Gainesville —
Local livestock barons and visiting agricultural vendors joined company for Thursday’s annual meeting of the Cooke County Beef Cattle Improvement Association (CCBCIA).
The meeting at Gainesville Civic Center included a banquet and live music by Jeff Gore. Its chief purpose was to offer ranchers a sales array of farming products plus a presentation of special awards prior to the association’s annual business meeting.
Texas AgriLife Extension Agent Wayne Becker said the nonprofit organization formed in 2003, following a perceived need to help promote the local livestock industry and representatives of agricultural businesses.
“The beef and cattle industry is far and away the most economically important agricultural industry in the county,” Becker said Thursday. “It involves the most number of people in the county, by far.”
Becker later released information indicating the industry’s local impact. Using cash value projections for agriculture production, composed by Texas AgriLife Extension Service, the livestock industry has continually been the most significant segment of the agricultural economy in Cooke County. Total livestock contribution to agriculture output was $44.4 million in 2011, which is 59 percent of all receipts. Supporting commodities such as forages and feed crops contribute another $24.3 million or an additional 32 percent.
The beef cattle industry dominates Cooke County’s agricultural commodities in number of people involved and in economic importance. The last complete agricultural census available from 2007 identified 1,343 farms with beef cattle. The most recent Texas AgriLife Extension Service’s cash value projections (2011) suggest the beef industry contributed $31.3 million to the county’s economy, which represented about 42 percent of all agricultural output.
And during Thursday’s banquet, Becker added that the annual CCBCIA meeting, with its live music and catered dinners, is always also a social gathering that celebrates the lifestyle of ranching.
“Being part of the beef and cattle industry is a way of life as much as it is a living,” he said. “People do it because that’s what they want to do, and they’re passionate about it.”
The banquet included a $500 scholarship presentation to Jake Williams, a North Central Texas College student and fourth-generation cattle rancher. He said his family has had a presence in both Cooke County and the cattle industry since 1891.
The student also said he currently works with family-owned Williams-Ferguson Ranch LP and added that he intends to stay connected with the beef and cattle business for life.
“It’s a big part of all North Texas and it’s the background of everything,” Williams said Thursday. “It’s a very major part of the economy around here. There’s a lot of young ranchers and new, upcoming ranchers. Some people say it’s dying out, but you need those younger guys to step in. Because everybody’s gotta eat beef, I guess, in the long run. So we’re providing for the whole area.”
Local News
County beef cattle association hosts annual banquet
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