Wednesday, Aug. 25, 9:55 a.m.
Beyond Marbling
As director of packing for the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, Clint Walenciak works with meat companies to supply distributors, restaurants and grocery stores worldwide with beef meeting the brand’s 10 quality standards. During his 20+ years with the brand, Clint has assisted customers with supply and pricing information to advance their success with premium beef. He also leads communications with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which provides unbiased evaluation of beef for the brand’s G-1 specifications, working across the industry to understand new approaches in beef grading and product selection for the brand. Clint can also be found at The Culinary Center, serving as a guest instructor in the Meat Lab.
Clint grew up on a family ranch in Oklahoma. It was a natural step for him to then attend Oklahoma State University, where he earned a master’s degree in meat science. He resides in Wooster, Ohio, with his wife Deanna, and two sons.
Professor, Texas Tech University
Wednesday, Aug. 25, 10:50 a.m.
Feeding Cattle During a Pandemic: What We Learned and What’s Next
Since 2008, Brad Johnson has served as the Gordon W. Davis Regent’s chair in Meat Science and Muscle Biology and been a professor in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences at Texas Tech University. His research has used exogenous growth promotants like steroidal implants and beta adrenergic agonists to study muscle growth in livestock, with a recent focus on chromium and zinc effects. Additionally, his team has developed novel means to enhance marbling in beef. Prior to Tech, he was an assistant and associate professor at Kansas State University. He has also worked at South Dakota State University in extension and as an assistant professor. The South Dakota native earned his bachelor’s degree from SDSU and a master’s and doctorate from the University of Minnesota.
Assistant Director, Producer Engagement, Certified Angus Beef LLC
"Emcee"
As the supply programs manager for the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, Kara Lee coordinates marketing and training initiatives for cattlemen. She also teaches distributors, chefs and retailers about daily cattle care on family farms that’s necessary to raise high-quality beef. Through hands-on farm and feedyard experiences, Kara helps people selling Certified Angus Beef ® brand products increase their beef knowledge and appreciate the dedication of family ranchers. Originally from southern Indiana, Kara earned her bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications and community leadership at the University of Kentucky and gained greater passion for the beef community by working in the university’s meat lab.
