Beef Improvement Federation Research Symposium and Convention
Beef Improvement Federation Research Symposium and Convention
June 1-3, 2022 • Las Cruces, New Mexico
Click here for information on the 2023 BIF Symposium to be hosted in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, July 3-6.

2022 BIF Symposium in the Books

Coverage available on Awards, Newsroom pages.

More than 300 leaders in the beef industry attended the 54th Annual Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) Research Symposium and Convention hosted June 1-3, 2022, in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Academia, industry affiliates, seedstock producers and commercial cattlemen gathered for a 2½-day program focused on sustainability, global adaptation, technical advances and celebrating outstanding achievements.

Young Producer Symposium and Pre-Tour
Events kicked off Wednesday, June 1, with a Young Producer Symposium and Pre-Tour at the Santa Teresa Border crossing, the largest livestock crossing facility in the United States. All attendees were invited to the tour, which included a lunch sponsored by Santa Teresa Livestock Auction and Asociación Ganadera Local de Juarez.

General sessions
Thursday’s opening general session at the Las Cruces Convention Center focused on “Sustainability: Rhetoric vs. Reality.” Keynote presentations included Ruaraidh Petre, executive director of the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef; John Crowley, AbacusBio of New Zealand; and Jason Sawyer, associate professor and research scientist for the King Ranch Institute® for Ranch Management at Texas A&M University–Kingsville.

At Friday’s general session, speakers focused on “Global Perspectives on Adaptation and Genetic Prediction.” Featured were Tony Clayton, president of Clayton Agri-Marketing; Billy Estrada, Tres Marias Ranch, Mexico; and Phil George, Miratorg Agribusiness Holding production director, beef & lamb operations, Moscow, Russia.

Technical session
The technical breakout sessions hosted Thursday and Friday afternoons focused on a range of beef-production and genetic-improvement topics. The six sessions featured beef-industry advancements presented by the organization’s six standing committees: Genomics and Genetic Prediction, Producer Applications, Efficiency and Adaptablity, Emerging Technology, End Product Improvement, and Selection Decisions. Each committee featured four unique presentations, with topics ranging from the ramifications for cow nutrition on final body composition to heart disease among feedlot cattle to sequencing as the foundation for a modern agri-genomics.

Angus Media will be posting coverage to the general and technical sessions in the Newsroom.

Honoring achievement
Award luncheons provided opportunity to honor those making outstanding efforts toward the organization’s mission, whether at the student, professional or herd level.

Please find coverage of the award winners in the "Awards" page.

Get ready
Next year’s symposium will be hosted in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, July 3-6, just ahead of the Calgary Stampede. For more information visit www.visitcalgary.com/BIF2023. For more information about BIF, visit www.beefimprovement.org or contact: Angie Stump Denton, BIF communication coordinator, at 785-562-6197; or Bob Weaber, BIF executive director, at 785-532-1460.

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